A Guide to Vanilla Knowledge - HL Vanilla Community
<main> <article class="userContent"> <p><strong>Vanilla Knowledge</strong> is a feature that you can use to create custom knowledge bases in and for your <strong>Higher Logic Vanilla</strong> (<strong>Vanilla</strong>) community.</p><h3 data-id="highlights">Highlights</h3><p>Vanilla gives you the ability to:</p><ul><li>create <strong>either of two types</strong> of knowledge base (<strong>KB</strong>) to ensure you can offer whichever better suits the needs of your community. Refer to <em>Knowledge Base types</em>, below.</li><li>create <strong>multiple knowledge bases</strong> so that you can offer content that individually supports one of several products or provides content in different languages.</li></ul><p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: Multiple knowledge bases must be of the same type.</p><p>🛑 <strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: Vanilla supports localization (adapting content to a local language or culture) of the user interface, but article content cannot be automatically translated.</p><h2 data-id="knowledge-base-types">Knowledge Base types</h2><p>When creating a KB, you'll have to choose <strong>what type of knowledge base</strong> you want. It's important that you <em>know the difference</em> and <em>choose the type you want</em>. There are two types:</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/4NGQZCVC59BD/kb-type-selector.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/4NGQZCVC59BD/kb-type-selector.png" alt="KB type selector.png" height="194" width="981" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ul><li><strong>Guide</strong> - This type is intended for a <strong>series of articles</strong> that should be read in sequential order, such as a product user guide.</li></ul><p>🛑 <strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: <strong>Guide </strong>knowledge bases are <strong>limited </strong>to a maximum of 1000 articles. </p><ul><li><strong>Help Center</strong> - This type is intended for a collection of "stand-alone" articles that tend to be self-contained, are consulted individually for a specific topic and/or process, and are usually found via search.</li></ul><p>🛑 <strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: <strong>Help Center</strong> knowledge bases can have <strong>unlimited</strong> articles. </p><p>✔️ <strong>TIP</strong>: You can create Categories with both types of KB in order to organize your content.</p><h3 data-id="examples">Examples</h3><p>Below are examples of the <strong>two knowledge base types</strong> to better show the distinctions and how each might display. There's also a multiple knowledge base example.</p><h4 data-id="guide-type-example">Guide type example</h4><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/XXDM5QR3GB9G/kb-type-example-guide.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/XXDM5QR3GB9G/kb-type-example-guide.png" alt="KB type example-guide.png" height="768" width="1112" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <h4 data-id="help-center-type-example">Help Center type example</h4><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/5IUTT3XJKGPH/kb-type-example-help-center.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/5IUTT3XJKGPH/kb-type-example-help-center.png" alt="KB type example-help center.png" height="734" width="956" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <h4 data-id="multiple-knowledge-base-example">Multiple knowledge base example</h4><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/A01TQTCDKQIP/kb-multi-kb-example.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/A01TQTCDKQIP/kb-multi-kb-example.png" alt="KB multi-KB example.png" height="551" width="855" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <h2 data-id="permissions">Permissions</h2><p>When creating a knowledge base, it's important to understand that access to and management of the content is determined by the permissions that have been set in the <strong>Knowledge</strong> section of each Role (<strong>Membership > Roles & Permissions</strong>).</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/R5OQW3ZAEIZN/kb-permissions.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/R5OQW3ZAEIZN/kb-permissions.png" alt="KB Permissions.png" height="324" width="968" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>These permissions can be overridden by KB-specific permissions for each of your KBs.</p><p>Before setting the permissions, consider:</p><ul><li>Am I going to have multiple KBs?</li><li>Who is the target audience for the KB?</li><li>Do the current Roles suit my needs? or...</li><li>Should I create Roles to more easily isolate my target audiences?</li></ul><p>Answering these questions should provide some guidance as you decide who needs which permissions.</p><ul><li>To learn about <em>Role-based and KB-specific permissions</em>, see:</li></ul><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"This feature was first made in available in the 2020.005 release. Overview Knowledge permissions are used to control which user roles are able to view and\/or add content to your Knowledge Base. Per-Knowledge Base Permissions can also be enabled to give you and your team more granular control over who can view and\/or create…","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/VWGAXAF5OFCO\/microsoftteams-image.png","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/185","embedType":"link","name":"Knowledge Base Permissions - Vanilla Success"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/185" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/185 </a> </div><h2 data-id="create-a-knowledge-base">Create a Knowledge Base</h2><p>It's fairly easy to create a KB. This section steps through the process.