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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/rahul-baberwal/django-var-cms/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

django-var-cms exposes every visual identity setting through a pair of complementary mechanisms: VAR_CMS_* keys in settings.py (read once at startup) and direct attributes on the var_cms_site singleton (set in any auto-discovered var_cms_admin.py). Both approaches reach the same result — use whichever fits your project structure.

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Configuration via settings.py

All branding settings live under the VAR_CMS_ namespace. None are required; each has a sensible default. 
# settings.py

VAR_CMS_SITE_HEADER  = "VAR CMS"                    # Panel title in header & login page
VAR_CMS_SITE_SUB     = "CONTROL PANEL"              # Subtitle shown beneath the header
VAR_CMS_SITE_URL     = "/"                          # "View Site" link target
VAR_CMS_LOGO_URL     = "/static/var_cms/var.png"    # URL of the logo image
VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLOR = "142, 72%, 45%"              # HSL accent color (Emerald green)
VAR_CMS_ENABLE_OTP   = False                        # Enable email OTP 2FA (see Authentication guide)

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Configuration via var_cms_site

Setting attributes directly on var_cms_site inside a var_cms_admin.py file overrides whatever was read from settings.py. This is useful when you want to keep branding logic close to the app that owns it, or when you need to compute values at startup (e.g. reading from the database or environment variables). 
# myapp/var_cms_admin.py
from var_cms.registry import var_cms_site

var_cms_site.site_header  = "My CMS"
var_cms_site.site_sub     = "CONTROL PANEL"
var_cms_site.site_url     = "https://example.com"
var_cms_site.logo_url     = "/static/myapp/logo.png"
var_cms_site.accent_color = "220, 80%, 55%"  # Blue
settings.py values are read during VarCMSSite.__init__() when Django starts. Assignments made to var_cms_site in var_cms_admin.py files run during app discovery — slightly later — so they always override the settings.py values.

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HSL Accent Color

The accent color drives buttons, active states, hover highlights, and other interactive elements throughout the panel. It is specified in HSL format as a string of three comma-separated values: 
"<hue>, <saturation>%, <lightness>%"

# Examples
VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLOR = "142, 72%, 45%"   # Emerald green (default)
VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLOR = "220, 80%, 55%"   # Blue
VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLOR = "270, 60%, 50%"   # Purple
VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLOR = "0, 72%, 50%"     # Red
The library clamps the lightness value to the range 45–85% automatically. Values below 45% (too dark to read on dark backgrounds) are raised to 45%, and values above 85% (too washed-out) are capped at 85%. The clamped value is rounded to the nearest integer. You never need to worry about accidentally choosing an inaccessible color.
You can also set the accent color on var_cms_site at runtime: 
var_cms_site.accent_color = "142, 72%, 45%"  # Emerald green

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Vector Logo (SVG)

For a crisp, resolution-independent logo, set VAR_CMS_LOGO_SVG to a raw SVG string instead of (or in addition to) a logo URL. When logo_svg is set it takes precedence over logo_url in the header. 
# settings.py
VAR_CMS_LOGO_SVG = """
<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 48 48" width="32" height="32">
  <circle cx="24" cy="24" r="22" fill="#22c55e"/>
  <text x="24" y="30" text-anchor="middle" font-size="20" fill="white" font-family="sans-serif">M</text>
</svg>
"""
Or programmatically: 
# myapp/var_cms_admin.py
var_cms_site.logo_svg = open("static/myapp/logo.svg").read()

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Developer Profile

The Help & About section of the panel can display a developer or agency profile card. Configure it with VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_* settings: 
# settings.py

VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_NAME     = "Your Name"
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_WEBSITE  = "https://example.com"
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_GITHUB   = "https://github.com/you"
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_LINKEDIN = "https://linkedin.com/in/you"
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_EMAIL    = "you@example.com"
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_IMAGE    = "https://github.com/you.png"  # Avatar URL
Or on var_cms_site: 
# myapp/var_cms_admin.py
var_cms_site.developer_name     = "Your Name"
var_cms_site.developer_website  = "https://example.com"
var_cms_site.developer_github   = "https://github.com/you"
var_cms_site.developer_linkedin = "https://linkedin.com/in/you"
var_cms_site.developer_email    = "you@example.com"
var_cms_site.developer_image    = "https://github.com/you.png"
All six fields are optional. Omitted fields are simply not shown in the profile card.

