UI Guide

Bowire's browser UI is a single-page application built with pure HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It runs in any modern browser with no framework dependencies.

Layout

The diagram below labels four working regions inside the workbench. Click any one to jump to its detail page:

1. Sidebar — service list, search, favorites, protocol tabs
2. Request Pane — form/JSON editor, metadata headers, import
3. Response Pane — syntax-highlighted response, streaming view, copy/download
4. Action Bar — execute button, repeat, status indicators

Above those four regions runs a fifth surface that isn't numbered in the diagram:

• Topbar — brand, command palette / global search, connection pill, environment selector, theme, AI drawer, About, Settings.

On desktop, the topbar runs across the full width; the sidebar sits on the left with the request and response panes stacked or side-by-side on the right; the optional AI drawer slides in from the right edge. On mobile, the sidebar collapses behind a hamburger menu and panels stack vertically.

Theme

Bowire supports dark, light, and auto (system-preference) themes. The palette is indigo-accent on near-black or near-white, tuned for long reading sessions with high contrast on code blocks. Toggle themes with the t keyboard shortcut or the theme button in the header.

The theme preference is saved in localStorage and persists across sessions.

Configuration

Customize the UI at startup:

app.MapBowire(options =>
{
    options.Title = "My API";
    options.Description = "v2.3 -- Staging";
    options.Theme = BowireTheme.Dark;
    options.RoutePrefix = "api-browser";
});

Option	Default	Description
Title	"Bowire"	Browser tab and header title
Description	""	Subtitle shown below the title
Theme	Dark	BowireTheme.Dark or BowireTheme.Light
RoutePrefix	"bowire"	URL path prefix for all endpoints
ServerUrl	null	Override server URL (for reverse proxies)
LockServerUrl	false	Prevents the server URL from being changed in the UI
ShowInternalServices	false	Show internal services like grpc.reflection

See also: Keyboard Shortcuts, Responsive & Mobile