</p><ol><li>Access the Dashboard.</li><li>Navigate to <strong>Settings > Knowledge > Knowledge Bases</strong> to access the Knowledge Bases page.</li><li>Click <strong>Add Knowledge Base</strong> in the upper right.</li></ol><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/POW136PWLJQ9/kbs-list-page.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/POW136PWLJQ9/kbs-list-page.png" alt="KBs list page.png" height="433" width="1062" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: If your community has existing KBs (as shown above), you can:</p><ul><li>click a <strong>pencil</strong> icon to edit the KB.</li><li>click a <strong>trash can</strong> icon to delete the KB.</li></ul><p>The <strong>Add Knowledge Base</strong> modal has three tabs: <strong>General</strong>, <strong>Permissions</strong>, and <strong>Universal Content</strong>. We'll start with the <strong>General</strong> tab.</p><h4 data-id="general-settings">General settings</h4><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/OK8QBMLCPXNY/create-general-settings.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/OK8QBMLCPXNY/create-general-settings.png" alt="create-general settings.png" height="446" width="996" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>In this section:</p><ul><li>specify a title for the KB;</li><li>provide a description of the KB (this displays under the title if there a multiple KBs);</li><li>specify the URL code (the URL slug);</li><li>select a product; and</li><li>select a language-based locale.</li></ul><p>✔️ <strong>TIP</strong>: You can add/remove locales by enabling/disabling them on the Language Settings page (<strong>Settings > Technical > Language Settings</strong>); changes are immediate.</p><p>Scroll down to...</p><h4 data-id="image-settings">Image settings</h4><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/BKATB8R6F4HD/create-images-settings.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/BKATB8R6F4HD/create-images-settings.png" alt="create-Images settings.png" height="287" width="993" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>In this section:</p><ul><li>choose an image to be the graphic representation of this KB (<em>optional</em>);</li><li>choose an image as the banner that displays at the page top of this KB (<em>optional</em>); and</li><li>choose an image to display alongside the title and search bar of this KB (<em>optional</em>).</li></ul><p>Scroll down to...</p><h4 data-id="layout-options-settings">Layout Options settings</h4><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/8NAAW55GD48X/create-layout-options-settings.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/8NAAW55GD48X/create-layout-options-settings.png" alt="create-Layout Options settings.png" height="328" width="996" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>In this section:</p><ul><li>select a <strong>KB type</strong> (if Help Center, set the article sort order); and</li><li>set whether to include (or not) links to untranslated articles in the sitemap.</li></ul><p>🛑 <strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: <strong>Guide </strong>knowledge bases are <strong>limited </strong>to a maximum of 1000 articles. <strong>Help Center</strong> knowledge bases can have <strong>unlimited</strong> articles. </p><h3 data-id="permissions-tab">Permissions tab</h3><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/ZL9RT8SP5ZMT/create-permissions-tab.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/ZL9RT8SP5ZMT/create-permissions-tab.png" alt="create-Permissions tab.png" height="428" width="1013" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>On this tab:</p><ul><li>slide the toggle to the right (ON) to enable custom permissions;</li><li>select which groups of users can search for and view content in this KB; and</li><li>select which groups of users can manage content in this KB.</li></ul><p>To learn more, see:</p><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"📝 NOTE: This feature was made available with the 2020.005 release. In your Higher Logic Vanilla (Vanilla) community, it's important that you control who can add content in your knowledge bases (KBs) and who can manage (e.g., edit, delete) that content. Vanilla provides two sets of permissions that you can use…","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/VWGAXAF5OFCO\/microsoftteams-image.png","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/185","embedType":"link","name":"Knowledge Base Permissions - Vanilla Success"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/185" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/185 </a> </div><h3 data-id="universal-content-tab">Universal Content tab</h3><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/GI8VFY5BZNGF/create-unvrsl-content-tab.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/GI8VFY5BZNGF/create-unvrsl-content-tab.png" alt="create-Unvrsl Content tab.png" height="396" width="1014" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>On this tab:</p><ul><li>slide the toggle to the right (ON) to make the content in this KB universal (i.e., available and searchable in other KBs); and</li><li>check a box to exclude this KB's content from being available and searchable in that KB.