jupyterlab/docs/source/user/interface.rst

.. _interface:

The JupyterLab Interface
========================

JupyterLab provides flexible building blocks for interactive,
exploratory computing. While JupyterLab has many features found in
traditional integrated development environments (IDEs), it remains
focused on interactive, exploratory computing.

The JupyterLab interface consists of a :ref:`main work area <main-area>`
containing tabs of documents and activities, a collapsible :ref:`left sidebar
<left-sidebar>`, and a :ref:`menu bar <menu-bar>`. The left sidebar contains a
:ref:`file browser <working-with-files>`, the :ref:`list of running kernels and
terminals <running>`, the :ref:`command palette <commands>`, the :ref:`notebook
cell tools inspector <notebook>`, and the :ref:`tabs list <tabs>`.

.. image:: images/interface_jupyterlab.png
   :align: center
   :class: jp-screenshot
   :alt: A screenshot of the JupyterLab interface. The main work area is in the middle section of the interface. There is also a left sidebar and a top menu bar.

JupyterLab sessions always reside in a :ref:`workspace <url-workspaces-ui>`.
Workspaces contain the state of JupyterLab: the files that are currently open,
the layout of the application areas and tabs, etc.
Workspaces can be saved on the server with
:ref:`named workspace URLs <url-workspaces-ui>`.
To learn more about URLs in Jupyterlab, visit :ref:`urls`.


.. _menu-bar:

Menu Bar
--------

The menu bar at the top of JupyterLab has top-level menus that expose
actions available in JupyterLab with their keyboard shortcuts. The
default menus are:

-  **File**: actions related to files and directories
-  **Edit**: actions related to editing documents and other activities
-  **View**: actions that alter the appearance of JupyterLab
-  **Run**: actions for running code in different activities such as
   notebooks and code consoles
-  **Kernel**: actions for managing kernels, which are separate processes
   for running code
-  **Tabs**: a list of the open documents and activities in the dock panel
-  **Settings**: common settings and an advanced settings editor
-  **Help**: a list of JupyterLab and kernel help links

:ref:`JupyterLab extensions <user_extensions>` can also create new top-level menus in the menu
bar.

.. _sidebars:

Left and Right Sidebar
----------------------

.. _left-sidebar:

The left sidebar contains a number of commonly-used tabs including:

- a file browser,
- a list of tabs in the main work and of running kernels and terminals,
- the command palette (in 3.0+ moved to a modal window accessible with a :ref:`keyboard shortcut <access-palette>`),
- the :ref:`table of contents <toc>`,
- the :ref:`extension manager <extension_manager>`.

.. image:: images/interface_left.png
   :align: center
   :class: jp-screenshot
   :alt: A screenshot of the primary JupyterLab sidebar showing a variety of files in the file browser.

.. _right-sidebar:

The right sidebar contains:

- the property inspector (active in notebooks),
- the :ref:`debugger <debugger>`.

.. image:: images/interface_right.png
   :align: center
   :class: jp-screenshot
   :alt: A screenshot of the secondary JupyterLab sidebar showing the property inspector.

The column that allows to switch between tabs is called Activity Bar in JupyterLab.

.. _left-sidebar-toggle:

The sidebars can be collapsed or expanded by selecting "Show Left Sidebar"
or "Show Right Sidebar" in the View menu or by clicking on the active sidebar tab:

The location of tabs can be switched between the left and the right sidebar from the :ref:`context menu <context-menus-rightclick>`.

.. raw:: html

  <div class="jp-youtube-video">
     <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/PlJGecfetek?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
  </div>

JupyterLab extensions can add additional panels to the sidebars.

.. _main-area:

Main Work Area
--------------

.. _main-area-vid:

The main work area in JupyterLab enables you to arrange documents (notebooks,
text files, etc.) and other activities (terminals, code consoles, etc.) into
panels of tabs that can be resized or subdivided. Drag a tab to the center of a
tab panel to move the tab to the panel. Subdivide a tab panel by dragging a tab to
the left, right, top, or bottom of the panel:

.. raw:: html

  <div class="jp-youtube-video">
    <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Ka8qS7CO1XQ?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
  </div>

The work area has a single current activity. The tab for the current activity is
marked with a colored top border (blue by default).

.. _tabs:

Tabs and Simple Interface Mode
------------------------------

The Tabs panel in the left sidebar lists the open documents or
activities in the main work area:

.. image:: images/interface_tabs.png
   :align: center
   :class: jp-screenshot
   :alt: A screenshot of the tabs panel in JupyterLab that lists some sample documents.

The same information is also available in the Tabs menu:

.. image:: images/interface_tabs_menu.png
   :align: center
   :class: jp-screenshot
   :alt: A screenshot of the tabs menu in JupyterLab with a list of sample documents.

.. _tabs-singledocument:

It is often useful to focus on a single document or activity without closing
other tabs in the main work area. Simple Interface mode enables this, while making
it easy to return to your multi-activity layout in the main work area.
Toggle Simple Interface mode using the View menu:

.. raw:: html

  <div class="jp-youtube-video">
    <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/DO7NOenMQC0?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
  </div>

When you leave Simple Interface mode, the original layout of the main
area is restored.

Context Menus
-------------

.. _context-menus-rightclick:

Many parts of JupyterLab, such as notebooks, text files, code consoles,
and tabs, have context menus that can be accessed by right-clicking on
the element:

.. raw:: html

  <div class="jp-youtube-video">
    <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/y30fs6kg6fc?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
  </div>

.. _context-menus-shiftrightclick:

The browser’s native context menu can be accessed by holding down
``Shift`` and right-clicking:

.. raw:: html

  <div class="jp-youtube-video">
    <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/XPPWW-7WJ40?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
  </div>

.. _shortcuts:

Keyboard Shortcuts
------------------

.. _shortcuts-settings:

As in the classic Notebook, you can navigate the user interface through keyboard
shortcuts. You can find and customize the current list of keyboard shortcuts by
selecting the Advanced Settings Editor item in the Settings menu, then selecting
Keyboard Shortcuts in the Settings tab.

.. raw:: html

    <div class="jp-youtube-video">
       <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/rhW3kAExCik?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    </div>

.. _editor-keymaps:

You can also customize the :ref:`text editor <file-editor>` to use vim, emacs, or Sublime Text
keyboard maps by using the Text Editor Key Map submenu in the Settings
menu:

.. raw:: html

    <div class="jp-youtube-video">
       <iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/COheO7sA4-U?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
    </div>