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Manage playlists

A playlist is a list of dashboards that are displayed in a sequence. You might use a playlist to build situational awareness or to present your metrics to your team or visitors.

Grafana automatically scales dashboards to any resolution, which makes them perfect for big screens.

You can access the Playlist feature from Grafana’s side menu, in the Dashboards submenu.

Access, share, and control a playlist

Use the information in this section to access playlists. Start and control the display of a playlist using one of the six available modes.

Access a playlist

  1. Click Dashboards in the main menu.
  2. Click Playlists to see a list of playlists.

Start a playlist

You can start a playlist in six different view modes. View modes determine how the menus and navigation bar appear on the dashboards as well as how panels are sized.

  1. Click Dashboards in the main menu.

  2. Click Playlists.

  3. Find the desired playlist and click Start playlist.

  4. In the dialog box that opens, select one of the six playlist modes available.

  5. Disable any dashboard controls that you don’t want displayed while the list plays; these controls are enabled and visible by default. Select from:

    • Time and refresh
    • Variables
    • Dashboard links

  6. Click Start <playlist name>.

The playlist displays each dashboard for the time specified in the Interval field, set when creating or editing a playlist. After a playlist starts, you can control it using the navbar at the top of your screen.

Playlist modes

ModeDescription
Normal mode
  • The side menu remains visible.
  • The navbar and dashboard controls appear at the top of the screen.
Normal mode (with auto fit panels)
  • The side menu remains visible.
  • The navbar and dashboard controls appear at the top of the screen.
  • Dashboard panels automatically adjust to optimize space on screen.
TV mode
  • The side menu is hidden or removed.
  • The navbar and dashboard controls appear at the top of the screen.
  • Enabled automatically after one minute of user inactivity.
  • Enable it manually using the d v sequence shortcut, or by appending the parameter ?inactive to the dashboard URL.
  • Disable it with any mouse movement or keyboard action.
TV mode (with auto fit panels)
  • The side menu is hidden or removed.
  • The navbar and dashboard controls appear at the top of the screen.
  • Dashboard panels automatically adjust to optimize space on screen.
    Kiosk mode
    • The side menu is hidden or removed.
    • The navbar and dashboard controls appear at the top of the screen.
    • You can disable or enable it manually using the d v sequence shortcut after the playlist has started.
    Kiosk mode (with auto fit panels)
    • The side menu is hidden or removed.
    • The navbar and dashboard controls appear at the top of the screen.
    • You can disable or enable it manually using the d v sequence shortcut after the playlist has started.
    • Dashboard panels automatically adjust to optimize space on screen.

    Control a playlist

    You can control a playlist in Normal or TV mode after it’s started, using the navigation bar at the top of your screen. Press the Esc key in your keyboard to stop the playlist.

    ButtonResult
    Next (double-right arrow)Advances to the next dashboard.
    Back (left arrow)Returns to the previous dashboard.
    Stop (square)Ends the playlist, and exits to the current dashboard.
    Cycle view mode (monitor icon)Rotates the display of the dashboards in different view modes.
    Time rangeDisplays data within a time range. It can be set to display the last 5 minutes up to 5 years ago, or a custom time range, using the down arrow.
    Refresh (circle arrow)Reloads the dashboard, to display the current data. It can be set to reload automatically every 5 seconds to 1 day, using the drop-down arrow.

    Create a playlist

    You can create a playlist to present dashboards in a sequence, with a set order and time interval between dashboards. Be sure that all the dashboards you want to appear in your playlist are added before you create the playlist.

    1. Click Dashboards in the main menu.

    2. Click Playlists.

    3. Click New playlist.

    4. In the Name field, enter a descriptive name.

    5. In the Interval field, enter the time interval each dashboard is displayed before moving on to the next dashboard.

    6. In the Add dashboards section, add dashboards to the playlist using the Add by title and Add by tag drop-down options.

      Added dashboards are displayed in a list in the Dashboards section of the page, in the order you added them. This is also the play order of the dashboards.

    7. Click Save.

    Edit a playlist

    You can edit a playlist including adding, removing, and rearranging the order of dashboards.

    1. Click Dashboards in the main menu.

    2. Click Playlists.

    3. Find the playlist you want to update and click Edit playlist. Do one or more of the following:

      • Edit - Update the name and time interval.
      • Add dashboards - Search for dashboards by title or tag to add them to the playlist.
      • Rearrange dashboards - Click and drag the dashboards into your desired order.
      • Remove dashboards - Click the X next to the name of the dashboard you want to remove from the playlist.

    4. Click Save.

    Share a playlist in a view mode

    You can share a playlist by copying the link address on the view mode you prefer, and pasting the URL to your destination.

    1. Click Dashboards in the main menu.
    2. Click Playlists.
    3. Click the share icon of the playlist you want to share.
    4. Select the view mode you prefer.
    5. Click Copy next to the Link URL to copy it to your clipboard.
    6. Paste the URL to your destination.

    Delete a playlist

    When you no longer need a playlist, follow these steps to delete it:

    1. Click Dashboards in the main menu.
    2. Click Playlists.
    3. Find the playlist you want to remove.
    4. Click Delete playlist.