Last updated February 14, 2013. Created by manish_mics on January 23, 2013.
Edited by LeeHunter, batigolix. Log in to edit this page.
This section is an introduction to site administration for new Drupal 8 users. It covers the use of the administrator account and offers suggestions on where to start.
Understanding the administrator account
At the end of the installation process, the person who performed the installation is automatically logged into the site with the administrator account. You may see the administrator account referred to as "User 1". This administrative account is automatically given all privileges for managing content and administering the site. The best practice is not to share this account. You can always grant users permissions by assigning them to certain roles.
Where to start
Administrators will generally need to address the following areas in a new site.
Check your site's status
Open the Status report via Menu > Reports > Status report (admin/reports/status) to get an overview of your site's current status. You can check the Drupal version, database version, PHP version, PHP memory limit, webserver information and potential security issues. Items with a red background are issues that need immediate attention. An example would be a required security update for Drupal core or an installed module, or an unprotected settings.php file (see What permissions does Drupal need? for more information). The Status report page also shows when the cron script last ran. This script needs to run regularly for your site to function properly.
Configure your site information
Open the Site information settings via Menu > Configuration > Site information (admin/config/system/site-information) to basic settings, such as the site name, slogan, e-mail address or the default front-page path.
Manage users
Open the People page via Menu > People (admin/people) to add new users or manage existing users. You can manage user roles and permissions by clicking on the "Permissions" tab on this page. To change the process by which users apply for accounts, visit the "People and Permissions" page via Menu > Configuration > People > Account settings (admin/config/people/accounts).
Read more about Users, Roles and Permissions.
Add additional functionality
You can extend Drupal's functionality by enabling modules. The standard Drupal installation comes with a number of modules that are ready to be enabled. In addition, you can download community-contributed ("contrib") modules.
Open the Extend page via Menu > Extend (admin/modules) to administer modules.
Additional modules can be downloaded from the Modules section of Drupal.org.
Read more about installing contributed modules.
Customise the site appearance
Open the Appearance page via Menu > Appearance (admin/appearance) to change the site's appearance by installing new themes or editing theme settings. Drupal by default provides a small number of themes. You can create your own theme or find contributed themes on Drupal.org.
Read more about using Drupal themes.