How to Configure Static Navigation in SharePoint 2016

You can opt to use a static navigation menu by deselecting the Show Pages and Show Subsites options in the navigation settings for each site. You can then manually enter whatever navigation you want to appear in the global and current navigation for each site.

To manually configure your navigation items:

1. Browse to the site you want to configure, choose the Settings drop-down (gear icon) and select Site Settings, and then click the Navigation link in the Look and Feel section.
2. Scroll down to the Structural Navigation: Editing and Sorting section. This section shows a hierarchy of your global and current navigation items. The items you see here depend on the settings you make in the global navigation and current navigation settings of the page. For example, if you select the Show Subsites in Global Navigation option, you see subsites listed in this section of the page.
   

   View the navigation hierarchy.
3. To add a new navigation to your global or current navigation, click the place in the hierarchy where you want to add the item.
4. Click the Add Heading button to add a new heading, or click the Add Link button to add a new link. Here is the Navigation Heading dialog box. The Add Link dialog box looks exactly the same. A heading doesn’t require a web address or URL. That is, you can use a heading to contain links without requiring that the heading point to anything in the browser.
   

   Adding a new heading to your current navigation.
5. Enter the details for the navigation item. Get creative about adding navigation items. You can add static links to the current navigation for common tasks that people need to perform, such as managing a group’s membership. You have these options:
   • Title: The text you enter in this field appears in the navigation menu.
   • URL: Enter the page where the item links to. This is an optional field for headings.
   • Open Link in New Window: Select this check box to open the link in a new window.
   • Description: The text you enter in this field displays as a tooltip when someone hovers the cursor over the navigation item.
   • Audience: Use this text box to filter the navigation item so that only members of the selected audience can see the navigation item.
6. Click OK to save your heading or link. The heading appears in the site’s navigation hierarchy. Use the Move Up or Move Down buttons to reposition the item in the hierarchy.
   

   Your item appears in the navigation hierarchy.
7. Repeat Steps 3–6 to add more links and headings to your navigation hierarchy.
8. Use the Edit button to make additional changes to the hierarchy. Click the Edit button to modify the Title, Description, URL, or Audience for a navigation item.
9. Click OK to save your navigation settings.