</li></ul><p>To learn more, see:</p><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"📝 NOTE: This feature was made available with the 2020.005 release. Vanilla Knowledge Bases (KBs) have a Universal Content setting that enables you to configure a KB such that its content is searchable and viewable from multiple knowledge bases. Benefits of Universal Content Universal Content makes it easy to: share content…","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/VWGAXAF5OFCO\/microsoftteams-image.png","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/186","embedType":"link","name":"Universal Content in Knowledge Bases - Vanilla Success"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/186" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/186 </a> </div><h2 data-id="add-organize-knowledge-base-categories">Add & organize Knowledge Base Categories</h2><p>With your knowledge base created, it's a good idea to think about <em>how much</em> and <em>what types</em> of content it's going to house. It's also a good idea to:</p><ul><li><strong>create</strong> a few KB Categories in order to group articles that have similar and/or related content, and then</li><li><strong>organize</strong> your KB Categories in a hierarchy that has a logical structure and is easy to navigate.</li></ul><p>Let's look at creating and organizing Categories before we add articles!</p><h3 data-id="categories-notes">Categories notes</h3><p>When creating Categories at this point, keep in mind that:</p><ul><li>Category names can be changed</li><li>Categories can be re-organized</li></ul><p>So in these early stages, don't be too concerned about giving them the perfect name or getting the structure exactly right.</p><h3 data-id="add-categories">Add Categories</h3><p>There are multiple ways to add Categories to your KB.</p><h4 data-id="new-category-option">New Category option</h4><p>On any published article page:</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-medium float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/KHS3JP4RM7YI/new-category-option.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/KHS3JP4RM7YI/new-category-option.png" alt="New Category option.png" height="205" width="246" loading="lazy" data-display-size="medium" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ol><li>Click <strong>New Category</strong> in the left margin.</li><li>Specify a name for the Category in the New Category modal and click <strong>Save</strong>.</li></ol><p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: The new Category displays at the bottom of the list on the Organize Categories page.</p><h4 data-id="organize-categories-option">Organize Categories option</h4><p>On any published article page:</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-medium float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/INB2NXCIN8EJ/organize-categories-option.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/INB2NXCIN8EJ/organize-categories-option.png" alt="Organize Categories option.png" height="205" width="246" loading="lazy" data-display-size="medium" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ol><li>Click <strong>Organize Categories</strong> in the left margin.</li><li>On the Organize Categories page, click <strong>New Category</strong> in the upper right.</li><li>Specify a name for the Category in the New Category modal and click <strong>Save</strong>.</li></ol><p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: The new Category displays at the bottom of the list on the Organize Categories page.</p><h4 data-id="category-selector-button">Category selector button</h4><p>On any in-progress (creating or editing) article page:</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/365RSNMES82G/category-selector-list.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/365RSNMES82G/category-selector-list.png" alt="category selector-list.png" height="258" width="528" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ol><li>Click the <strong>Category selector</strong> button above the article title.</li><li>On the Category-selector modal, click the <strong>New Category folder</strong> icon in the lower left.</li><li>Specify a name for the Category in the New Category modal and click <strong>Save</strong>.</li></ol><p>✔️ <strong>TIP</strong>: On the Category-selector modal, click the <strong>chevron</strong> (<strong>></strong>) icon to go down one level to create a subcategory.</p><p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: The new Category displays at the bottom of the list.</p><h3 data-id="organize-categories">Organize Categories</h3><p>You can easily re-arrange your knowledge base Categories in order to keep the structure logical and the articles easier to find.</p><p>On any published article page, click <strong>Organize Categories</strong> in the left margin.</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-medium float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/J84KL2SFNNU1/organize-categories-option.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/J84KL2SFNNU1/organize-categories-option.png" alt="Organize Categories option.png" height="205" width="246" loading="lazy" data-display-size="medium" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>On the Organize Categories page:</p><ul><li>All of the current KB's Categories are listed.</li><li>The names of Categories that have subcategories are <strong>bold</strong>.</li><li>The names of subcategories that have sub-subcategories are <strong>bold</strong>.</li></ul><p>On this page, you can:</p><ul><li><strong>add</strong> Categories,</li><li><strong>move/re-arrange</strong> Categories by dragging and dropping them, and</li><li><strong>nest</strong> Categories under one another (i.e., create subcategories and sub-subcategories).</li></ul><p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: The <em>drag-&-drop Categories</em> feature is applicable <em>only to Guide-type KBs</em>. The arrangement of Help Centers content is managed by the <strong>Layout Options > Sort Articles</strong> setting that is discussed above in <strong>Create a Knowledge Base</strong>.</p><h2 data-id="add-knowledge-base-articles">Add Knowledge Base articles</h2><p>Vanilla makes it easy to add articles to your knowledge base.