One of the most frequently asked questions within the ABP Community is:
How do I change the login page?
The answer often seems simple, but is it always the correct or most suitable approach for your specific needs? Let's delve into the details. This article will guide you through the recommended ways to customize the login page in the ABP Framework, highlighting a common misunderstanding and ensuring you modify the right components.
Understanding the ABP Login Page
ABP Framework templates include default login functionality provided by the Account Module. When you want to alter the appearance of the login screen, your first thought might be to override components directly from the Account Module. While this seems straightforward, is it what you truly need to achieve?
Customizing the Login Page or the Account Layout? That's the Question.
In many scenarios, what developers aim to customize is actually the Account Layout, not the core Login Page component itself. It's a subtle but important distinction.
Consider the following diagram illustrating the relationship between the Login Page and the Account Layout:
- Login Page: This refers specifically to the area containing the login form (e.g., username/email and password fields, login button, "forgot password" link).
- Account Layout: This encompasses the broader structure surrounding the login form. It includes elements like the header, footer, branding (logo), background, and overall page styling that frames the login form.
Often, your customization goals—such as changing the logo, background color, or the overall page structure around the form—are better addressed by modifying the Account Layout. In fact, you might not need to override any C# or Razor components at all; simple CSS adjustments might suffice.
This leads to three primary customization options, ordered by complexity and impact:
- Use CSS classes to customize the page.
- Override the Account Layout component.
- Override the Login Page component (from the Account module).
Let's explore each of these.
1. Customizing with CSS Classes
Each ABP theme (like Basic or LeptonX) applies a specific CSS class to the <body> element of its layouts. This is a powerful feature, as it allows you to scope your CSS customizations effectively, even when adding styles to a global file like global-styles.css.
Here’s how these layout-specific classes typically appear in the rendered HTML
Application Layout
Account Layout
By leveraging these classes, you can write targeted CSS rules that only affect elements within the account layout (or any other specific layout).
Here's a practical example of how you might customize the account layout's appearance:
/* For the Basic Theme */
.abp-account-layout
{
background:rgb(203, 196, 196); /* slightly reddish white */
}
/* Or if you're using LeptonX theme */
.lpx-login-bg {
background-image: none !important;
background:rgb(203, 196, 196); /* slightly reddish white */
}
/* Account Login Card */
.abp-account-layout .card {
background-color:rgb(42, 42, 42); /* dark gray */
color: white;
width: 480px; /* Do not change this width like this static value. It's a demo value. */
}
.lpx-login-title {
color: white;
}
/* Account Login Card End */
/* Bootstrap Buttons in Account Layout */
.abp-account-layout .btn-primary {
background-color:red;
border-color:red;
color: white;
font-weight: bold;
}
.abp-account-layout .btn-primary:hover {
background-color:red;
border-color:red;
color: white;
}
.abp-account-layout .btn-outline-primary {
color: red;
text-decoration: none;
border-color: red;
}
.abp-account-layout .btn-outline-primary:hover {
color: white;
background-color: red;
text-decoration: none;
border-color: red;
}
.abp-account-layout a {
color: red;
}
Applying such CSS can significantly alter the look and feel, as shown below:
This CSS-first approach is often the cleanest and easiest way to achieve visual customizations.
2. Overriding the Account Layout Component
If CSS customizations aren't sufficient to meet your structural or more complex visual requirements (e.g., adding new sections, significantly reordering elements around the login form), your next step might be to override the Account Layout component itself.
The exact steps for this depend on the ABP theme you are using:
-
For the Basic Theme: The original
Account.cshtmllayout file is open-source and its content can be found directly in the ABP Framework GitHub repository: -
For Commercial Themes (like LeptonX Theme): You'll first need to obtain the theme's source code. You can do this using the ABP CLI command:
abp get-source Volo.Abp.LeptonXTheme(Or the equivalent package name for the specific theme/version you are using))
Once you have access to the original layout file's content (either from GitHub or the get-source command), you can override it by creating a file at the corresponding path in your web project:
-
Basic Theme location:
/Themes/Basic/Layouts/Account.cshtml📂YourProjectName.Web
└── 📂Themes
------└── 📂Basic
------------└── 📂Layouts
------------------└── 📄Account.cshtml -
LeptonX Theme location:
/Themes/LeptonX/Layouts/Account/Default.cshtml📂 YourProjectName.Web
└── 📂 Theming
-------└── 📂 LeptonX
-----------└── 📂 Layouts
----------------└── 📂 Account
---------------------└── 📄 Default.cshtml(Always refer to the theme's documentation or source structure for the exact override path.)
By placing your custom Account.cshtml (or Default.cshtml for LeptonX) file in these locations, the ABP Framework will use your version instead of the default one. This approach grants you full control to modify the HTML structure of the Account Layout as needed, allowing you to add, remove, or rearrange any content surrounding the core login form.
3. Overriding the Login Page Component
This option involves changing the actual login form itself (the Login.cshtml page from the Account Module) and should generally be your last resort, used only when you need to alter the form's internal structure, add new form fields, or change its core behavior in a way that CSS or Layout overrides cannot achieve.
The login page, with its core form elements and logic, originates from the Volo.Abp.Account.Web module. You can override this specific component by creating a new Login.cshtml file (and its corresponding Login.cshtml.cs PageModel if you need to alter the C# logic) in the Pages/Account folder of your web project.
The original content for the Login.cshtml page can be found in the Account Module's source code on GitHub:
To override it:
1) Create the following folder structure in your
.Webproject if it doesn't already exist.-
2) Create a
Login.cshtmlfile inside thisAccountfolder.📂 YourProjectName.Web
└── 📂 Pages
------└── 📂 Account
------------└── 📄 Login.cshtml 3) Copy the content of the
Login.cshtmlpage and paste it to your newLogin.cshtmlfile.4) Modify these files as needed. You can now change input fields, add new elements directly to the form, or adjust the server-side handling in the PageModel.
Remember that overriding the Login.cshtml page directly makes you responsible for maintaining compatibility with future updates to the Account Module, as its internal structure or logic might change.
Conclusion: Customize Smartly
Customizing the login experience in ABP Framework is flexible, but it's vital to choose the right approach. Before diving into component overrides, ask yourself:
- What exactly do I want to change? Is it the overall look and feel (branding, colors, background) or the structure of the login form itself?
- Can this be achieved with CSS? Often, targeted CSS rules leveraging theme-specific layout classes are sufficient and the least intrusive method. This should be your first consideration for visual tweaks.
- Do I need to alter the content around the login form? If yes, overriding the Account Layout (e.g.,
Themes/Basic/Layouts/Account.cshtmlor its LeptonX equivalent) is the correct approach. This gives you control over headers, footers, and surrounding content without touching the core login mechanism. - Do I need to change the login form fields or its core submission logic? Only then should you consider overriding the Login Page component itself (e.g.,
Pages/Account/Login.cshtml) from the Account Module.
By understanding the distinction between the Account Layout and the Login Page component, you can implement customizations more efficiently, maintainably, and align with the framework's design principles. Start with CSS, then consider Account Layout overrides, and reserve Login Page component overrides for when they are truly necessary. This will save you time and make your application easier to upgrade in the long run.
Top comments (1)
This is a nice reference article on how we can customize the login page 🥳