--- title: "How do I create Channel Portals?" date: "2025-01-06T11:52:52+00:00" summary: "Create and share digital product catalogs effortlessly with Channel Portals. Learn how to curate product information, release channels, customize portals, and export data for seamless distribution to dealers and sales teams." image: type: "page" url: "/acquia-dam/how-do-i-create-channel-portals" id: "3b3edc9f-fef8-4652-b610-d38a834b735d" --- Table of contents will be added Channel Portals make it easy to create and share digital product catalogs for dealers, distributors, and sales teams. Portals can feature many product pages and are automatically created using products and attributes that are already configured in the Entries app.  ![example of channel portal with distributor channel chosen and 3 product categories shown](https://acquia.widen.net/content/7d9bf88c-07d5-421d-bb2a-5bd55b612bd5/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhe.png) **In this article:** * [Curate product information in Entries](#curate) * [Release a channel from Entries to Channel Portals](#channel) * [Create a new channel portal](#create) * [Preview, publish, and share](#preview) * [Explore the channel portal](#explore) * [Exporting the product data from channel portals](#exporting) Curate product information in Entries ---------------------------------------- Channel Portals are automatically created from a filtered list of product information, called a channel, in the Entries app. You’ll need access to Entries to [build a channel](/acquia-dam/how-do-i-distribute-product-information "How do I distribute product information?").  ![distributor channel in entries with a product list shown](https://acquia.widen.net/content/71b923e7-0db0-4b5d-9de0-2f23ed6e522b/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhh.png)   Release a channel from Entries to Channel Portals ------------------------------------------------- Once the channel is built in Entries, the information can be released to a channel portal. On the Channel Details page, select **Actions** **\>** **Release to Channel Portals**. Anyone with access to Entries can view and release channels. ![categories page with image and edit icons highlighted by Accessories category](https://acquia.widen.net/content/b9ea6892-c553-40d5-9722-e44000be35b3/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005LvhY.png) After the channel is released, it becomes available to portal creators who need to select it when creating a Channel Portal. Only one channel can be selected for use in a channel portal. However, one channel can be used in multiple portals. When a channel is updated in Entries, the Channel Portals connected to it do not update automatically. You must release the changes to Channel Portals each time by selecting **Actions > Update in Channel Portals**. ![actions menu on the channel page in entries with update and remove in Channel Portals options](https://acquia.widen.net/content/a8501f99-33bb-4a1d-8d19-ed42228e36db/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhc.png) To make a channel unavailable for Channel Portals, ensure that the channel is not being used in any portals. If it is being used, edit the Channel Portals and click **Select different channel** to change the channel. Then, on the Channel Details page in Entries, select **Actions** and **Remove Channel from Portals**.  For more information, watch the [create and release channels from Entries](https://www.acquiaacademy.com/learn/course/internal/view/elearning/1467/distribute-product-information)  tutorial on Acquia Academy.  Create a new channel portal --------------------------- **Step 1:** From the dashboard in the Portals app, select **Create portal** and then select **Channel** as your portal type.  **Step 2:** From the Channel dropdown, select a channel that contains product content from Entries. ![add product with channel dropdown open](https://acquia.widen.net/content/3c52a513-88ba-472d-bef2-edd940259a4a/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhb.png) The page displays product content with a navigation structure created from the channel’s category hierarchy. This information and hierarchy can be edited only in Entries, not in Portals. For more information, visit [how product categories are set up in Entries](/acquia-dam/how-do-i-set-product-hierarchy "How do I set up a product hierarchy?"). The maximum number of products you can display in a channel portal is 50,000.  To change the channel at any point, click **Select different channel**.  **Step 3:** Customize the channel portal.   _Add a logo_ Select **Add logo** and search for an asset from your DAM site that you have permission to view, then select and crop the asset. The logo will appear near the top of the page.  _Edit category preview images and names_ Preview images for the categories and subcategories in your portal can be added and changed in Entries. Go to **Setup** and **Categories**, hover over the category or subcategory, and select the image icon to search for a DAM asset you have permission to view. Select the pencil icon to edit the name of the category.  ![categories page with image and edit icons highlighted by Accessories category](https://acquia.widen.net/content/b9ea6892-c553-40d5-9722-e44000be35b3/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005LvhY.png) The new preview image or category name will not update in all channel portals that feature it until you release the changes to Portals from the channel page.  _Add page content_  At the bottom of the portal, you can add additional text and DAM images to your channel portal. This content acts like a footer, so it will show on every page, including individual product details pages. If you leave it blank, nothing will appear at the bottom of the pages.  ![example of a footer design with two images and a contact us section](https://acquia.widen.net/content/beee4f0d-0594-4081-8750-dee31c992dce/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhg.png) _Sample footer_   ![sample footer design with two images of bike products and a questions section](https://acquia.widen.net/content/f76dbf0a-75a0-42a8-b5c3-4171011c72a9/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhl.png) _Sample footer_ _Adjust the portal design_ You can choose fonts, background colors, and link colors that reflect your brand.  