--- title: "What is the Admin menu and how does it work?" isPublished: true --- # What is the Admin menu and how does it work? > Please be aware that functionality covered in this and linked articles may not be available to you. The Admin menu offers you the grouped administrative links from the Site Administration page in a menu format without leaving your current page. It has some important capabilities for you: 1. A search bar within the menu allowing you to search for and click the link within the search results 1. An option to view links as groups in default order or in alphabetical order 1. A search history showing your eight most frequently clicked links ![](/tms/images/admin-menu-initial.png) ### Article contents - [Search bar](#search-bar) - [Grouping order](#grouping-order) - [History](#history) - [Comparison of Admin menu and Site Administration page](#comparison-of-admin-menu-and-site-administration-page) ## Search bar When you open the **Admin** menu, your cursor is in the Search bar; as you type, links that match what you have typed appear. This list is narrowed as you continue to type. If you press **Enter**, you will be taken to the page corresponding to the first link in the results list. You can also click on any link in the results to navigate to that page. ![](/tms/images/admin-search-bar.png) [Return to Article contents](#article-contents) ## Grouping Order There are two orders for the Admin groups on the menu: **Group** (default) and **A-Z**. The menu always opens with the groups ordered in the default view. Click **A-Z** to vertically alphabetize the groups. ![](/tms/images/admin-alpha-sort.png) ## History The History area provides you with quick access to links you use the most. The listing does not appear until you have clicked a link from the menu. As you click links either from the search results or the menu, the eight most frequently used links are listed under **History** on the left side of the menu. The **History** updates based on your usage showing the most used at the top descending to the least used. ![](/tms/images/admin-history.png) History continues to track your usage each time you open the menu and click a link. When you click **Clear** next to **History**, the counters are reset, and the links are removed. If you prefer to view the menu as a page, you can click **View as page** on the menu. Please be aware that History does not track any links clicked from the **Site Administration** page or any links that are right-clicked and opened in another tab from the menu. ![](/tms/images/admin-history-clear-legacy.png) [Return to Article contents](#article-contents) ## Comparison of Admin menu and Site Administration page Below is a comparison of the functionality between the Admin menu and Site Admin page: | | **Admin menu** | **Site Administration page** | |:--------|:--------|:--------| | **Search** | Use intgrated Search bar in menu. Can click links directly from results or press **Enter** to be taken to first page in results. | Must use browser’s searching capability. | | **Group Order** | Groups set by default but can view alphabetically (vertical). | Tiles can be rearranged via drag-and-drop. | | **History** | The eight most frequently used links display on left side. Dynamically updates as menu is used. Can be cleared. Does not record links right-clicked or clicks on Site Administration page. | No history or tracking of usage available for easy access of links. | [Return to Article contents](#article-contents)