# Navigating the server and TSM web interfaces

*Tableau Server Administrator Study Guide · Preparation · Last updated November 13, 2026 · https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/tableau-server-administrator/preparation/navigating-the-server-and-tsm-web-interfaces*

Tell the Tableau Server web environment (content, sites, users) apart from Tableau Services Manager (server configuration), sign in to each correctly, and move between a single site and the server-wide All Sites view.

- Certification: Salesforce Tableau Server Administrator
- Exam section: Preparation
- Study guide: https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/tableau-server-administrator

**Official exam objective:**

> 1.1 User Experience: 1.1.1 User Interface; 1.1.2 Navigation.

## What the exam expects

- Decide whether a task belongs in the Tableau Server web environment (sites, users, content) or in Tableau Services Manager (server configuration).
- Sign in to the Tableau Server admin area and to the TSM web UI with the right URL and the right kind of account.
- Predict which menus a server administrator or site administrator sees on a single-site or multi-site server.
- Move between one site's administration menus and the server-wide All Sites view.
- Read a site URL to tell which site you are on.

Key terms:
- **Tableau Server web environment:** the browser interface where users work with content and administrators manage sites, users, groups and projects.
- **Tableau Services Manager (TSM):** the web and command-line tool for installing, configuring and maintaining Tableau Server itself.
- **Site selector:** the menu showing the current site name, used to switch sites or open Manage all sites.
- **All Sites:** the server-wide view a server administrator uses for settings that affect every site.
- **Default site:** the site you land on after the first admin sign-in; a server with only one site names it Default.

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Single-site server | The site selector does not appear; all other menus are the same | [Navigate the Admin Areas](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/navigate_admin_settings.htm) |
| Manage all sites | Content and Group tabs go away; the site menu reads All Sites | [Navigate the Admin Areas](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/navigate_admin_settings.htm) |
| Back to one site | Select All Sites, then the site to manage | [Navigate the Admin Areas](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/navigate_admin_settings.htm) |
| Server administrator access | Tableau Server only; site administrator access is on Server and Cloud | [Navigate the Admin Areas](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/navigate_admin_settings.htm) |
| Adding sites | Only server administrators can add sites | [Navigate the Admin Areas](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/navigate_admin_settings.htm) |
| TSM web UI address | HTTPS on port 8850 to the computer running TSM, not a load balancer | [Sign in to TSM Web UI](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/sign_in_tsm.htm) |
| TSM sign-in account | By default a member of the local Windows Administrators group | [Sign in to TSM Web UI](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/sign_in_tsm.htm) |
| TSM processes | Keep running even when Tableau Server is offline | [TSM Overview](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/tsm_overview.htm) |
| Admin area URL | Plain server URL; add the port if the server is not on port 80 | [Sign in to the Admin Area](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/sign_in_server_admin.htm) |
| Default site URL | No /site segment; other sites add #/site/ and the site ID | [Tour Your Tableau Site](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/navigating.htm) |

## Check yourself

- Why does a browser warn about the certificate when you open the TSM web UI from a remote computer?
- When must the URL for the Tableau Server admin pages include a port number?
- Which three earlier administration tools did TSM replace?
- When you sign in to the Tableau Server admin pages for the first time, which page do you land on?

## Sources

- [Navigate the Admin Areas of the Tableau Web Environment](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/navigate_admin_settings.htm)
- [Server Administrator Overview](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/admin.htm)
- [Sign in to Tableau Services Manager Web UI](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/sign_in_tsm.htm)
- [Sign in to the Tableau Server Admin Area](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/sign_in_server_admin.htm)
- [Tableau Services Manager Overview](https://help.tableau.com/current/server/en-us/tsm_overview.htm)
- [Tour Your Tableau Site](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/navigating.htm)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 3 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Tableau Server Administrator pack (USD $19): https://www.certifyforce.com/practice-exams