Window Sections

Window Sections are used to define the layout of a client application screen. Because they’re related to Presentation Configuration items, Window Sections can be inherited globally or defined for an ItemType-specific scope to create different layouts.

If we look at the Window Sections related to the global Presentation Configuration in a standard Aras Innovator database, we can see examples of the two ways to define a Window Section – declaratively and dynamically.

Figure 2. Globally scoped Window Sections

Declaratively defined Window Sections are configured by an administrator at “design time” and are identified with the Data Model classification. At runtime, the client application retrieves the Window Section and its child Controls to determine how the UI should be displayed. This approach is useful for defining client screens (or areas of client screens) when the desired layout is known in advance.

On the other hand, dynamically-defined Window Sections are populated by a Builder Method at runtime – hence the Method classification. This approach is often used for making minor adjustments, like updating the label displayed on a declaratively defined element, or completely populating a section based on the context item, as in the case of the default ItemView.RelationshipTabs Window Section.