> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.custral.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Surfaces

> The pages, views, and components that turn your objects and records into an interactive, no-code workspace.

A **surface** is any place in Custral where your data becomes something you can see and act on: a dashboard, a record list, a document, a board. Every surface is built from three layers: a [Page](/surfaces/navigation/pages) or [Object](/data/objects/overview) it starts from, one or more [Views](/surfaces/views/overview) that decide which data appears and how, and the [Components](/surfaces/components/overview) that render it. Because each layer reads live data, a surface shows the current records rather than a copy of them, and anyone on your team can build one without code.

## Get started

<Card title="Build your first view" icon="rocket" horizontal href="/surfaces/views/overview">
  See how views turn your objects and records into dashboards, lists, and boards. The building block behind every surface.
</Card>

## What you can do

**Build views**

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Views" icon="eye" href="/surfaces/views/overview">
    Shape which data appears in a surface and how it's displayed.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Database view" icon="database" href="/surfaces/views/types/database">
    Slice one object's records as a table, board, grid, or list.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Dashboard view" icon="chart-mixed" href="/surfaces/views/types/dashboard">
    A free-form grid of charts and stats spanning many objects.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Document view" icon="file-lines" href="/surfaces/views/types/document">
    A collaborative rich-text page with live embedded blocks.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

**Compose components**

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Components" icon="puzzle-piece" href="/surfaces/components/overview">
    The tables, charts, inputs, and calendars inside a view.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Saved components" icon="floppy-disk" href="/surfaces/components/saved">
    Reuse one component's configuration across many surfaces.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Reusables" icon="cubes" href="/surfaces/components/reusables">
    Save a component or view as a template for other pages.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

**Navigate & organize**

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Navigation" icon="compass" href="/surfaces/navigation/overview">
    Build your sidebar tree of sections, folders, and pages.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pages" icon="file" href="/surfaces/navigation/pages">
    Sidebar entries that each open a surface.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

**Record layouts**

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Record routing" icon="share-nodes" href="/surfaces/records/overview">
    Open any record and render its object's views, scoped to it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Object views" icon="face-viewfinder" href="/surfaces/records/views">
    Configure a record's layout once, on the object.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Feature reference

What each capability does and when to reach for it.

| Feature                 | What it does                                                                       | Use it when                                           |
| ----------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| **Pages**               | Sidebar entries that each open a surface, a database, dashboard, or document       | You're adding a new place to work in the sidebar      |
| **Views**               | Decide which data appears in a surface and how it's displayed, grouped, and sorted | You want to shape what a surface shows                |
| **Database view**       | Slices one object's records as a table, board, grid, list, or calendar             | The surface is record-driven. A pipeline or a queue   |
| **Dashboard view**      | A free-form grid of charts and stat tiles that can span many objects               | You need a team- or exec-wide summary                 |
| **Document view**       | A collaborative rich-text page with live embedded blocks                           | The surface is narrative: a handbook, plan, or agenda |
| **Components (blocks)** | The tables, charts, inputs, and calendars rendered inside a view                   | You're building out what a view actually shows        |
| **View filters**        | Narrow a view to exactly the records you want to see                               | A view is showing more than you need                  |
| **Saved views**         | Capture a view's filters, sorting, and layout for one-click reuse                  | Your team returns to the same slice every day         |
| **Reusables**           | Save a component or view as a template and drop it onto other pages                | The same layout appears across many surfaces          |
| **Navigation**          | The sidebar tree of sections, folders, and pages you build                         | You're organizing where your team reaches data        |
| **Record routing**      | Renders an object's views on every record, scoped to that record                   | You open a record and want its full context           |
| **Object views**        | Configure a record's layout once on its object, reused for every record            | Every record of an object should look the same        |
| **Entities**            | The shareable, permissionable unit behind objects, pages, views, and records       | You need to control who can see or edit a surface     |

## Works with

Surfaces compose with the rest of Custral. They render your data, not a copy of it.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Objects & records" icon="cube" href="/data/objects/overview">
    Views and record layouts render the objects and records you model.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Blocks" icon="shapes" href="/blocks/overview">
    Every component is a block from the shared catalog.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Reporting" icon="chart-line" href="/bi/overview">
    Turn dashboard views into shared reports and metrics.
  </Card>

  <Card title="AI" icon="sparkles" href="/ai/overview">
    Embed AI agents as blocks and auto-fill record properties.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Reference & settings

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Entities" icon="block-quote" href="/surfaces/entities">
    The shareable, permissionable unit every surface is built on.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Permissions" icon="users" href="/team/permissions/overview">
    Control who can see and edit each surface.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Related

* **Navigation**: [Sections](/surfaces/navigation/sections) · [Folders](/surfaces/navigation/folders) · [Pages](/surfaces/navigation/pages)
* **Views**: [Filters](/surfaces/views/filters) · [Saved views](/surfaces/views/saved) · [Object views](/surfaces/records/views)
* **Data model**: [Objects](/data/objects/overview) · [Records](/data/records/overview)
* **Conversations**: [The conversation model](/data/conversations/overview) · [Conversations & threading](/comms/conversations/overview)


## Related topics

- [Entities](/surfaces/entities.md)
- [Pages](/surfaces/navigation/pages.md)
- [Saved Components](/surfaces/components/saved.md)
- [Modifying Components](/surfaces/components/modify.md)
- [Folders](/surfaces/navigation/folders.md)