To do this, select the gear icon and **Design**. Select a font for the portal and adjust colors for the header background and links. If the color you select does not meet the [WCAG 2.1 AA](https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/) contrast ratio minimums, a warning icon will appear. If this happens, try selecting a lighter shade for the header background or darker shade for links. ![color selector with a warning sign indicating the color does not meet the contrast ratio](https://acquia.widen.net/content/58f038be-b0ee-4cfd-bcfe-b851f757e1ec/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005LvhX.png)   Preview, publish, and share --------------------------- To see what your channel portal will look like to anyone you share it with, select **Preview**. ![channel portals top menu with preview, publish, and share buttons displayed in top right](https://acquia.widen.net/content/85e0f496-4ba1-4f16-8957-86804df7aaaf/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhj.png) To return to editing, select **Edit**. In both edit and preview views, you can make your channel portal available to others by selecting **Publish**. After publishing the channel portal, you can continue to edit the active page. However, anyone viewing the page will not see those updates until you select **Publish** again. To edit security access and share settings, select **Share**. Set the access level to public – which anyone, including non-DAM users, can view – login required, or access code. When you create an access code, it must be at least six characters long and can include numbers and letters. The portal creator must manually share this code with others, and anyone, including non-DAM users, can view the portal using the access code.  ![share modal with access code selected and a sample code and expiration date](https://acquia.widen.net/content/df1e1726-412b-4352-ab9a-593866b9ab88/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhf.png) You can select a date for the portal to expire. If you don’t select an expiration date, the portal will never expire. Share the portal with others by sending a direct link or an embed code that can be copied and pasted into another webpage. The embed code allows you to display a portal’s assets on the webpage and have those assets automatically update. You can also invite individual DAM users to view or edit the channel portal by typing their name or email. Enter multiple users in this field, then select if they can view or edit the portal. Optionally, you can add a message that will appear in the email the users receive, then select **Send**. ![share modal showing the invite screen with users selected and email message](https://acquia.widen.net/content/e508fe0b-ac4f-423d-9f25-88d6a89c7f93/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvha.png) You can also watch tutorials on how to create, customize, and share a Channel Portal in the [Portals Tutorial Library](https://www.acquiaacademy.com/learn/course/internal/view/elearning/1489/portals-tutorial-library) on Acquia Academy.    Explore the channel portal -------------------------- Viewers of the channel portal can navigate to find product content through the category modules on the home page or the menu.  ![channel portal menu with arrow pointing to the menu with categories label](https://acquia.widen.net/content/835ded0e-797e-4194-932c-bddf09704130/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005LvhZ.png) After selecting a category or all products, the viewer will go to a product list page. This is similar in format to what users see in Entries and offers a quick glance at product information. Products may have related products, called variants in Entries. These can be viewed by selecting the dropdown by the featured image.  ![product list with product variants nested under parent product and dropdown arrow highlighted to view variants](https://acquia.widen.net/content/2ced8d15-6287-4da2-a4c6-85418aa1c634/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhk.png) From the list page, select a product’s SKU to see full product details including marketing copy, technical specifications, and product assets.  From the product details page, you can select **Download all assets** to download a zip file of all assets for the product. All files will download in their original format. ![bliss bike product details page with the download all button](https://acquia.widen.net/content/00e2b3e9-e16e-4403-b652-a2628cb969f9/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvhd.png) You can also download single assets in channel portals. Click the download button in the corner of an asset. A [download modal](/acquia-dam/how-do-i-download-assets-portal "How do I download assets from a portal?") will display with the available file types to choose from.  Single and all asset downloads are turned on by default in newly created channel portals. If you want to turn off one or either, go to **Portal settings**, select **Download**, and turn the settings off.  Exporting the product data from channel portals ----------------------------------------------- Channel Portals provide a streamlined method for exporting product data quickly and efficiently. They also make it easier to share comprehensive product details with retailers and distributors.  Use the following steps to export product data from Channel Portals: 1. Navigate to the Portal dashboard. 2. Select the channel dashboard containing the product data that you want to export. 3. Click the **Share** icon and copy the direct link of the portal for easy access. 4. Use the link to open the channel portal page. 5. Click **View All Products** to view the complete product list. 6. Click **Download** product data to start the export process. ![Download product data button](https://acquia.widen.net/content/fb0e1cb6-561d-4769-8606-1661f53f41e2/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EMPb00000C7JIL.png)  7. Select one of the following formats for the export: 1. CSV 2. XLSX ![Formats for Download product data](https://acquia.widen.net/content/ac805392-2a15-44c0-b307-7e0f06a3af54/web/ka0Pb0000006Yev00N6g00000WDN1a0EMPb00000C7JlN.png) 8. Click **Download** to begin downloading.  A snackbar message confirms a successful download. When you open the downloaded file, you get organized product data, which provides clear information and is easy to share with the stakeholders.