Centers & Tabs

Customize NetSuite menu navigation for different roles.

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What is Centers & Tabs?

When you log into NetSuite, you see a menu bar at the top. This menu system is built from:

NETSUITE NAVIGATION - THE BIG PICTURE
===============================================================================

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  1. CENTER (The Overall Theme)                                              │
│     What UI style the user sees: Sales Center, Accounting Center, etc.     │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                             │
│  2. TABS (The Top Menu Bar)                                                 │
│  ┌────────┐ ┌────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ ┌────────┐ ┌──────────┐        │
│  │  Home  │ │  Activities │ │ Transactions │ │  Lists │ │  Reports │        │
│  └────────┘ └────────────┘ └──────────────┘ └────────┘ └──────────┘        │
│       ↓                           ↓                                         │
│  3. CATEGORIES (Dropdown Sections)                                          │
│     When you click a Tab, you see categories like:                         │
│     ├── Sales                                                               │
│     ├── Purchases                                                           │
│     └── Financial                                                           │
│              ↓                                                              │
│  4. LINKS (The Actual Menu Items)                                           │
│     Under each category, you see clickable links:                          │
│     └── Enter Sales Order                                                   │
│     └── Create Invoice                                                      │
│                                                                             │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

In simple terms:

• Center = The overall look/theme
• Tab = Top menu buttons
• Category = Groups inside each tab dropdown
• Link = Clickable menu item

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Real Example

Here's what it looks like when a Sales Rep clicks Transactions tab:

Transactions ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│  SALES                          │  ← Category
│  ├── Enter Sales Order          │  ← Link
│  ├── Create Invoice             │  ← Link
│  └── Cash Sale                  │  ← Link
├─────────────────────────────────┤
│  CUSTOMERS                      │  ← Category
│  ├── Create Customer            │  ← Link
│  └── Create Contact             │  ← Link
└─────────────────────────────────┘

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Why Customize?

Goal	How Centers & Tabs Helps
Sales team only sees sales menus	Remove accounting links
Add shortcut to custom report	Add new link
Organize by workflow	Create logical categories
Hide complexity	Only show what's needed

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How to Customize

Navigation

Setup > Customization > Centers and Tabs

You'll see three options:

• Center Tabs - Create/edit tabs
• Center Categories - Create/edit categories
• Center Links - Create/edit links

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Step-by-Step: Add a New Link

Goal: Add a "Daily Sales Report" link under Transactions > Sales

ADDING A NEW LINK
===============================================================================

Step 1: Navigate
Setup > Customization > Centers and Tabs > Center Links > New

Step 2: Fill in details
├── Link Label: "Daily Sales Report"
├── Link Type: Saved Search
├── Saved Search: [Select your search]
├── Tab: Transactions
├── Category: Sales
└── Position: 1 (first item)

Step 3: Set visibility
├── Centers: Classic Center ✓, Sales Center ✓
└── Roles: Sales Rep ✓, Sales Manager ✓

Step 4: Save

Result: Sales team now sees "Daily Sales Report" in their menu!

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Step-by-Step: Create a New Category

Goal: Add "Quick Entry" category for fast data entry

ADDING A NEW CATEGORY
===============================================================================

Step 1: Navigate
Setup > Customization > Centers and Tabs > Center Categories > New

Step 2: Fill in details
├── Category Label: "Quick Entry"
├── Tab: Transactions
└── Position: 1 (appears first)

Step 3: Set visibility
├── Centers: Classic Center ✓
└── Roles: Sales Rep ✓, A/P Clerk ✓

Step 4: Save

Step 5: Add links to this category
(Create new links and assign them to "Quick Entry" category)

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Step-by-Step: Create a New Tab

Goal: Add "My Tools" tab for custom features

ADDING A NEW TAB
===============================================================================

Step 1: Navigate
Setup > Customization > Centers and Tabs > Center Tabs > New

Step 2: Fill in details
├── Tab Label: "My Tools"
├── Description: "Custom tools and shortcuts"
└── Position: After Reports

Step 3: Set visibility
├── Centers: Classic Center ✓
└── Roles: Administrator ✓

Step 4: Save

Step 5: Add categories and links to this tab

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Assigning Centers to Roles

Each role can use a different Center (theme):

ASSIGNING CENTER TO A ROLE
===============================================================================

Navigation: Setup > Users/Roles > Manage Roles > [Role Name]

Go to: Preferences subtab

Setting:
├── Center Type: [Dropdown]
│   ├── Classic Center    ← Traditional NetSuite
│   ├── Sales Center      ← Sales-focused menus
│   ├── Accounting Center ← Finance-focused
│   └── etc.
└── Save

Now: All users with this role see the selected center

Center Types Summary

Center	Best For	Menu Emphasis
Classic	Admins, general users	Everything
Sales	Sales team	Customers, Orders
Accounting	Finance team	Transactions, Reports
Support	Customer service	Cases, Customers
Warehouse	Operations	Inventory, Fulfillment

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Controlling Who Sees What

Every Tab, Category, and Link can be visible to specific:

1. Centers - Which UI themes show it
2. Roles - Which roles can see it

VISIBILITY EXAMPLE
===============================================================================

Link: "Approve Large Orders"

Visible to:
├── Centers: Sales Center ✓
└── Roles: Sales Manager ✓ (not regular Sales Rep)

Result: Only Sales Managers using Sales Center see this link

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Quick Reference

I want to...	Use this
Add a menu item	Center Links > New
Create a group of menu items	Center Categories > New
Add a new top menu button	Center Tabs > New
Change role's menu theme	Role > Preferences > Center Type
Hide menu items from a role	Edit Link/Category > Deselect role

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Common Use Cases

1. Sales Team Menu

Transactions Tab:
├── Quick Entry (new category)
│   ├── New Quote
│   ├── New Order
│   └── Quick Invoice
├── Sales
│   └── (standard items)
└── (hide: Purchases, Financial for sales)

2. Accounting Team Menu

Transactions Tab:
├── Daily Tasks (new category)
│   ├── Enter Bills
│   ├── Approve Payments
│   └── Bank Deposit
├── Month End (new category)
│   ├── Journal Entry
│   └── Reconciliation

3. Custom Tools Tab

My Tools Tab (new tab):
├── Reports
│   ├── Dashboard
│   ├── Key Metrics
│   └── Exception Report
├── Utilities
│   ├── Data Cleanup Form
│   └── Bulk Update Tool

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Tips

Do	Don't
Group related items together	Create too many categories
Hide what users don't need	Remove standard items completely
Test with a sample user	Deploy without testing
Name clearly	Use cryptic names

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Key Takeaways

1. Center = Overall theme (Sales Center, Accounting Center)
2. Tab = Top menu buttons (Transactions, Lists, Reports)
3. Category = Groups in dropdown (Sales, Purchases)
4. Link = Actual menu item (Create Invoice)
5. Control visibility by Center + Role
6. Start simple - add customizations gradually

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Related Topics

• Role Preferences - Setting default center for roles
• Custom Dashboards - Creating role dashboards
• Forms & Dashboards - Assigning dashboards