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Complete Reference

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settings.py Keys

SettingDefaultDescription
VAR_CMS_SITE_HEADER"VAR CMS"Main title shown in the panel header and login page
VAR_CMS_SITE_SUB"CONTROL PANEL"Subtitle displayed beneath the header
VAR_CMS_SITE_URL"/"Target of the “View Site” link
VAR_CMS_LOGO_URL"/static/var_cms/var.png"URL for the logo image
VAR_CMS_LOGO_SVGNoneRaw SVG string for a vector logo (overrides LOGO_URL)
VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLORNone (library default)HSL accent color string, e.g. "142, 72%, 45%"
VAR_CMS_ENABLE_OTPFalseEnable email OTP 2FA on login
VAR_CMS_USERNAME_FIELDNone (uses AUTH_USER_MODEL.USERNAME_FIELD)Override the field used to look up users on the login and forgot-password forms
VAR_CMS_DASHBOARD_TITLE"Command Hub"Heading shown on the dashboard
VAR_CMS_DASHBOARD_TEXT(welcome string)Welcome text; supports {username} and {user} placeholders
VAR_CMS_HIDDEN_DASHBOARD_CARDS[]Model names or app_label.model_name values to hide from the dashboard
VAR_CMS_SHOWN_DASHBOARD_CARDS[]When non-empty, only these models are shown on the dashboard
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_NAME"Rahul Baberwal"Developer name in the Help section
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_WEBSITE"https://rahulbaberwal.com"Developer website URL
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_GITHUB"https://github.com/rahul-baberwal"GitHub profile URL
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_LINKEDIN"https://linkedin.com/in/rahul-baberwal"LinkedIn profile URL
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_EMAIL"im@rahulbaberwal.com"Contact email
VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_IMAGE"https://github.com/rahul-baberwal.png"Avatar image URL

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var_cms_site Attributes

All settings above have a direct counterpart on the singleton. Strip VAR_CMS_ and lower-case the name: 
var_cms_site.site_header       # ← VAR_CMS_SITE_HEADER
var_cms_site.site_sub          # ← VAR_CMS_SITE_SUB
var_cms_site.site_url          # ← VAR_CMS_SITE_URL
var_cms_site.logo_url          # ← VAR_CMS_LOGO_URL
var_cms_site.logo_svg          # ← VAR_CMS_LOGO_SVG
var_cms_site.accent_color      # ← VAR_CMS_ACCENT_COLOR
var_cms_site.enable_otp        # ← VAR_CMS_ENABLE_OTP
var_cms_site.username_field    # ← VAR_CMS_USERNAME_FIELD
var_cms_site.dashboard_title   # ← VAR_CMS_DASHBOARD_TITLE
var_cms_site.dashboard_text    # ← VAR_CMS_DASHBOARD_TEXT
var_cms_site.hidden_dashboard_cards  # ← VAR_CMS_HIDDEN_DASHBOARD_CARDS
var_cms_site.shown_dashboard_cards   # ← VAR_CMS_SHOWN_DASHBOARD_CARDS
var_cms_site.developer_name    # ← VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_NAME
var_cms_site.developer_website # ← VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_WEBSITE
var_cms_site.developer_github  # ← VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_GITHUB
var_cms_site.developer_linkedin# ← VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_LINKEDIN
var_cms_site.developer_email   # ← VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_EMAIL
var_cms_site.developer_image   # ← VAR_CMS_DEVELOPER_IMAGE

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