</p><p>🛑 <strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: <strong>Guide </strong>knowledge bases are <strong>limited </strong>to a maximum of 1000 articles. <strong>Help Center</strong> knowledge bases can have <strong>unlimited</strong> articles. </p><ul><li>On the KB Homepage, click the <strong>Compose</strong> icon.</li></ul><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/BZWXV7IA4UGR/create-article-compose-icon-kb-home.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/BZWXV7IA4UGR/create-article-compose-icon-kb-home.png" alt="create article-Compose icon-KB home.png" height="237" width="577" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ul><li>On any Category page, click the <strong>Compose</strong> icon.</li></ul><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/HODYDA4C1PU4/create-article-compose-icon.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/HODYDA4C1PU4/create-article-compose-icon.png" alt="User: "create article-Compose icon.png"" height="180" width="320" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ul><li>On any article page, click the <strong>ellipsis</strong> icon and select <strong>New Article</strong>.</li></ul><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/6M22C2DNXH9D/create-article-newarticle-option.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/6M22C2DNXH9D/create-article-newarticle-option.png" alt="User: "create article-NewArticle option.png"" height="180" width="320" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>Each of these opens a blank article page; the article will be created <strong>in your current location</strong>.</p><p>⭐️ <strong>EXAMPLE</strong>: If you are in the <strong>Tools</strong> Category and start to create an article, the article is created in the <strong>Tools</strong> Category.</p><p>📝 <strong>NOTE</strong>: Irrespective of where you are when you create an article, you can relocate it (while creating and while editing) by clicking the <strong>Category selector</strong> button and choosing a different Category.</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/SB9Q6TQUVV9J/category-selector-list.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/SB9Q6TQUVV9J/category-selector-list.png" alt="User: "category selector-list.png"" height="180" width="320" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>1. Type or paste the article contents into the editor.</p><p>✔️ <strong>TIP</strong>: See <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/13" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc">Rich Editor</a> for information on the various formatting options.</p><p>2. When you've finished, click <strong>Publish</strong> in the upper right.</p><p>3. Navigate to the host Category and view the article to verify it looks as intended.</p><h3 data-id="edit-a-knowledge-base-article">Edit a knowledge base article</h3><p>To edit a knowledge base article:</p><p>1. Navigate to and open the article.</p><p>2. Click the <strong>ellipsis</strong> icon and select <strong>Edit</strong>.</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/3PRNMUJ896IO/edit-article.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/3PRNMUJ896IO/edit-article.png" alt="edit article.png" height="436" width="734" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>The article opens in edit mode.</p><p>3. Make your changes and revisions; click <strong>Publish</strong>.</p><p>🛑 <strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: The editor does <strong>not</strong> have a save option. The system auto-saves in-progress article edits every few seconds; this is indicated in the upper left of the editor:</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-medium float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/43G96LJYDY0T/auto-save-indicator.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/43G96LJYDY0T/auto-save-indicator.png" alt="auto-save indicator.png" height="67" width="288" loading="lazy" data-display-size="medium" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>✔️ <strong>TIP</strong>: Also check out <strong>Drafts and revisions</strong> below for "good to know" info when editing and publishing articles.</p><h3 data-id="format-your-article-contents">Format your article contents</h3><p>Vanilla knowledge base articles are created in our Rich Editor. You can use the various formatting options of the Rich Editor to enhance the content of the article. For example, use the:</p><ul><li><strong>simplified button bar</strong> to add an emoji, insert an image, insert media, and attach a file <em>where your cursor is positioned</em>.</li><li><strong>text/character format</strong> options to apply bold, italic, and add a link <em>to a selected chunk of text</em>. </li></ul><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/5QFGF0LIHWDP/pasted-image-0-287-29.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/5QFGF0LIHWDP/pasted-image-0-287-29.png" alt="User: "pasted image 0 (7).png"" height="180" width="320" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <ul><li><strong>paragraph format</strong> options to apply headings, create bulleted and numbered lists, and apply special formatting (e.g., quote and code styles) <em>to an entire paragraph</em>.</li></ul><p>✔️ <strong>TIP</strong>: The <strong>H2 Heading 2</strong> style acts as a "bookmark." These headings are used to build the on-page "Table of Contents" that displays in the right margin under <strong>On This Page</strong>.</p><p>To learn all about the <em>formatting options in the Rich Editor</em>, see:</p><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"The Rich Editor is Higher Logic Vanilla’s (Vanilla) default editor for formatting your posts and discussions. Upgrade to Rich Editor If you’re still using our Advanced Editor, you can enable the Rich Editor at any time. To do so: 1. Navigate to Dashboard > Settings > Discussion > Posting. 