Personal Themes in Drupal

If you want to test out a new theme in Drupal without having to create an entire development environment you can with these easy steps:

  1. Create a new directory in your themes directory that holds the tester theme. You will need to rename the info file to match the new theme folder name. This should be the only change required within the theme if you've done sensible variable names in the theme itself for image paths.
  2. In Drupal's admin area navigate to: user -> permissions
  3. Scroll down to the system module and select permissions to give your role "select different theme." Save.
  4. Navigate to Admin -> Site building -> Themes. Next to the theme you want to test select the checkbox for "enable" but do not set the new theme as "default."
  5. Navigate to your own account page and change your "personal theme" to the tester one.

That's it! Now you can view the Web site with your new theme and work out all the kinks before it goes live.

Want More Tutorials?

Are you interested in getting even more tutorials sent to your inbox? Sign up for our incredibly popular tips mailing list and get a free tutorial every month. You may even win a coupon for a free e-book (include your whole name if you want to win stuff).

For a limited time we'll even send you a bonus tips sheet The Top Ten Mistakes People Make when Theming Drupal when you sign up for the list.