Custom View Rendering In Sitecore SXA How-To Guide

Aug 6, 2025 by ADMIN 51 views

Is Custom View Rendering Possible in Sitecore SXA? A Comprehensive Guide

Hey guys! Ever wondered if you can create your own view renderings in Sitecore SXA? You're not alone! Many developers, just like you, have asked this question. It's a hot topic, especially when you're diving deep into the world of Sitecore Experience Accelerator (SXA) and want to push its boundaries. So, let's get straight to the point: Yes, you absolutely can create custom view renderings in Sitecore SXA! And in this comprehensive guide, we’re going to explore exactly how you can achieve this, making sure you can leverage the full power of SXA while tailoring it to your specific needs.

Understanding View Renderings in Sitecore SXA

First off, let's break down what view renderings are and why they're so crucial in Sitecore SXA. In essence, a view rendering is a type of rendering that uses a Razor view (.cshtml file) to generate the HTML output. Think of it as the visual muscle of your component – it's what takes the data and turns it into something the user can see and interact with. In SXA, view renderings are fundamental because they provide a clean and maintainable way to separate the presentation logic from the underlying Sitecore data. This separation of concerns is a key principle of modern web development, making your codebase more organized and easier to work with.

Why Use View Renderings?

View renderings offer a plethora of benefits that can significantly enhance your Sitecore development experience. For starters, they promote modularity. Each view rendering encapsulates a specific piece of functionality, making it easier to reuse components across different parts of your site. This is a massive win for consistency and efficiency. Imagine being able to build a component once and then deploy it in multiple locations without having to rewrite code – that’s the magic of view renderings!

Another major advantage is maintainability. When your presentation logic is neatly tucked away in Razor views, it becomes much simpler to update and modify your components without risking unintended side effects in other areas of your site. This is particularly important in large, complex Sitecore implementations where even a small change can have far-reaching consequences. With view renderings, you can make changes with confidence, knowing that you're only affecting the component you're working on.

Finally, view renderings greatly improve developer collaboration. By using a standardized approach to rendering, your team can work more effectively, with each member easily understanding the structure and logic of the components they're working with. This leads to faster development cycles and fewer headaches down the line. Plus, the use of Razor syntax makes your views readable and familiar to most .NET developers, further streamlining the development process.

The SXA Model: Your Data Hub

Now, let’s talk about the SXA model. This is the heart of how your view renderings get their data. The SXA model is essentially a strongly-typed representation of your Sitecore items, providing a structured way to access fields, relationships, and other properties. When you create a view rendering in SXA, you're typically going to work with a model that inherits from Sitecore.XA.Foundation.Mvc.Models.RenderingModelBase. This base model provides a set of common properties and methods that are essential for most renderings.

Accessing Data in Your View

So, how do you actually get data from the SXA model into your view? It's simpler than you might think! Within your Razor view, you can access the model using the @Model directive. This gives you access to all the properties and methods exposed by your model class. For example, if your model has a property called Title, you can display it in your view like this: @Model.Title. Easy peasy!

Custom Models: Tailoring the Data

But what if you need more than just the basic properties provided by RenderingModelBase? That's where custom models come into play. Creating a custom model allows you to add specific properties and methods that are relevant to your component. This is where you can really start to tailor your renderings to meet your exact requirements. For instance, you might want to add properties for images, links, or even calculated values based on multiple fields. To create a custom model, you simply define a C# class that inherits from RenderingModelBase and add your desired properties. Then, you need to tell Sitecore to use your custom model for your rendering, which we’ll cover in the next section.

Creating a Custom View Rendering in SXA: Step-by-Step

Alright, let's get our hands dirty and walk through the process of creating a custom view rendering in SXA. This is where the rubber meets the road, guys! We'll break it down into manageable steps, making sure you're comfortable with each part of the process.

Step 1: Define Your Custom Model

First things first, you need to define your custom model. This is where you specify the properties and methods that your view rendering will use. As mentioned earlier, your model should inherit from Sitecore.XA.Foundation.Mvc.Models.RenderingModelBase. Let's say you're creating a component that displays a promotional banner with a title, description, and image. Your model might look something like this:

using Sitecore.XA.Foundation.Mvc.Models;

namespace YourProject.Models
{
 public class PromoBannerModel : RenderingModelBase
 {
 public string Title { get; set; }
 public string Description { get; set; }
 public Sitecore.Data.Items.MediaItem Image { get; set; }
 public string ImageUrl { get; set; }

 public override void Initialize(Sitecore.Mvc.Presentation.Rendering rendering)
 {
 base.Initialize(rendering);

 // Get the Sitecore Item and populate the properties
 var item = Sitecore.Context.Database.GetItem(rendering.ItemUri);
 if (item != null)
 {
 Title = Sitecore.Data.Fields.TextField(item.Fields["Title"])?.Value;
 Description = Sitecore.Data.Fields.TextField(item.Fields["Description"])?.Value;
 var imageField = (Sitecore.Data.Fields.ImageField)item.Fields["Image"];
 Image = imageField?.MediaItem;
 ImageUrl = Sitecore.Resources.Media.MediaManager.GetMediaUrl(Image);
 }
 }
 }
}

Notice the Initialize method? This is where you'll populate your model's properties with data from Sitecore. You're essentially fetching the item associated with the rendering and extracting the values from its fields. This method is crucial because it's called by Sitecore when the rendering is being processed.

