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Web UI Themes

Shoko by default includes a fully customizable theme system that allows users to change the look and feel of the Web UI to their liking. This eliminates the need for third-party plugins like Stylus and allows users to easily create and if desired, share their themes with the community.

Understanding Custom Themes

In Shoko, a single theme consists of one or two files, a JSON file that contains the theme information and a CSS file that contains the styling. If you're developing a local theme, you only need the CSS file, as the JSON file is only required for sharing themes with the community. Both files are stored in the themes folder located in one of the following directories depending on your operating system.

OSLocation

Windows

C:\ProgramData\ShokoServer\themes

Linux/macOS

~/.shoko/Shoko.CLI/themes

Please note, unless manually installing themes, we recommend using the Web UI to install themes as it simplifies the process and ensures the theme is correctly installed.

Downloading & Installing Themes

Web UI Themes are available from our website and can be downloaded from the Web UI Themes page. Please note, themes downloaded from the Shoko website are only the JSON file with the CSS file being downloaded when the theme is installed.

Once you've downloaded your theme, you can install it using the Web UI. Follow the steps below to install your theme.

  1. Open the Web UI and navigate to the Settings section.
  2. Select General from the menu.
  3. Under Theme Options, click the Upload Theme button.
  4. Select the theme file you downloaded.

About Installing Themes

Themes are auto-applied once imported, but the settings are not yet saved! Press Save if you want to save your new theme as the theme to use.

Creating Your Own Theme

Creating a custom theme is a straightforward process that requires you to create one or two files, a JSON file that contains the theme information and a CSS file that contains the styling. Both files are stored in the themes folder, refer to the locations above for the correct directory.

We highly recommend using the templates below to create your custom theme. If you plan to share your theme with the community, you'll need to use both the JSON and CSS templates. If you're creating a local theme, you only need the CSS template.

File Names

Be sure to name the files you intend to use using only alphanumeric characters, dashes (-), or underscores (_). If you need spacing between words, then use dashes (-).

Theme Template

Below is a template you can use to create your custom theme. Make sure your theme includes both the JSON and CSS files, otherwise it will not work correctly. We also recommend naming both files the same for easy identification, though this is not required as the value for the css key in the JSON file is used to identify the CSS file.

HEX Values Not Required

While we use HEX values in the example below and in the default Shoko theme, you can use any valid CSS color value.

Theme JSON Example
json
{
 "name": "Theme Name",
 "version": "1.0.0",
 "author": "Your Name",
 "description": "Description",
 "tags": ["dark", "red", "blue", "green"],
 "cssUrl": "./theme-name.css",
 "updateUrl": "Repo URL"
}
KeyDescription

name

The name of your theme

version

The version string, preferred format is X.X.X to keep it simple.

author

Author of the theme.

description

Description of the theme.

tags

List of tags for the theme. A single tag for the type (dark, light, OMLED) and colors (red, blue, green).

cssUrl

URL to where the CSS file is hosted.

updateUrl

URL to where this file is located. Used for installing and auto-updates.

Theme CSS Example
css
& {
  --button-danger: #FF5252;
  --button-danger-border: #0B0E17;
  --button-danger-hover: #fa7676;
  --button-danger-text: #010f1c;
  --button-primary: #3B82F6;
  --button-primary-border: #0B0E17;
  --button-primary-hover: #64b3ff;
  --button-primary-text: #010f1c;
  --button-secondary: #313946;
  --button-secondary-border: #0B0E17;
  --button-secondary-hover: #404a59;
  --button-secondary-text: #cfd8e3;
  --header-background: #191F2C;
  --header-icon: #cfd8e3;
  --header-icon-primary: #3B82F6;
  --header-text: #cfd8e3;
  --header-text-important: #06C270;
  --header-user-background: #3B82F6;
  --header-user-text: #010f1c;
  --panel-background: #191F2C;
  --panel-background-alt: #171C28;
  --panel-background-selected-row: #243148;
  --panel-background-overlay: #212f3de5;
  --panel-background-poster-overlay: #212f3de5;
  --panel-background-transparent: #191F2Ca6;
  --panel-border: #0B0E17;
  --panel-icon: #cfd8e3;
  --panel-icon-action: #3B82F6;
  --panel-icon-danger: #FF5252;
  --panel-icon-important: #06C270;
  --panel-icon-warning: #F1C40F;
  --panel-input: #121823;
  --panel-menu-item-background: #0f355a;
  --panel-menu-item-background-hover: #283e61;
  --panel-menu-item-text: #a9d5ff;
  --panel-table-header: #0d141f;
  --panel-tags: #3f4762;
  --panel-text: #cfd8e3;
  --panel-text-danger: #FF5252;
  --panel-text-important: #06C270;
  --panel-text-other: #AC72F5;
  --panel-text-primary: #3B82F6;
  --panel-text-warning: #F1C40F;
  --panel-toggle-background: #0f355a;
  --panel-toggle-background-alt: #6e8aa61a;
  --panel-toggle-background-hover: #283e61;
  --panel-toggle-text: #a9d5ff;
  --panel-toggle-text-alt: #cfd8e3;
  --slider-background: #0B0E17;
  --slider-background-alt: #171C28;
  --slider-color: #3B82F6;
  --slider-color-alt: #3B82F6;
  --topnav-background: #101723;
  --topnav-border: #0B0E17;
  --topnav-icon: #cfd8e3;
  --topnav-icon-important: #06C270;
  --topnav-icon-primary: #cfd8e3;
  --topnav-icon-warning: #F1C40F;
  --topnav-text: #cfd8e3;
  --topnav-text-primary: #3B82F6;
  --logo-outline: #000;
  --logo-skin: #fdf5e8;
  --logo-face-shadow: #fe514d;
  --logo-eye-ref1: #e3e4d6;
  --logo-eye-ref2: #e8c8bb;
  --logo-eye-ref3: #ffc2b2;
  --logo-eye-gradient1: #ae303b;
  --logo-eye-gradient2: #ec4050;
  --logo-eye-gradient3: #fd877d;
  --logo-hair-gradient1: #c33144;
  --logo-hair-gradient2: #6b8cdb;
  --logo-hair-gradient3: #79f0f8;
}

Transparency With Hex Colors

When using Hex colors, you can append a two-digit HEX code to the end of your HEX value to specify the desired opacity for a variable. In the template provided above, variables like panel-background-overlay and panel-background-transparent utilize this method to apply opacity.

The following site provides a comprehensive list of values and their corresponding HEX codes you can use.

Sharing Your Theme

If you’ve made a theme and want to share it, you can submit it to the Shoko Website by following these simple steps:

  1. Fork the Shoko Website repository by clicking the Fork button at the top right.
  2. Add your theme files, place both the JSON and CSS files for your theme in the public/themes folder.
  3. Create a theme info file:
    • Go to the app/content/downloads/webui-themes folder.
    • Copy an existing .mdx file, rename it to match your theme’s name, and update the information inside to describe your theme.
  4. Add images for your theme. put the theme images in the /images/downloads/webui-themes/ folder. Name the images the same as your theme and make sure to blur any posters shown in them.
  5. Submit your changes: Create a pull request with your changes and wait for it to be reviewed and merged.

That’s it! Your theme will be available once the pull request is approved.

Getting Help

If you're having issues with uploading your theme, feel free to ask for help in the Shoko Discord server and we can help you get your theme uploaded and shared with the community.