Working with forums

Last updated on
16 January 2023

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Steps to enable

Visit modules page at Administration >> Modules to enable Forum module

Permissions

The permissions available for Forums can be set by role on the permissions page at Administration >> People >> Permissions (http://example.com/#overlay=admin/people/permissions).

"Administer Forums" permissions will give access to the Forum Configuration page at http://example.com/#overlay=admin/structure/forum. Click here for instructions to configure Forums.
Administer Forums

The "Node" permissions can be used to allow users to Create, Edit or Delete Forum content.
Node Permissions

Menus and Blocks

To assist navigation to the Forums section, add a Menu link to the Forum listing page, http://example.com/forum, at Administration >> Structure >> Menus

By default a link to the Forums section is available in the user Navigation block.

The Forum Blocks available with the Forum module are:

  • Active forum topics
  • New forum topics

Configure and enable Forum blocks at Administration >> Structure >> Blocks

Structure of the containers/forums

The structure of the forum is as follows ("Topics" are not visible on the forums admin section, but are shown here for completeness):

Container
-- Forum
---- Topic

Or more specifically you might have:

General discussion (container)
-- Common questions (forum)
---- Installing software (topic))
-- Introduce yourself
-- Spare a thought

Products
-- Help
-- Orders
-- Delivery

Both "Containers" and "Forums" can be created by visiting:

Structure > Forums (/admin/structure/forum)

Create a forum container

  1. Navigate to the Forums administration page (/admin/structure/forum).
  2. Click Add Container.
  3. In the Forum Name field, enter the name of the container.
  4. In the Description field, enter an optional description.
  5. In the Parent list, select the parent of the forum. You can select the root of the site, another forum, or a forum container.
  6. In the Weight list, enter an optional weighting. A smaller number will weight the container higher in a list.
  7. Click Save

Create a forum

  1. Navigate to the Forums administration page (/admin/structure/forum).
  2. Click Add Forum.
  3. In the Forum Name field, enter the name of the forum.
  4. In the Description field, enter an optional description.
  5. In the Parent list, select the parent of the forum. You can select the root of the site, another forum, or a forum container.
  6. In the Weight list, enter an optional weighting. A smaller number will weight the forum higher in a list.
  7. Click Save

Specify the forum settings

  1. Navigate to the Forums settings page (/admin/structure/forum/settings).
  2. Specify any of the following settings:
    • Hot Topic Threshold: The number of replies that a topic must receive for it to be considered a 'hot topic'.
    • Topics Per Page: Default number of forum topics displayed per page.
    • Default Order: Default display order for topics.
    • Click Save Configuration

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