---
title: Create and edit content
slug: cms-11/dev-docs/creating-and-editing-content
docTags: 
createdAt: 2026-07-22T19:45:20.939Z
---

Examples in this topic are based on an empty Optimizely Content Management System (CMS) project, as described in [Create a starter project](docId:1aC4YP98Zx7c_0BnQMdB5).

## Create content

A content instance is an [instance of a content type](docId:0eexs4TGHicAPRRQIIWqr). You usually define content types in code as classes based on a model decorated with `ContentTypeAttribute` inheriting from some base class like, for example `EPiServer.Core.PageData`.

Inheriting from a base class like `PageData` provides access to many *built-in properties*, for example `Name`, `ContentLink`, and `ParentLink`. Built-in properties are predefined and set by the system when you create a page and are available regardless of content type. You can also add your own *user-defined properties*, based on available property types. See [Built-in property types](docId\:YMvILGXHZdwvgMotooWba) and [Property attributes](docId\:on6fSGtEqQTqtYnBGeIFS).

The following code shows a simple page type. `MainBody`is a property of type `XhtmlString` for adding content using a text editor.

```csharp
using System;
using System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations;
using EPiServer.Core;
using EPiServer.DataAbstraction;
using EPiServer.DataAnnotations;
using EPiServer.SpecializedProperties;

namespace MyEpiSite.Models.Pages {
    [ContentType(
      DisplayName = "TestPage",
      GUID = "61f028c8-be3d-4942-b58c-65ea8b28e7b6",
      Description = "Description for this page type")]
    public class TestPage: PageData {
        [CultureSpecific]
        [Display(
          Name = "Main body",
          Description = "The main body will be shown in the main content area of the page, using the XHTML-editor you can insert for example text, images and tables.",
          GroupName = SystemTabNames.Content,
          Order = 1)]
        public virtual XhtmlString MainBody {
          get;
          set;
        }
```

The following image shows the same page type in the **Admin** view:

![](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/3JgkVyzaTp0dhlVZgqlPG_a25d77b-14d9699-createeditcode1.png)

The GUID attribute on the `ContentTypeAttribute` is the unique ID for a content type. Having the GUID in code is useful because you can refactor your code without getting duplicate content types in your database. It also reduces problems when you import and export content between databases.

![](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/WpZupEXrbjnablIJ7Ysw7_79df884-createeditcode2.png)

The following image shows a page based on the same page type in the **All properties** view. Notice the default **Content** and **Settings** tabs, and their built-in properties.

![](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/1YLdnPAnrDdeEUra5241z_4a88ee2-createeditcode3.png)

## Tabs

**Tabs** are used for organizing related properties in edit view in a logical order. Use the attributes `GroupName` and `Order` to specify the tabs and order for properties on a page type. See [Group content types and properties](docId:1kzgWerJkZcohTeKa3POJ) for how to create custom tabs and organize properties on them.

## Edit content

You can edit content in CMS through the **All properties** view or **On-page** editing. The UI framework has a server-side part based on ASP.NET MVC Core and a client-side part using the JavaScript library Dojo. The UI also has context awareness, where components automatically reload when the context changes. See [Edit the user interface](docId\:MJLhKBrWN2GVvBSJdq19N).

A page based on a page type without a template (controller or view) can only be edited from the **All properties** view, as it has no rendering. Also, there is no **preview** available.

Adding rendering to a content type using the HTML helper `Html.PropertyFor`, will add rendering of property values based on their property type. Adding this rendering will automatically make preview and on-page editing available. See [Content types](docId:2v4W6kW44Y-EIu5pSoHML).

![](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/zuxguxlK71PhpUz6us9Qn-20260722-194631.png)

## XHTML Editor

The default XHTML editor installed with CMS is [TinyMCE editor](docId\:sCgvG-C4DKpuL9hTUS7Qb), a flexible WYSIWYG editor that provides clean, validated XHTML markup. A standard installation of CMS provides built-in editor functionality, like dragging and dropping files and images from the **Assets** panel into the editor.

## Content versioning

You can add a **Versions** gadget to the **Assets** panel in the user interface to manage different versions of a page, for example.

Most content items in CMS can be *versioned*. Implementing `IVersionable` for a content item will add support for a set of content version states. The `StartPublish` and `StopPublish` properties, such as control content publish and expiration dates. See [Content versions](docId\:I5oEHr0MhXdv6vZ-txZxq).

CMS automatically versions content items in a standard installation. The `MaximumVersions` attribute on the `ContentOptions` defines the number of previously published content versions the system will keep; the default value is 20. You can also change the value from the **Admin** view under  **Config**> **System Settings**. Selecting **Unlimited** versions will set `"uiMaxVersions = 0"`, meaning it keeps an unlimited number of versions.

![](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/BrbvVORKJ5iIeSMZye5kI/0t6nYj97VlOpNff_g9a39-20260722-194631.png)

You can compare different page versions to see what changes are in each version.