Published at: 2026-10-12
Manage sites and configure site portals
Use site management to prepare portal domains and page assets. Build business sites for downstream accounts, dealers, or partners through site portals.
Select apps for your business scenarios, organize pages, configure login and registration, and publish sites for target users.
This article explains site concepts and scenarios, then covers domains and assets. A dealer ordering portal illustrates the configuration process.
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Screenshots are examples from original materials. Some use older names, “Portal management” or “Customer and partner portal.”
This article uses the current names, “Site management” and “Site portal.”
Example organizations, addresses, and values help you locate settings. Enter values for your business.
1. Understand site portals
1.1 Module purpose and users
Site portal (All Sites) provides visual portal building and publishing within the External Platform.
Use standard templates and a drag-and-drop designer to build ordering, sales collaboration, or customer service portals.
These portals organize External App capabilities into pages for downstream users.
Upstream users configure site portals for downstream External Users.
Users in downstream organizations without tenants use external identities. Those with tenants have mapped downstream employee and external identities.
A downstream employee identity does not grant upstream internal employees direct site access.
“Customer and partner portal” is the module’s former name. This article uses Site portal.
Customer portals and partner portals describe scenarios distinguished by audience and business purpose.
1.2 Core concepts
| Concept | Meaning and configuration purpose |
|---|---|
| Site portal | An access space for a particular business and audience. It can contain multiple pages and login, registration, appearance, and access settings |
| Portal template | A standard business template based on External Apps. Reuse pages and experiences quickly, or start with a blank template |
| Business scope | External Apps included in the portal. Select one or multiple standard or custom apps enabled for the current Tenant |
| Require login | Controls whether users must authenticate before entering. Disable it for Guest User access to public content. The original documentation limits it to single-app portals |
| Applicable Scope | External Roles allowed to use the portal. Signed-in users whose roles fall outside this scope cannot access it |
| Page | A specific portal page, such as a homepage, store, order list, login page, registration page, or login error page |
| Layout style | Organization of content and common areas, such as header/footer, header/footer/left navigation, or a single page. Matching layouts generally share header/footer components |
| Component | A content or functional unit, such as an object list, button, image, login form, or registration form |
| Audience / Visibility rules | Determine which users or roles see a component. Component display does not replace business Data Permission restrictions |
| Portal publishing | Publishes the configured site structure, pages, and components so that configuration takes effect for end users |
Set Business scope and Applicable Scope separately. The former determines hosted apps; the latter determines which roles can enter.
Selecting an app does not automatically grant app or data permissions to roles.
Organize enterprise-type and personal-type External Apps into separate portals for their business scenarios.
Mixing both types can require identity switching when users change content. The original documentation discourages this design.
1.3 Sites, pages, components, and business permissions
A site contains multiple pages, and each page contains multiple components.
Bind components to External App business objects or assets in a CMS workspace, and configure their display scope.
Portals manage presentation, entries, access, login, and registration. Maintain ordering, service, and sales collaboration rules in the corresponding External Apps.
Submissions, approvals, and orders within portals continue to use processes configured for their business objects.
Users need both functional and data permissions. Object, field, and external data permissions determine their available scope.
Displaying a component or adding navigation cannot expand a user’s Data Permission scope.
1.4 Site and Partner Portal configuration boundaries
Maintain site portal and Partner Portal pages and experiences separately.
We recommend site portals for business experiences first, followed by Partner Portals where needed. Use app views for simpler entry displays.
Sites have independent Login, Registration, and Login error pages and related components.
Maintain login pages and login settings within the current site.
