Parameters for static embeds

Also known as: parameters for signed embeds, or standalone embeds.

Parameters are pieces of information that are passed between Metabase and your website via the embedding URL. You can use parameters to specify how Metabase items should look and behave inside the iframe on your website.

Types of parameters

Parameters can be signed or unsigned.

Signed parameters

Signed parameters, such as filter names and values, must be added to your server code.

• Editable parameters
• Locked parameters

Unsigned parameters

Unsigned parameters, such as appearance settings, should be added directly to your iframe’s src attribute.

• Default values for editable parameters
• Visibility settings for editable parameters
• Appearance settings

Adding a filter widget to a static embed

You can use editable parameters to add filter widgets to embedded dashboards or SQL questions.

1. Go to your dashboard or SQL question. Make sure you’ve set up a dashboard filter or SQL variable.
2. Click on the sharing icon > Embed this item in an application.
3. Under Parameters, you’ll find the names of your dashboard filters or SQL variables.
4. Select Editable for each parameter that should get a filter widget on your embed.
5. Click Publish to save your changes.
6. Add or update the code on your server to match the code generated by Metabase.

Editable parameters are responsible for passing filter values from the embedded filter widget (displayed on the iframe) through to the filters on your original dashboard or SQL question (in your Metabase).

You can’t disable parameters when the original question or dashboard requires a value

If the filter on a dashboard or question is set to Always require a value, you won’t be able to disable the parameter when embedding.

Populating an embedded filter widget with a default value

If you want to set a default value for your editable filter widget, you can pass that default value to the corresponding parameter name in your iframe’s src attribute:

your_embedding_url?parameter_name=value

Let’s say your embedded dashboard has a filter connected to an editable parameter called “Breakfast”. If you want to set the default value for the “Breakfast” filter to “Scrambled eggs”:

your_embedding_url?breakfast=Scrambled_eggs

To specify default values for more than one filter, separate the filters with ampersands (&):

your_embedding_url?breakfast=Scrambled_eggs&lunch=Grilled_cheese

You can set multiple default values for a filter by separating the key=value pairs with ampersands (&):

your_embedding_url?breakfast=Scrambled_eggs&breakfast=Bacon

Hiding filter widgets from a static embed

If you have a lot of editable parameters (resulting in a lot of filter widgets), you can hide them from your static embed by adding #hide_parameters to the end of the URL in your iframe’s src attribute:

your_embedding_url#hide_parameters=parameter_name

For example, if you want to hide a filter called “Breakfast” from your embedded dashboard:

your_embedding_url#hide_parameters=breakfast

You can hide multiple filter widgets by separating the parameter names with commas:

your_embedding_url#hide_parameters=breakfast,lunch

You can also simultaneously assign a parameter a default value and hide its filter widget:

your_embedding_url?breakfast=Scrambled_eggs#hide_parameters=breakfast

Unsigned parameter syntax

Whenever you’re adding a parameter to the embedding URL in your iframe’s src attribute, note that:

• Parameter names are lowercase.
• Parameter values are case-sensitive (the values must match your data).
• Spaces should be replaced by underscores.

Restricting data in a static embed with locked parameters

If you want to restrict the data that’s displayed in an embedded dashboard or SQL question, you can set up a locked parameter. A locked parameter filters the data in a dashboard or SQL question before the results are displayed to people in a static embed.

1. Go to your dashboard or SQL question. Make sure you’ve set up a dashboard filter or SQL variable.
2. Click on the sharing icon > Embed this item in an application.
3. Under Parameters, you’ll find the names of your dashboard filters or SQL variables.
4. Select Locked for each parameter that you want to restrict your data with.
5. Optional: select a value under Preview locked parameters to see what the restricted data looks like.
6. Click Publish to save your changes.
7. Add or update the code on your server to match the code generated by Metabase.

You can use locked parameters to display filtered data based on attributes captured by your web server, such as a username or a tenant ID. For more examples, see the reference apps repo.

Locked parameters will apply the selected filter values to your original dashboard or SQL question, but they won’t be displayed as filter widgets on your embed. Locked parameters may also limit the values that are shown in your editable filter widgets.