2. In the Post Format menu, select…","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/VWGAXAF5OFCO\/microsoftteams-image.png","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/13","embedType":"link","name":"Rich Editor - Vanilla Success"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/13" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/13 </a> </div><h2 data-id="drafts-and-revisions">Drafts and revisions</h2><p>It's important to remember that when you're creating or editing an article, Vanilla is periodically saving "draft" versions.</p><ul><li>An article (new and edited) will <em>remain in draft mode until it is </em><strong><em>published</em></strong>.</li><li>Each time an article is edited and then published, a fresh <strong><em>revision</em></strong><em> is saved</em>.</li><li>Click an article's <strong>ellipsis</strong> icon and select <strong>Revision History</strong> to access (and optionally revert to) <em>previously published versions of the article</em>. This option is available in the published version and in edit mode. </li></ul><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/SQ4QXTU3DFTP/revision-history.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/SQ4QXTU3DFTP/revision-history.png" alt="revision history.png" height="435" width="727" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <h2 data-id="migrateimport-content">Migrate/Import content</h2><p>If you have an existing knowledge base that is hosted on another platform, you can migrate/import that KB into a Vanilla Knowledge KB.</p><p>Contact your CSM to inquire whether our professional services and Knowledge teams can help you get started with your own Vanilla Knowledge KB using your existing content.</p><p>To learn about <em>migrating external content</em>, see:</p><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"The Vanilla Knowledge feature is the perfect complement to your Vanilla community because you can use it to host content right in your community. You can create your own knowledge bases and then populate them with staff-written articles, converted community posts, and migrated external content. 📝 NOTE: This article…","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/VWGAXAF5OFCO\/microsoftteams-image.png","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/198","embedType":"link","name":"Knowledge Base Migrations to Vanilla - Vanilla Success"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/198" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/198 </a> </div><h2 data-id="create-an-article-from-a-community-post">Create an article from a community post</h2><p>Vanilla makes it easy for you to automatically create an article from the content of a community post. When you do this, the post remains in place and is still available for comments, answers, etc., but now a KB article is linked to it.</p><p>1. Navigate to the post that you want to convert to a knowledge base article.</p><p>2. Click the <strong>ellipsis</strong> icon and choose <strong>Convert to Article</strong>.</p><div class="embedExternal embedImage display-large float-none"> <div class="embedExternal-content"> <a class="embedImage-link" href="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/QSDBSPOGF4EZ/discssn-convert-to-article.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener ugc" target="_blank"> <img class="embedImage-img" src="https://us.v-cdn.net/6030677/uploads/QSDBSPOGF4EZ/discssn-convert-to-article.png" alt="Discssn-convert to article.png" height="360" width="900" loading="lazy" data-display-size="large" data-float="none"></img></a> </div> </div> <p>3. Click <strong>Create Article</strong> at the confirmation prompt.</p><p>4. On the article page, select a Category (see Add Categories above) and click <strong>Publish</strong>.</p><p>The article is linked to the original post.</p><h2 data-id="translate-knowledge-base-articles">Translate Knowledge Base articles</h2><p>If you're using subcommunities on your community to offer your knowledge base content in different languages, you can easily add translated versions of your KB articles.</p><p>To learn how to <em>translate KB articles</em>, see:</p><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"📝 NOTE: This feature requires that the Product Integration option be enabled. Prep - link subcommunities to knowledge bases Knowledge bases (KBs) can be linked to subcommunities through a shared product. In order to do so, you have to: enable the Product Integration setting, link a subcommunity to a product, and select the…","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/VWGAXAF5OFCO\/microsoftteams-image.png","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/431","embedType":"link","name":"Translating Knowledge Base Articles - Vanilla Success"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/431" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/431 </a> </div><h2 data-id="additional-resources">Additional resources</h2><p>Click the link below to access a video expanding on what you learned in this article.</p><div class="js-embed embedResponsive" data-embedjson="{"body":"For more information, please see:","photoUrl":"https:\/\/us.v-cdn.net\/6030677\/uploads\/GXW21TRYG1JP\/share-imagevanilla-community.jpg","url":"https:\/\/success.vanillaforums.com\/kb\/articles\/459","embedType":"link","name":"Knowledge Base [video] - HL Vanilla Community"}"> <a href="https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/459" rel="nofollow noreferrer ugc"> https://success.vanillaforums.com/kb/articles/459 </a> </div><p><br></p> </article> </main>