2. Select business scenarios
| Business scenario | Users | Main portal business | Configuration focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dealer ordering portal | Downstream dealers and ordering personnel | Search products and prices, submit orders, and check order status and shipment progress | Configure products, pricing, saleable scope, and accounts in the ordering app before organizing store, cart, and order pages |
| Customer self-service portal | End customers | Submit Work Orders or after-sales requests, check Service Records and progress, consult knowledge and FAQs, and maintain Contact Information | Organize request submission, progress inquiries, and self-service answers. Configure customer registration and access scope |
| Partner sales collaboration portal | Dealers, agents, and sales partners | Register Leads or Opportunities, collaborate on business, view authorized performance and policies, and participate in training | Select partner apps and arrange registration, collaboration, and training entries by role. Check sensitive data permissions |
These business capabilities require corresponding apps and configuration. Portals do not create them automatically.
Create separate sites for different scenarios to avoid concentrating unrelated identities and tasks in one portal.
3. Prepare apps, domains, and assets
3.1 Prepare apps and accounts
Use a system administrator account or an account with the required business configuration permissions. Confirm the following:
- Enable the External App base package. The original documentation says purchases of External Apps or related External User quotas include this license.
- Complete Initialization for the target External App and prepare the business objects and data to expose.
- Prepare target External Roles and app permissions. Determine the site’s Business scope and Applicable Scope.
- Configure the access domain and prepare branding and page assets.
For an ordering portal, first complete ShareOrder’s setup guidance: basic data, pricing, saleable scope, marketing configuration, and account activation.
Then build the portal. Other scenarios likewise require their corresponding app configuration first.
3.2 My Domain
Domains form part of the site access URL. This URL also includes the site identifier confirmed during portal creation.
Check the Full Address in Access settings.
| Domain type | Configuration description |
|---|---|
| Dedicated domain | Auto-Generate the domain after enabling external quotas. The original rule is ea.qd.fxiaoke.com. You can modify it for your company |
| Custom domain | Requires the corresponding license and a domain purchased by your company. Upload an SSL certificate and domain icon, then enter certificate expiry. Access requires review and deployment |
Enter the certificate Validity Period from your purchase information. Submitting a domain and certificate does not make the domain available.
Verify the access address after review and certificate deployment.
My Domain under site management handles domain maintenance. The original materials use an older menu name for this entry.
The site’s Access settings display the portal address formed from the current domain.
Associating a Partner Portal login page with a domain is separate from configuring login pages within a site.
3.3 CMS
Prepare Logos, banners, page images, and business display assets.
The original workflow uploads assets in CMS first. Then configure pages in the site designer and use those assets through components.
CMS handles asset preparation; site pages handle page composition.
Manage site branding and operational assets separately from Partner Academy learning materials. Course operations are configured in Partner Academy.
4. Create and configure a site portal
The following ten operations follow the original documentation’s sequence:
New > Configure portal > Publish > Access settings > Login settings > Registration settings > Guest identity > Invitation Notification > Business apps > Configuration assistant.
4.1 Create a portal
- Open Setup > External Platform Management > Site management > Site portal.
- Click New and choose a standard or blank template. Original examples include Customer Service Portal and ShareOrder Store.
3. Enter the portal’s Basic Info.| Setting | Instructions |
|---|---|
| Portal name | Name it for the audience and business, such as “Dealer ordering portal.” The screenshot allows up to 50 characters |
| Portal URL and site identifier | Check the site address and identifier against the subsequent access settings |
| API Name | Check the portal identifier. The original example is site_dealer_order_portal__c |
| Description | Describe the users and business, such as product inquiries, ordering, and Delivery progress. The screenshot allows up to 500 characters |
| Standard External Apps / Business scope | Select hosted apps, such as enterprise-type ShareOrder |
| Require login | Decide whether users must sign in first. Only single-app portals support this setting |
| Applicable Scope | Select External Roles allowed to use the portal, such as ordering personnel |
- Click Save, then check the new record in the portal list.
The original ordering example disables Require login so visitors can browse public content first.
Private business data still requires login and permissions. Guest access does not expose all data.
4.2 Configure pages and the overall experience
4.2.1 Open the designer and select a page
- Hover over the target portal in the list and click View details.
