AEM/CQ5 how to share component values?

Question

I want to have a header component that is shared across multiple page rendering components. The header component has a text label. How do I make the value of this text label available to all page components.

Do I have to make the path in the <cq:include> to a common format?

Answer 1

Design mode, if properly understood, can work quite well. However, it doesn't replicate content in the same manner as page activation, and thus can be confusing for your authors. Also, the sharing model is limited to the exact page type - which may or may not be the granularity you desire.

From CQ5's Best Practices (https://dev.day.com/docs/en/cq/current/developing/developing_guidelines_bestpractices.html), they strongly encourage the paragraph system (iparsys to inherit/share). iparsys named the same can be shared across different page templates (while design mode will only apply to a single template type).

Answer 2

I can archive that by creating a design dialog that is similar to dialog (http://dev.day.com/docs/en/cq/5-6/developing/components.html#Dialogs) under the header component. You add the text label field to design dialog. And to enter value for the field, you switch the page to the design mode and click on Edit button on the top of the component. The entered value will be available to all pages that contain the header component.
Note: design dialog will be named as design_dialog

Answer 3

This functionality is now offered in ACS AEM Commons as Shared Component Properties - http://adobe-consulting-services.github.io/acs-aem-commons/features/shared-component-properties.html

Supports standard content activation and internationalization (values stored below the homepage) and anything else you would expect from content.

Answer 4

If the component is baked in the template(i,e page rendering component), yes you can make the <cq:include> path attribute to point to some common place where the data for this is stored and all the pages irrespective of , type of the template can get the values configured.

Answer 5

You can create header component and then include it using <cq:include> in base template/page. This base template/page will be inherited by all other templates. This way the header once configured in base page is availble through out different templates/page components.

Answer 6

If the goal is to share "across multiple page rendering components" the design dialog will only help if the page share the same rendering component. If you want to have the header component displayed in a page and all its subpages, then you should use iparsys. If you just want to reuse the properties of that header component, then it needs to have a fixed path (cq:include in a page component) and then you can reference the properties you need in other page rendering components. I would not suggest that approach since it breaks the idea of having a component. Everything becomes tightly coupled.

What you could also do is save those properties at the page level (some top parent page) and then use InheritanceValueMap in the subpages to read those properties.