⌘K
API Reference

Templates

api-reference theming

header.php

Generates all HTML from <!DOCTYPE html> to the opening of the main content area.

Injected variables

VariableTypeDescription
$settingsarrayAll site settings
$dataarraySite content — see note below
$pageTitlestringCurrent page title
$metaTitlestringCalculated SEO <title>
$metaDescriptionstringCalculated SEO meta description
$metaKeywordsstringMeta keywords, if set on the item
$ogImage, $ogTitle, $ogDescriptionstringOpen Graph values
$typestringCurrent content type (article, project, page, or '')
$slugstringCurrent item slug (empty on list pages)
$headerScriptsarrayExtra scripts to inject — pass to render_header_scripts()
ℹ️

On list pages and the homepage, $data['article'] holds the full lightweight index. On single-item pages it holds only that one item. Use sl_load_index('article') whenever you need the full catalogue from an uncertain context.

Minimal <head>

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="<?php echo htmlspecialchars($settings['site_language'] ?? 'en'); ?>">
<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title><?php echo $metaTitle; ?></title>
    <?php echo render_meta_tags($settings, $metaTitle, $metaDescription); ?>
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="<?php echo getBaseUrl(); ?>assets/css/lightbox.css">
    <?php echo render_header_scripts($headerScripts); ?>
</head>

render_header_scripts() injects the <base> tag, i18n/base-URL JSON islands, front-boot.js, async system CSS, your theme's style.css, main.js, the RSS link, conditional highlight.js, $headerScripts, and your theme's script.js — see Rendering Functions for the exact order. Never link assets/css/style.css or assets/js/script.js manually; that would load them twice.

Admin bar compatibility

SynaptikCMS injects a 36px admin toolbar at the top of the viewport when an administrator is logged in. Two things your theme needs to handle:

1. Offset fixed navigation

The CMS sets --snk-adminbar-height to 36px on :root when the bar is active (0px otherwise via the var() fallback):

.site-header {
  position: fixed;
  top: var(--snk-adminbar-height, 0px);
}

A secondary fixed element below the header needs calc():

.docs-sidebar {
  position: fixed;
  top: calc(var(--snk-adminbar-height, 0px) + var(--header-h));
}

position: sticky elements need no adjustment — flow already accounts for it via body { padding-top }. Do not declare --snk-adminbar-height yourself; the fallback handles the default case.

2. Render order

If your nav uses backdrop-filter, it creates a stacking context that can render the admin bar behind it regardless of z-index. Call render_adminbar() as the first child of <body>, before any theme markup:

</head>
<body>
<?php render_adminbar(); ?>
<header class="site-header">…</header>

It's a no-op for non-admin visitors. Without backdrop-filter in your nav this call is optional (the CMS emits the bar automatically after the header template regardless), but calling it explicitly is recommended for every theme.

footer.php

VariableTypeDescription
$settingsarraySite settings
$dataarraySite content
$currentYearstringdate('Y')
$baseUrlstringBase URL with trailing slash
    </main>
</div>
<?php echo render_search_ui(); ?>
</body>
</html>
ℹ️

render_search_ui() must run before </body> — it powers the Ctrl+K overlay regardless of whether the search icon is visible.

home.php

Rendered between header.php and footer.php on the homepage. Injected: $data, $settings.

<?php
$articles = $data['article'] ?? [];
usort($articles, fn($a, $b) => strcmp($b['date'] ?? '', $a['date'] ?? ''));
$recent = array_slice($articles, 0, 5);
?>
<h1><?php echo htmlspecialchars($settings['site_title']); ?></h1>
<?php foreach ($recent as $article): ?>
    <?php echo render_article_card($article); ?>
<?php endforeach; ?>

content-articles.php, content-pages.php, content-projects.php

Single-item views. Receive only $item — the full item array. Every render_* helper below returns a string.

<article>
    <?php echo render_featured_image($item); ?>
    <?php echo render_content_title($item); ?>
    <?php echo render_content_date($item); ?>
    <?php echo render_content_category($item); ?>
    <?php echo render_content_tags($item); ?>
    <div class="prose">
        <?php echo render_content_html($item['content'] ?? '', $item); ?>
    </div>
</article>
🚫

Always use render_content_html($item['content'], $item) — never echo $item['content'] directly.

content-list.php

VariableTypeDescription
$list_typestring'article', 'project', 'page', 'category', 'tag'
$articlesarrayArticles to display, sorted by date desc
$projectsarrayProjects to display, sorted by date desc
$itemsarrayAll items with an _content_type key
$filter_valuestringCurrent category or tag slug
$dataarrayFull data store
$settingsarraySite settings

Page templates (page-templates/)

<?php /* Template Name: Contact */ ?>
<div class="contact-page">
    <h1><?php echo htmlspecialchars($item['title']); ?></h1>
    <?php echo render_content_html($item['content'] ?? '', $item); ?>
    <?php echo render_contact_form_html(); ?>
</div>

Available variable: $item. Call loadConfig() if you need $settings here.