Design Principles
As you begin to sketch out the integration story for your solution, follow these important, high-level design principles.
| Put launch points where users need them Put your branded icon on the Home page so that users can directly navigate to your solution. But don't rely only on Home. Also include launch points for your solution within existing inventories. |
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| Provide a consistent experience Organize the details and actions for the objects important for your solution within the structure of the five common tabs: Getting Started, Summary, Monitor, Manage, and Related Objects. Never add a sixth tab to this structure. |
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| Integrate "side-by-side," but leave room for others Provide the data for your objects side-by-side with the data for other solutions--users need to view all aspects of an object in one place. Use only one area per tab to promote your workflow. For example, add a single portlet in the Summary tab and a single subtab in the Monitor and Manage tabs. |
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| List objects by type so users can navigate to them faster For each object type you introduce into the inventory, provide a list of its objects and the actions that go with them. |
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| Place actions where users will find them Ensure that users can access the actions for your solution from several points within the environment. All actions belong in an object's Actions menu. The most prominent actions also belong in a toolbar, represented by icons. |
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Keep your users in mind
Your users are admins who typically manage large, complex datacenters. They are interrupt-driven and support multiple workflows in multiple domains - it is vital that you design interactions that conform to these standards. This will ensure that your solution operates in a familiar, congruent manner that enables maximum efficiency with a minimal learning curve.