2. In Portal settings, select Build Web to open the page designer.
3. Click the page information at the top, view all portal pages, and select the page to configure.| Page group | Original examples | Configuration purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Standard app pages | Homepage, store, cart | Provide standard External App business experiences |
| General standard pages | Login, registration, login error | Configure site authentication, registration, and error handling |
| Custom Pages | Sales Order list, detail, and new-record pages | Organize lists, viewing, and submission around business tasks |
Each page can use its own layout style. Check other pages when maintaining headers and footers shared by the same layout.
4.2.2 Organize business pages with components
Choose components for the page’s tasks. Drag them into place and maintain component properties and Visibility.
| Component category | Components and uses |
|---|---|
| Content and display | Rich text formats text. Images and Image Carousels display branding and operational content. Dividers separate sections |
| Business entries and navigation | Multi-level navigation, menu groups, and buttons organize entries. Breadcrumbs show the business Hierarchy and return to a Parent Node |
| Users and languages | Personal center displays signed-in user Basic Info. Language-switching components provide interface language entries |
| Data and business operations | Object lists display structured Business Data. Drafts save unfinished business object information for continued editing and submission |
| Containers and layout | Grid Containers organize child components. Tab Containers switch content areas. Banners highlight content. Overlays stack components |
| App business components | Purchased and initialized External Apps provide these components. Add them for your business needs |
Configure data sources for object lists and business components. Verify prices, Rebates, and other sensitive content against role Visibility and Data Permission restrictions.
Select a component and maintain Properties, Styles, and Visibility on the right.
Check its content, display style, and intended user scope.
4.2.3 Configure site login, registration, and error pages
| Page | Component | Configuration |
|---|---|---|
| Login | Login form | Set account login methods and the default method. Users access authorized business services after identity verification |
| Login | Registration link | Direct unregistered users into the current portal’s registration process |
| Registration | Registration form | Configure associated account, partner, or Contact Record Types, layouts, Owners, Self-Registration methods, and assigned roles |
| Login error | Error message | Set message content and enable Customer Service Phone or system messages as needed |
Keep site page display consistent with Login settings and Registration settings in portal details.
Pages provide the experience; settings maintain authentication and registration rules. Do not change site login experiences through Partner Portal Custom Login Pages.
Select Login and configure the login form and registration link.
Select Registration and configure the registration form. See this article’s registration settings for object parameters and Self-Registration methods.
Select Login error and maintain error messages and support contact methods.
4.2.4 Configure layouts, navigation, themes, and languages
After configuring individual pages, maintain the overall portal experience.
| Configuration category | Configuration |
|---|---|
| Layout | Arrange page areas and common content. Check shared areas across pages with matching layouts |
| Navigation | Organize functional and page entries. Define access paths between business pages |
| Theme colors | Set primary, success, warning, danger, and link colors |
| Fonts | Maintain font settings for main Titles, Titles, subheadings, body text, small body text, and supporting text |
| Styles | Set maximum content width, area corner radius, component spacing, and area padding |
| Multilingual management | Configure portal languages and the default language. Add language-switching components to pages as needed |
Configure languages and theme appearance separately. After setting the default language, check page languages and switching entries.
After adjusting colors, fonts, and styles, check branding consistency across pages.
Check page layouts and shared areas first, then organize site navigation.
Maintain colors, fonts, and styles in theme configuration. Check consistency across different pages.
Configure languages and copy in Multilingual management:
- Use Language configuration to maintain portal languages and the default language.
- Find the copy to maintain in the language list. Check corresponding text for each language. The screenshot maps the source-language Save label to English “Save.”
- Add a Language switch component as needed. After publishing, check the Default Language and content after switching.
4.3 Publish the portal
- After completing basic pages and overall configuration, click Publish in the designer’s upper-right corner.
- Return to portal details after publishing succeeds.
- Check the current portal and publishing result. Continue configuring access, identities, and invitations.
Saving design content and publishing are separate operations. After publishing, verify actual pages with a target External User account.
Content visible in an administrator’s designer does not prove user access.
