Development Book V18: Menu Action

Odoo provides two methods for page navigation: using the user interface or by configuring menus through code. Menu definitions and their actions are typically added via XML files, which should be placed in the views folder.

In Odoo, the tag is used to define new menus. The name attribute specifies the display label of the menu, while the optional sequence attribute controls the order in which menus appear. You can also assign an icon to the menu using the web_icon attribute. A menu will only be visible if it or any of its submenus is connected to an action.

For example:

    <menuitem id="hospital_menu_root" name="Hospital Management" sequence="25" 
web_icon="hospital_management,static/description/icon.png"/>

Sub Menu

In Odoo, creating a submenu requires associating it with a parent menu. Submenus are linked to main menus, forming a hierarchical structure that helps organize the navigation system.

For Example

    
<menuitem id="hospital_menu_hospital" name="Hospital" parent="hospital_menu_root"/>
<menuitem id="hospital_patient_menu" name="Patient"
          parent="hospital_menu_hospital" action="hospital_patient_action"
          sequence="2"/>

Two submenus are defined. The primary menu contains a submenu for Hospitals, which further includes a Patients option. The Patients submenu is connected to an action, and selecting it will display the associated view or process.

Defining the action is the next crucial step, as either the main menu or its submenus must be connected to an action to make their content accessible. For Example

    
<record id="hospital_patient_action" model="ir.actions.act_window">
    <field name="name">Patients</field>
    <field name="res_model">hospital.patient</field>
    <field name="view_mode">list,form</field>
    <field name="help" type="html">
        <p class="o_view_nocontent_smiling_face">No patients found. Let's create one!</p>
    </field>
</record>

name: Specifies the name of the action linked to the menu.
res_model: Indicates the model connected to the menu.
view_mode: Defines the display modes for the action. In this example, both "tree" (list view) and "form" (detailed form view) are included.
help: Contains an HTML snippet that provides user guidance or additional information. In this case, it displays messages when no patient records are available.

Menus from UI

To create and modify menus and submenus via the user interface, go to Settings > Technical > User Interface > Menu Items. Make sure that developer mode is activated to access this feature.

Menu: The title of the menu.
Parent Menu: The main menu under which this item will be nested.
Sequence: Determines the display order of the menu item.
Action: Defines the action to be triggered when the menu is selected.
Access Rights: Used to control visibility by restricting menu access to specific user groups.
Submenus: Additional menu items can be added here to expand the navigation. Once the form is saved, the menus will appear within the respective module.

The "Reports" menu was recently added, illustrating that new menus and submenus can be easily created using the user interface.