MENUS.md

🧭 Menu System

1. Overview

Core CMS uses a database-driven menu system. Instead of hardcoding HTML links in header.php, we store navigation structures in the database. This allows admins to manage links without touching code.

2. Database Architecture

The system uses two tables (defined in db/schema.sql):

A. menus (The Container)

Represents a menu location (e.g., "Main Header", "Footer Links").

• id: Unique ID.
• name: Human-readable name (e.g., "Top Nav").
• slug: Unique identifier used in code (e.g., main-menu).

B. menu_items (The Links)

The actual links inside a container.

• menu_id: Links to the parent menus table.
• label: The text to display (e.g., "About Us").
• url: The destination (e.g., /about).
• parent_id: Used for nested dropdowns (Sub-menus).
• sort_order: Integer to control display order.

3. How it Works

In the Admin

1. Create Menu: Admin creates a container (e.g., "Header").
2. Add Items: Admin adds links to that container.
3. Reorder: Admin sets the sort_order.

On the Frontend

We use a helper function (to be built in Phase 3) to fetch and render the menu by its slug.

// Usage in templates/header.php
// Second parameter allows custom CSS class (default is 'menu')
render_menu('main-menu', 'site-menu');

4. Future Features

• Drag-and-Drop Reordering: Using JavaScript in the admin.
• Auto-Add Pages: Automatically adding new pages to a menu.
• Mega Menus: Complex nested layouts.