4.4 Configure access entries
Open Access settings in portal details. Configure entries for integrated channels.
| Access method | Configuration and use |
|---|---|
| Web / mobile browser | Check the URL containing the domain and site identifier. The system detects the Terminal and provides the corresponding experience |
| WeChat Service Account | Bound accounts display their information and menu configuration entry. Otherwise use Bind a WeChat Official Account. Users can scan the account QR Code |
| WeChat Mini Program | The entry appears only when the Tenant has a corresponding Mini Program. Direct portal binding depends on available configuration capabilities |
| ShareCRM App | Copy the App download instructions and share them with downstream External Users who need the App |
The original documentation marks direct Mini Program-to-portal binding as a future capability. Do not infer that every Mini Program supports it.
See WeChat channel configuration for Official Account and Mini Program integration.
4.5 Configure login methods
Open the portal’s Login settings and maintain authentication methods for each Terminal.
| Terminal | Login methods | Configuration notes |
|---|---|---|
| Web | Mobile and password, Mobile Verification Code, Email and password, Email Verification Code; WeChat QR Code login, ShareCRM App QR Code login | Use the External User’s Mobile or Login Email. Set a default login method |
| H5 and WeChat Official Accounts | Mobile and password, Mobile Verification Code, Email and password, Email Verification Code | For mobile browsers and Official Accounts. Select a default method suited to target users |
| WeChat Mini Program | Reuse configured H5 / Official Account methods; quick mobile verification is also supported | Quick mobile verification is a paid WeChat capability. Arrange payment first |
Check that login methods match the site’s login form. Current external identities and permissions still determine business access after login.
4.6 Configure site registration
Registration settings are disabled by default. Ordering businesses with fixed dealer accounts generally do not need Self-Registration.
Enable the current portal’s Registration settings when you need to attract new customers.
4.6.1 Basic Info and scope
- Enable registration settings and open the configuration dialog.
- Set Configuration name and check the applicable portal.
- Open Registration page layout parameters and maintain parameters for related business objects.
This dedicated registration configuration applies only to the current portal.
When apps or sites have dedicated registration parameters, use their corresponding configuration first. Applicable Setup registration configuration provides the fallback.
Do not infer a Priority order between app-specific and site-specific configuration.
4.6.2 Configure associated accounts or partners and Contacts
The original example uses accounts and Contacts. Partner-facing apps can associate partner objects. Configure objects that correspond to the current app.
| Account parameter | Configuration description |
|---|---|
| Record Type | Determines the Record Type of accounts created through Self-Registration |
| Detail page layout | Determines the information-entry layout. Select mandatory fields only to reduce registration steps |
| Owner | Supports one fixed person or round-robin assignment among multiple people to handle subsequent business |
| Duplicate Logic | Supports exact or fuzzy queries. Limit the returned Quantity for fuzzy queries. The original recommendation is fewer than 20 records, not a system limit |
| New account rules | Determine how Account Names are generated or selected, as described below |
| New account rule | Business use and description |
|---|---|
| Use the user-entered Account Name | Users supply the name. Configure a default, such as the Contact’s Mobile and Name, and whether users may change the generated name |
| Select Account Name only from existing accounts | Only existing accounts can register. Users cannot freely create accounts |
| Obtain Account Name through Business Registry Lookup | Standardize Company Names using Business Information. Suitable for business accounts with registry information |
| Select an existing account first; use Business Registry Lookup if none matches | Combine existing account matching with standardized new Company Names |
Configure the Contact’s Record Type and Detail page layout.
Its Owner defaults to the associated account’s Owner. The original documentation does not support changing this to another person.
The login Mobile corresponds to the Contact’s
Mobile1 field.Click Refresh in Layout preview to check the fields users actually complete.
