How Drupal CMS structures content

What is possible for your content model depends on the tool you build with. This page introduces the Drupal CMS terms and features you work with as you turn a content model into a real site.

Content structure

Content types

Content types are like templates for the different kinds of content you create: articles, wine tours, or testimonials. Each content type has its own set of fields, such as title, image, and description.

Fields

Fields give a content type its structure. Each field stores one piece of information in a specific format, such as text, images, dates, or references to other content.

For example, a Tour content type could have fields for tour name, region, price, and description.

Taxonomy

Taxonomy groups and categorizes content. A taxonomy consists of a vocabulary that contains taxonomy terms. A reference field can point at a vocabulary, so the content editor categorizes an item by choosing from that vocabulary’s terms.

For example, use taxonomy to organize tours by region (Napa Valley, Willamette Valley) or type of wine (red, white, sparkling).

Entity references

An entity reference is a field type that links one piece of content to another. A wine tour can link to a specific region or include a featured image. The region field can use a wine region vocabulary, so the editor picks a region from a list. Images also attach as references, which lets you maintain a media library and avoid duplicate images.

Display and navigation

Views

Views builds lists and displays of your content. A view can filter, sort, and present content dynamically: for example, a page that lists all wine tours and lets the visitor filter the list by region.

Media library

The media library is a central place to manage images, videos, and other files such as documents or SVGs. Add an image through the media library once, and you can reference it from any content that has a media field.

Menus

Menus create the navigation links for your website, such as a “Wine tours” menu item that links to a page listing all tours.

Blocks

Blocks are reusable content containers placed in specific regions of your site, such as a sidebar display of two upcoming featured wine tours.

Publishing tools

Pathauto

Pathauto is a contributed module, included with Drupal CMS, that automatically generates SEO-friendly URL aliases based on your content structure. A wine tour named “Napa Valley Experience” could automatically get the URL /tours/napa-valley-experience. When editing content, the URL alias section in the sidebar shows the generated URL and lets you edit it.

Content moderation and workflows

Content moderation and workflow tools manage drafts, approvals, and publishing for your content, so a team can collaborate. For example, copy for a wine tour needs review by the winery owner before it can be published. See Editorial workflow and moderation.

How the pieces fit together

• Content types, fields, and taxonomy structure your content logically.
• Reference fields and views connect and display related content dynamically, such as listing tours by region or type.
• The media library and menus manage the visual and navigational elements.
• Pathauto and content moderation take care of SEO-friendly URLs and the publishing process.

Learning resources

Content modeling is a skill that takes practice and goes beyond what this guide covers:

• The Drupal CMS content strategy (Drupal.org)
• Content Modeling (Drupalize.Me)
• Drupal User Guide, Chapter 2: Planning Your Site (Drupal.org)
• Content Modelling: A Master Skill (A List Apart)

Where to go next

• An example content model applies these building blocks to a wine tour site.
• Display content with views shows how field choices decide what views can filter and sort.
• Entities, bundles, and fields covers the same structures from the developer side.