EVOLV/manuals/node-red/flowfuse-ui-template-manual.md

FlowFuse ui-template Manual (EVOLV Reference)

Source: https://dashboard.flowfuse.com/nodes/widgets/ui-template.html

Purpose

Custom Vue 3 / Vuetify / HTML widget. Full scripting, scoped CSS, send/receive messages.

Scopes

Scope	Renders	Use Case
Widget (Group)	Inside a ui-group	Custom gauges, tables, controls
Widget (Page)	On page, outside groups	Floating overlays, full-width banners
Widget (UI)	On every page	Global headers, footers
CSS (All Pages)	N/A — injects <style>	Global CSS overrides
CSS (Single Page)	N/A — injects <style>	Page-specific CSS

Properties

Property	Type	Dynamic	Notes
group	ref	No	Parent ui-group (Group scope)
page	ref	No	Parent ui-page (Page scope)
width	int	No	Columns
height	int	No	Row units
format	string	Yes	Vue template string
storeOutMessages	bool	No	Persist last output for late joiners
passthru	bool	No	Forward input to output
templateScope	string	No	"widget:group", "widget:page", "widget:ui", "page:style", "site:style"

Template Structure

<template>
  <v-btn @click="send({payload: 'clicked'})">Click</v-btn>
  <p>Value: {{ msg.payload }}</p>
</template>
<script>
export default {
  data() { return { local: 0 }; },
  watch: {
    msg(val) { this.local = val.payload; }
  },
  methods: {
    doSend() { this.send({payload: this.local}); }
  },
  mounted() { /* one-time setup */ },
  unmounted() { /* cleanup */ }
};
</script>
<style scoped>
p { color: #2196f3; }
</style>

Built-in Variables

Variable	Description
id	This node's unique ID
msg	Latest received message (reactive)
$socket	Socket.io client for custom events

Sending Messages

this.send({ payload: 42, topic: "my-topic" });
this.submit();  // sends FormData from <form>

Receiving Messages

Option A — Vue watch:

watch: { msg(newMsg) { /* react */ } }

Option B — Socket listener:

mounted() {
  this.$socket.on('msg-input:' + this.id, (msg) => { /* handle */ });
}

Teleports (inject into dashboard chrome)

<Teleport to="#app-bar-actions">
  <v-btn>Custom Button</v-btn>
</Teleport>

Targets: #app-bar-title, #app-bar-actions.

Vuetify Components

All Vuetify 3 components are available without import: <v-btn>, <v-card>, <v-slider>, <v-data-table>, etc.

Dynamic Properties (msg.ui_update)

msg.ui_update = { format: "<p>New template content</p>" };

EVOLV Key Rules

1. Use templates sparingly — prefer built-in widgets when they fit.
2. For complex custom visualizations (SVG P&ID, animated schematics), template is the right choice.
3. Always use <style scoped> to avoid leaking CSS to other widgets.
4. Prefer watch: { msg } over socket listeners for simpler code.
5. Keep templates under 100 lines — split complex UIs into multiple template nodes.