How the menu works in Client Portal

Client Portal uses WordPress's Navigation block with custom menu links to help clients move between their dashboard, projects, and logout. The menu appears in your portal header and updates automatically based on how many projects a client can access.

What the menu includes

Client Portal's default menu includes four navigation items:

• Home link — Standard WordPress link with a customizable destination

• Dashboard link — Takes clients to their project dashboard

• All Projects link — Shows the full list of projects they can access

• Logout link — Logs clients out and returns them to the login page

How the menu works across your portals

When you activate Client Portal, it creates a single WordPress navigation post named Client Portal Menu. That navigation is shared across all of your portals.

• Custom links appear on all portals

• Label changes affect all portals

• Removing a menu item removes it everywhere

If you need different menus for different portals, you need custom development. The built-in menu is global.

How to edit the menu (Block template only)

Menu customization depends on which portal template you use.

Two ways to edit the menu

If you use the Block (Five) template, you can edit the menu in two places.

Option 1: From Appearance > Editor > Navigation

1. Go to WordPress Admin > Appearance > Editor > Navigation.

2. Select Client Portal Menu.

3. Edit the navigation:

   • Click a link to change its label

   • Add links with the + button

   • Drag items to reorder them

   • Remove items you do not need

4. Save your changes.

Option 2: From within a portal preview

You can also edit the menu while viewing a portal in the WordPress admin. Click any menu item to edit it.

When you save from a portal preview, WordPress shows an Are you ready to save? dialog. Keep the Client Portal Menu checkbox selected so WordPress saves the shared menu changes.

How to remove the menu

If you want to remove the header menu from the Block template, delete the Navigation block.

1. Open a portal in the WordPress editor or go to Appearance > Editor.

2. Click the menu so the Navigation block is selected.

3. Open the block options menu with the three-dot icon.

4. Click Delete.

5. Save your changes.

How to add the menu back

If you deleted the Navigation block, you can add it back from your portals.

1. Open the same portal in the WordPress editor.

2. Hover where you want the menu to appear.

3. Search for Navigation.

4. Insert the Navigation block.

5. Select Client Portal Menu if WordPress asks which navigation to use.

6. Save your changes.

If the menu does not appear right away, confirm that the inserted block is using the existing Client Portal Menu navigation instead of a new empty menu.

Classic templates (Tailwind/Default)

If you use the Classic templates (Tailwind or Default), the menu is hardcoded in PHP and cannot be customized from the WordPress admin.

To change the menu on a Classic template, you need to edit the PHP files directly or switch to the Block (Five) template.

Customizing menu labels (Block template)

For Block template users, changing menu labels is straightforward:

1. Go to Appearance > Editor > Navigation > Client Portal Menu.

2. Click the menu link you want to edit.

3. Update the label text.

4. Save your changes.

The active page gets a current class automatically, so you can style it with custom CSS if needed. For more advanced styling, see How to customize your portals with custom CSS.

Menu behavior for clients

When clients view their portal, the menu works like this:

• Home link — Goes to the URL you configured

• Dashboard link — Opens the current project dashboard

• All Projects link — Opens /client/ and shows all accessible portals when the client has more than one portal

• Logout link — Logs the client out

Content pages sidebar navigation

If you use content pages within a portal, Client Portal also generates a sidebar navigation menu on those pages. This sidebar is separate from the header menu and appears automatically for the content pages attached to that project.

The sidebar shows all content pages in the project so clients can move between sections like onboarding steps, resources, or deliverables.

For more details on how content pages work, see Using content pages.

Troubleshooting menu issues

Menu links not showing up

If the menu is not visible to clients, check these common causes:

• User not logged in — The menu only appears to authenticated clients with the correct role

• Single project access — The All Projects link hides automatically when a client only has one project

• Template issue — Confirm your portal template is rendering the navigation correctly

Navigation menu deleted or unavailable

If WordPress shows Navigation Menu deleted/unavailable:

1. Deactivate Client Portal.

2. Reactivate Client Portal.

3. The plugin recreates the default navigation automatically.

Sidebar navigation missing on content pages

If content pages do not show the sidebar navigation:

• Check your theme for template overrides that hide the sidebar

• Temporarily switch to a default WordPress theme to test

• Review your theme CSS for rules that hide navigation elements

Mobile menu styling issues

If the menu looks wrong on mobile devices:

• Test with the default portal template to isolate the issue

• Review any custom CSS that affects mobile breakpoints

• Use custom CSS to adjust spacing or responsive behavior if needed

Menu integration with portal templates

The menu renders differently based on your template:

• Block template (Five) — Uses the shared Navigation block from Appearance > Editor

• Classic templates (Tailwind/Default) — Uses hardcoded PHP navigation in the header

If you are still setting up your portals, see Setting up your first portal for the full workflow.