Step 2: Create Your View

Next up, you need to create your Razor view. This is the .cshtml file that will generate the HTML output for your component. Your view should be strongly-typed to your custom model. Here's an example of what your view might look like:

@using YourProject.Models
@model PromoBannerModel

<div class="promo-banner">
 <h2>@Model.Title</h2>
 <p>@Model.Description</p>
 @if (Model.Image != null)
 {
 <img src="@Model.ImageUrl" alt="@Model.Title" />
 }
</div>

As you can see, you're using the @Model directive to access the properties of your custom model. This is where the magic happens – you're taking the data you fetched in your model and displaying it in a structured way in your view. The use of HTML helpers and conditional statements allows you to create dynamic and flexible components.

Step 3: Create the Rendering Definition in Sitecore

Now, you need to tell Sitecore about your new rendering. This involves creating a rendering definition item in the Sitecore Content Editor. Navigate to /sitecore/layout/Renderings in the Content Editor. Under your desired SXA site's renderings folder, create a new item using the View Rendering template (usually found under /Templates/Foundation/SXA/XA Rendering Parameters/_ViewRendering).

Fill in the following fields:

Rendering Name: Give your rendering a descriptive name (e.g., "Promo Banner").
View Path: Specify the path to your Razor view file (e.g., ~/Views/PromoBanner/PromoBanner.cshtml).
Model Type: This is the crucial step where you tell Sitecore to use your custom model. Enter the fully qualified name of your model class (e.g., YourProject.Models.PromoBannerModel, YourProject).
Datasource Template: Set datasource template if you want the fields to be rendered based on the datasource item fields.

Step 4: Associate the Rendering with a Component

With your rendering definition in place, you can now associate it with a component in SXA. This typically involves creating a new component item in the /sitecore/content/{Your Site}/Presentation/Components folder. You can use a template like /Templates/Foundation/SXA/XA Component as a base.

Once you've created the component item, you need to add your new rendering to its renderings list. This is usually done in the Presentation Details section of the component item. Add your rendering, and you're almost there!

Step 5: Add the Component to a Page

Finally, the moment of truth! You can now add your custom component to a page in Sitecore. Simply navigate to the page in the Experience Editor and drag your component from the toolbox onto the page. If everything is set up correctly, you should see your component rendering with the data you've configured in Sitecore. Woohoo!

Accessing SXA Models: Diving Deeper

Okay, so you know how to create a custom model, but what about accessing the existing SXA models? SXA provides a rich set of models that you can leverage in your renderings. These models encapsulate various aspects of the SXA framework, such as navigation, page structure, and more.

Using SXA Base Models

As mentioned earlier, RenderingModelBase is the foundation of most SXA models. It provides basic properties like Item (the current context item), Rendering (the rendering item), and PageContext (access to the current page context). These properties are incredibly useful for accessing Sitecore data and rendering settings.

Leveraging SXA Service Classes

SXA also provides a set of service classes that you can use to access more advanced functionality. These services offer methods for tasks like retrieving navigation items, fetching media URLs, and more. To use a service class, you typically need to inject it into your model using dependency injection. This is where the power of SXA's architecture really shines.

Example: Accessing Navigation Items

Let's say you want to display a navigation menu in your custom rendering. SXA provides a INavigationService that you can use to retrieve the navigation items for a specific context. Here's how you might use it in your custom model:

using Sitecore.XA.Foundation.Mvc.Models;
using Sitecore.XA.Foundation.Navigation.Services;
using System.Collections.Generic;

namespace YourProject.Models
{
 public class MyComponentModel : RenderingModelBase
 {
 private readonly INavigationService _navigationService;

 public MyComponentModel(INavigationService navigationService)
 {
 _navigationService = navigationService;
 }

 public IEnumerable<Sitecore.XA.Foundation.Navigation.Models.NavigationItem> NavigationItems { get; set; }

 public override void Initialize(Sitecore.Mvc.Presentation.Rendering rendering)
 {
 base.Initialize(rendering);

 // Get navigation items using the service
 NavigationItems = _navigationService.GetNavigationItems(Sitecore.Context.Item, 1, 3);
 }
 }
}

In this example, you're injecting the INavigationService into your model's constructor. Then, in the Initialize method, you're using the service to retrieve the navigation items. This is a powerful way to leverage SXA's built-in functionality in your custom renderings.

Best Practices for Custom View Renderings in SXA

Before we wrap up, let's touch on some best practices for creating custom view renderings in SXA. Following these guidelines will help you build robust, maintainable components that play nicely with the SXA ecosystem.

Keep Your Models Lean

Your models should primarily be responsible for fetching and preparing data for your view. Avoid putting too much business logic in your models. Instead, consider using service classes or other patterns to encapsulate complex logic.

Use Display Templates

If you find yourself repeating the same HTML structure in multiple views, consider using display templates. Display templates allow you to define reusable chunks of HTML that can be easily included in your views. This promotes consistency and reduces code duplication.

Leverage SXA Styles and Scripts

SXA provides a powerful theming engine that allows you to customize the look and feel of your components. Take advantage of SXA's styles and scripts to ensure your custom renderings seamlessly integrate with your site's design.

Test Your Renderings

Last but not least, always test your renderings thoroughly. This includes unit testing your models and integration testing your views. Catching issues early in the development process can save you a lot of headaches down the line.

Conclusion

So, there you have it! Creating custom view renderings in Sitecore SXA is not only possible, but it's also a powerful way to extend the framework and tailor it to your specific needs. By understanding the SXA model, leveraging service classes, and following best practices, you can build robust, maintainable components that deliver exceptional experiences. Now go out there and start building some awesome renderings, guys!

Remember, the key is to break down the process into manageable steps, understand the underlying concepts, and don't be afraid to experiment. Happy coding!