Organize dashboard content with panel groups

Each dashboard uses panel groups to create a layout. Panel groups consist of one or more panels that visualize the results of a query. Use Chronosphere to define your dashboard layouts and create efficient visualizations of query results.

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Create and manage panel groups

Panel groups are containers which display one or more panels. Operations on a panel group change the group’s order of display, duplicate, or otherwise change the group as a whole.

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Add a panel group to a dashboard

If you add a panel to a dashboard that doesn’t have any panel groups, Chronosphere creates a group for you. You can also manually create panel groups for greater control. To add a panel group to a standard dashboard:

1. Open the dashboard. You can view a list of all dashboards or select from a list of dashboards in a collection.
2. Click Edit on the dashboard.
3. Click Panel Group.
4. In the Add panel group window, enter a Name.
5. Optional: Click the Collapse state dropdown and select whether the new panel group should be Open or Closed by default.
6. Click Add to add the new panel group.

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Modify a panel group’s properties

You can expand or collapse each panel group by clicking the or icons, respectively, to toggle the panel group’s state. When collapsed, panel groups report the number of panels inside the group. To edit a panel group’s properties:

1. Click the Edit group icon inside of the panel group that you want to edit.
2. In the Edit panel group window, set the group’s Name and Collapse state.
3. Click Apply to apply the changes to the panel group.
4. Optional: To permanently save all changes to the dashboard, click Save.

To change a panel group’s order within the layout:

1. Click the Move group down icon to move the selected group down in the layout.
2. Click the Move group up icon to move the selected group up in the layout.

Changes to a panel group aren’t made permanent until you save all changes to the dashboard by clicking Save on the dashboard.

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Delete a panel group

To delete a panel group:

1. Click the Delete group icon.
2. Read the Delete panel group confirmation request.
3. Click Delete to confirm that you want to delete the group and all panels within it.

Panel groups aren’t permanently deleted until you save all changes to the dashboard by clicking Save on the dashboard.

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Copy a panel group to another dashboard

You can copy an entire panel group, including all of its panels, to an existing dashboard or to a new dashboard, and choose how the group’s dashboard variables carry over. To copy a panel group to another dashboard:

1. Open the dashboard that contains the panel group you want to copy.
2. Click Edit on the dashboard.
3. In the panel group, click the More actions icon, and then select Copy group to another dashboard.
4. Under Variable handling, select how Chronosphere should handle the variables that the group’s panels reference:
   • Use current values (default): Copies the group with the variable values currently selected on the source dashboard. Chronosphere resolves each variable to its current value, so the copied panels don’t depend on the destination dashboard defining those variables.
   • Keep variables: Copies the variable definitions that the group uses to the destination dashboard so that the copied panels keep referencing them.
   When you add the group, Chronosphere reconciles the copied variables with the destination dashboard and shows a warning in the Preview when:
   • A variable of the same name already exists on the destination dashboard. Chronosphere keeps the destination dashboard’s existing definition and doesn’t overwrite it.
   • A variable the group references isn’t defined on the source dashboard, so it remains in the copied panels as literal text (for example, $variable_name).
5. Optional: In the Panel group name field, edit the name for the copied group. This defaults to the name of the source group.
6. Choose a destination dashboard:
   • Existing dashboard: Under Select an existing dashboard, search by name or choose one from your Recently viewed dashboards.
   • New dashboard:
     1. Click Create new dashboard.
     2. Enter a Dashboard name.
     3. Optional: Select an Owner.
     The new dashboard is added to your personal collection. If you don’t have a personal collection, one is created for you.
7. Optional: Review the Preview to confirm the result before you copy the group.
8. Click Add to dashboard.

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Modify a panel group’s contents

Some panel group operations change the contents, look, or how the content displays in the group.

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Add a panel to a panel group

To add a new panel to a panel group:

1. In the panel group to which you want to add a panel, click the Add panel to group icon.
2. In the Add Panel interface that appears, provide a name for the new panel.
3. Click Add to add the panel or Cancel to discard it.

Panels aren’t permanently added to a panel group until you save all changes to the dashboard by clicking Save on the dashboard. For details about all of the settings in a panel, see Edit a panel. You can save a new panel to a dashboard with as little as a name, then edit it later to configure it and add or modify queries.

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Split a panel group with a dashboard variable

You can define a panel group as a split panel group that dynamically splits and replicates itself to display the panels it contains with each value of a dashboard variable applied to them. This automates the creation of panel groups that automatically apply that variable’s value to each of the contained panels. To use a split panel group:

1. Add a panel group to a dashboard and add at least one panel to the group.
2. Define at least one dashboard variable and use it in the queries of panels in this panel group.
3. Modify the panel group’s properties.
4. Click the Split Panel Group toggle to enable it.
5. Enter or select the variable name of the dashboard variable that splits the panel group.
6. Click Apply.

The panel group splits into multiple groups for each value of the selected dashboard variable. The variable and its value appear next to the panel group’s name. You can edit the original panel from any instance of it in any split panel group. To modify the panel group, you must click the Edit group icon inside of the original panel group.

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Move a panel within a panel group

To change a panel’s position within a panel group, drag the panel by its Move handle to the new position.

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Move a panel to another panel group

To move a panel located in another panel group on the same dashboard:

1. Edit the panel that you want to move.
2. Click Group.
3. Click the panel group that you want to contain the panel.
4. Click Apply.

Panels aren’t permanently moved until you save all changes to the dashboard by clicking Save on the dashboard.

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Change a panel group’s layout

Panel groups have a predefined set of layouts which can be applied to individual panel groups to sort the display.

1. Edit the panel.
2. Click the Clean up layout button.
3. Select a Panel group layout. You can keep your existing layout, or click any layout option to select it.
4. Optional: Change the Panel height. The Panel height preview updates to show the relative change.
5. Click Apply to update the panel group with the new layout.
6. Click Save in the dashboard to save the changes.