Goal

A navigation layout should look like you planned it, not like you ran out of buttons partway through. Two no-code content types do most of the work:

• Placeholder Button — a decorative, do-nothing button that holds a slot open. Use it to balance a grid so rows fill out evenly, or to reserve a position you plan to fill later.
• Left Menu Separator — a visual divider for the left-side navigation drawer. Use it to break a long menu into labeled sections (for example “Account”, “Browse”, “Help”).

Neither one has content or settings to fuss with — you add it, position it, and you’re done. This recipe covers both.

Before you start

• You’re working in Mobile App Manager → App Navigation, on the layout you want to tidy (a tab-bar grid, a home screen stack, or the left menu drawer).
• You know roughly where the gaps or section breaks should go. It helps to preview the layout first so you can see which rows are uneven.

When to reach for each one

Still not sure which one you need? If the layout is a grid and the problem is spacing, reach for placeholders. If it’s the left menu and the problem is grouping, reach for a separator.

Add a Placeholder Button to balance a grid

1. Open Mobile App Manager → App Navigation and pick the layout — tab bar, home screen, or category grid — where the row looks uneven.
2. Add a new button to that layout, the same way you’d add any other.
3. For the button’s content type / content source, choose Placeholder Button.
4. There’s nothing else to set — the form reads “No settings required”. Save the button.
5. Drag the placeholder into the empty slot so the row fills out. Repeat for each gap.

Here’s what you’ll see: a blank slot, or optionally a background color or placeholder image, depending on the layout’s styling. Nothing happens when someone taps it — no navigation, no action — so it reads as deliberate whitespace, not a broken button.

Reserving a slot for later

Planning ahead? Drop a Placeholder Button wherever you intend to add real content later. The layout stays balanced in the meantime, and when you’re ready, just change that button’s content type from Placeholder Button to the real one — no need to re-position anything.

Add a Left Menu Separator to divide the drawer

1. In App Navigation, open the left menu / navigation drawer configuration.
2. Add a new item to the drawer.
3. For its content type / content source, choose Left Menu Separator.
4. As with placeholders, there are no required settings — the form reads “No settings required”. Save it.
5. Drag the separator to sit between the two groups of menu items you want to divide. Repeat to create as many sections as you need.

Want a labeled section instead of a plain line? Give the separator button a name/title (for example “Account”) in the layout editor. Some app builds render that title as a section header instead of a plain divider line; leave the title blank if you just want a simple horizontal rule.

The Left Menu Separator only works in the left menu. You won’t find it as a content-type choice on tab-bar or grid layouts — it’s scoped to the drawer by design.

Verify it looks right

1. Save the layout.
2. Preview or rebuild the app and open the affected screen.
3. Check that:
   • Grid rows are evenly filled and the placeholders read as empty space, not dead buttons.
   • Left-menu sections are visually separated, with labels (if you set them) landing where you expect.
4. Tap a placeholder to confirm nothing happens — that’s exactly what it’s supposed to do.

Gotchas

• Placeholders count toward layout limits. If a layout caps out at a certain number of rows or buttons, each placeholder takes up a slot just like a real button — so don’t be surprised if adding a few pushes you right up against that cap.
• A placeholder never navigates. Even if a layout offers a “tappable” toggle, tapping a placeholder still does nothing. Use that toggle only to mock up layout interactions while you’re building — never ship one as a real destination.
• The separator has no tap target. It’s purely visual — it won’t fire a navigation action.
• Separator is drawer-scoped. If Left Menu Separator isn’t showing up in the content-type list, double check you’re editing the left menu and not a tab-bar or grid layout.
• Both are “frozen” core content types. They behave consistently across apps, but their underlying class identifiers are fixed in the platform — you configure them through the UI, not by editing code.

Related articles

• Content classes overview
• Content class: Placeholder
• Content class: Left Menu Separator