If you just want to require a value for the parameter, you could set the filter as editable and configure the underlying question or dashboard to always require a value.

Updating a locked parameter

Things to keep in mind if you need to make changes to your locked parameters.

Include all locked parameters in your server code

Once you publish a chart or dashboard with a locked parameter, you must include the name of the locked parameter in your server code. If you exclude the parameter name, the logs will gently remind you: You must specify a value for :parameter in the JWT.

To turn off a locked parameter, pass an empty array as its value in the JWT

If you don’t want the locked filter to apply, you can pass an empty array, [], as the value for the parameter in the JWT.

Make sure the filter name matches the locked parameter name

If you change the name of a query builder filter that’s used as a locked parameter, make sure to update the parameter’s name and value(s) in your server code as well. If your locked parameter is connected to a SQL variable, you don’t need to change the parameter’s name and value(s).

Multiple locked parameters or multiple values

The values for the locked parameter in your server code should match your filter’s values exactly. The best way to set multiple locked parameters, or pass multiple values to a locked parameter, is to pick a filter value under Preview locked parameters and preview the server code generated by Metabase.

Using multiple locked parameters together will filter with AND, not OR. If you only want to apply a subset of the locked parameters, you must tell Metabase to ignore the other locked parameters.

Locked parameters limit the values available to other editable parameters

Because locked parameters filter data before the results are displayed in the embed, locked parameters limit the values available to other, editable filter widgets.

For example, say you’re embedding a dashboard with two filters, State and City. If you lock the State parameter with the value “Vermont”, Metabase will only display the City filter widget on the dashboard, and the dropdown menu for that City filter widget will be limited to cities in Vermont. While you don’t explicitly link the two filters, the two filters behave implicitly like linked filters.

Locked parameters on dashboards with SQL questions

If your locked parameter is linked to a dashboard filter that’s in turn linked to a SQL question, you’ll only be able to choose a single value for your locked parameter.

For example, let’s say you have a dashboard filter called “Breakfast” with the values “Hash browns”, “Muffin”, and “Waffles”. If the “Breakfast” filter is linked to any SQL questions on the dashboard, you’ll only be able to choose one of the options for a locked parameter linked to the “Breakfast” filter.

Using locked parameters to power custom widgets in your app

Because Metabase doesn’t display locked parameters as filter widgets, you can use locked parameters to power custom filter widgets that you build in your app. You may want to build your own filter widget(s) to:

• Make the widgets more consistent with the look and feel of your application.
• Include custom logic. For example, to have a filter widget remember recent values.
• Reuse one dashboard in different ways in different parts of your app. For example, you may have a dashboard with multiple locked parameters, and use one parameter in one case, and another parameter in another case. Like a sales dashboard that in one part of your app is locked by “region”, in another by “team”.

Customizing the appearance of a static embed

You can change the appearance of an embedded item by adding hash parameters to the end of the URL in your iframe’s src attribute.

For example, the following embedding URL will display an embedded item in dark mode, without a border, and with its original title:

your_embedding_url#theme=night&bordered=false&titled=true

You can preview appearance settings from your question or dashboard’s embedded appearance settings.

* Avalable on Pro and Enterprise plans

** Disabling downloads is available on Pro and Enterprise plans.

For global appearance settings, such as the colors and fonts used across your entire Metabase instance, see Customizing Metabase’s appearance.

Disable downloads for an embedded question or dashboard

By default, Metabase will include a Download button on embedded questions, and an Export to PDF option on embedded dashboards. You can remove the option to download results by setting downloads=false in the embedding URL in the iframe’s src attribute, see customizing the appearance of static embeds.

If the download option is missing when you expected it to be available, check that the URL in the src attribute for your iframe has the parameter downloads=true.

Maximum request size

The maximum length of a static embedding URL (including all parameters) is the value of your MB_JETTY_REQUEST_HEADER_SIZE environment variable. The default is 8192 bytes.

If your static embedding URL exceeds the maximum header size, you’ll see a log message like URI too long. You can update the environment variable to accept larger headers. If you’re using a proxy server, you may need to set a corresponding property on the server as well.

Further reading

• Static embedding documentation.
• Strategies for delivering customer-facing analytics.
• Publishing data visualizations to the web.