Share via


How to: Add Controls to the Backstage View

You can use the Ribbon Designer to add controls to the menu that opens when you click the File tab. when you run the application, controls that you add to the File tab appear a group named Add-ins.

You cannot position controls before or after built-in controls by using the Ribbon designer in Visual Studio. A built-in control is a control that already appears in Backstage view. If you want to position controls before or after built-in controls, you must use a Ribbon XML. For more information about Ribbon (XML), see Ribbon XML. For more information about customizing the Backstage view, see Introduction to the Office 2010 Backstage View for Developers and Customizing the Office 2010 Backstage View for Developers.

Applies to: The information in this topic applies to document-level projects and application-level projects for the following applications: Excel 2013 and Excel 2010; InfoPath 2013 and InfoPath 2010; Outlook 2013 and Outlook 2010; PowerPoint 2013 and PowerPoint 2010; Project 2013 and Project 2010; Visio 2013 and Visio 2010; Word 2013 and Word 2010. For more information, see Features Available by Office Application and Project Type.

To add controls to Backstage View

  1. Open the Ribbon item in Design view.

    For information about how to add a Ribbon (Visual Designer) item to your project, see How to: Get Started Customizing the Ribbon.

  2. In the Ribbon Designer, click the File tab.

    A menu designer appears. This design surface does not contain any controls.

  3. From the Office Ribbon Controls tab of the Toolbox, drag any of the following controls onto the menu designer:

    • Button

    • CheckBox

    • Gallery

    • Menu

    • Separator

    • SplitButton

    • ToggleButton

  4. Drag controls to move them to new positions on the menu.

See Also

Tasks

How to: Get Started Customizing the Ribbon

Walkthrough: Creating a Custom Tab by Using the Ribbon Designer

Concepts

Ribbon Designer

Ribbon XML

Other Resources

Ribbon Overview