4.6.3 Select Self-Registration methods and assign permissions
| Self-Registration method | Account creation and subsequent information completion |
|---|---|
| Register using account and Contact information | Activate the account after users complete configured account and Contact information |
| Generate an external account when signing in with Mobile or email | Create a lightweight account first. Prompt for complete account and Contact information when required for business actions |
| Generate an external account when signing in with third-party OpenID | Create lighter accounts through Official Accounts or Mini Programs. Key business actions prompt for Mobile or Login Email and business information |
Configure External Role and Organization group for successfully registered users.
Roles determine available business functions. Organization groups can participate in data sharing and authorization.
Lightweight registration does not expose all Business Data. Actual access must satisfy account, role, and Data Permission requirements.
4.7 Configure guest identities
Disable Require login for a single-app portal to open Guest identity configuration.
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Multiple portals share guest parameters. Changing the Guest User identity here affects other portals using the same parameters.
- Associate account data for guest access. In ordering scenarios, this account can affect the Price Book information guests see.
- Enable Guest Login Guide as needed to prompt login on the first homepage visit.
- Set Login guidance message to guide identity confirmation.
- Check Apps available to guests. The original documentation generally recommends leaving this unchanged.
Verify guest content separately from business data after login. Pay particular attention to prices and private business information.
4.8 Configure Invitation Notifications
Maintain SMS or Email invitations sent after external account activation in Invitation Notification.
- Notification content: Insert available account, Mini Program, and URL variables. Explain where users enter and which login information they need.
- Signature information: Maintain your company’s SMS or Email signature to reflect your brand.
Check that addresses, account variables, and signatures match the current portal configuration.
This section covers account invitations, excluding the retired announcements module.
4.9 Adjust business configuration in apps
Portal customization manages pages, user registration, login, and access experiences.
For product, price, order, or other business rule changes, open the corresponding app administration through External App in portal details.
For example, adjust ordering portal prices or saleable scope in ShareOrder business administration.
Changing page components alone does not replace app business rule settings.
4.10 Check configuration with the portal assistant
Return to portal details. Use Portal configuration assistant to check configuration errors and progress.
Resolve each issue through its Settings entry, then check again.
| Check result | Meaning and handling examples |
|---|---|
| Fault | A problem affects users, such as portal role authorization validation errors. Resolve it in External Role permissions. The original documentation displays no score with faults |
| Warning | Important configuration needs improvement, such as a missing custom invitation signature. Complete it and recheck. The original documentation displays no score with warnings |
| Information | Ordinary configuration can improve, such as incomplete access channels. Configure as needed and check scoring changes |
Scores help assess Completion Rate. Also verify pages, login, registration, and business operations with target user accounts.
Handle channel guidance according to the actual Usage Method.
Fault example: Prioritize access problems when role permission validation fails.
Warning example: Complete missing invitation signatures and recheck.
Information example: Check incomplete access channels and configure them for business needs.
5. Verify and maintain after publishing
Verify separately for actual dealer, partner, and customer roles:
- The URL matches the target site, and published pages display the expected content.
- Login methods work, and site registration entries redirect to the correct process.
- Roles match the portal’s Applicable Scope. Pages and components display as expected.
- Lists, fields, and prices comply with app and external Data Permission restrictions.
- Ordering, opportunity registration, and Work Order submission continue to run the business object’s configured processes.
- Guest and signed-in access respect their respective permissions. Languages and branding remain consistent.
Make key actions easy to find. Avoid loading too many complex data components on one page.
After page or component changes, check other pages sharing the layout. Republish and verify.
6. FAQ
| Issue | What to check |
|---|---|
| No permission or access after publishing | Check the URL, Publish Status, user roles, and portal Applicable Scope. Confirm the roles have corresponding app permissions |
| Components appear in the designer but not for users | Check component Visibility and object and field permissions. Verify with an External User account assigned the same role |
| The page opens but lists contain no data | Check basic Data Permission, external related teams, external sharing, and external organization Data Permission |
| An old page still appears after publishing | Check the latest default homepage and the accessed site. Refresh the page or check the cache |
| Changing a Partner Portal login page does not change site login | Maintain these pages separately. Configure the login page and login settings within the current site |