NL Design System Theme for Nextcloud

Apply Dutch government design tokens (NL Design System) to your Nextcloud instance with open-source fonts and components.

Features

• Multiple Token Sets: Choose from various Dutch government design systems:

  • Rijkshuisstijl (Dutch national government)
  • Gemeente Utrecht
  • Gemeente Amsterdam
  • Gemeente Den Haag
  • Gemeente Rotterdam

• Open Source Fonts: Uses Fira Sans from @fontsource/fira-sans as a professional alternative to proprietary government fonts

• Easy Configuration: Select your preferred token set via the admin settings panel

• CSS Variables: Uses CSS custom properties for flexible theming that integrates with Nextcloud's existing theme system

• No Build Required: Fonts loaded via CDN, tokens are pre-compiled CSS

Installation

Method 1: From Git Repository

1. Clone or download this app to your Nextcloud apps directory:

   cd /path/to/nextcloud/apps
   git clone https://github.com/ConductionNL/nldesign.git

2. Install npm dependencies (for fonts):

   cd nldesign
   npm install

3. Enable the app in Nextcloud:

   occ app:enable nldesign

4. Configure the theme in Settings → Administration → Theming

Method 2: Docker Environment

If you're running in the provided Docker environment:

# From the server directory
docker exec -u 33 nextcloud php occ app:enable nldesign

Configuration

Navigate to Settings → Administration → Theming and find the "NL Design System Theme" section.

Select your preferred design token set and reload the page to see the changes.

Fonts

This app uses Fira Sans as an open-source alternative to the proprietary government fonts:

• Source: @fontsource/fira-sans npm package
• License: SIL Open Font License 1.1 (free to use)
• Weights: Regular (400) and Bold (700), plus italic variants
• Delivery: Loaded via CDN from jsdelivr.net
• No permission needed: Unlike RijksoverheidSansWebText, Fira Sans is freely available

Why Fira Sans?

• Designed by Carrois Apostrophe for readability
• Used by Mozilla and other organizations
• Excellent legibility for government services
• Similar characteristics to official government fonts
• Officially recommended by Rijkshuisstijl Community as open-source alternative

Architecture

nldesign/
├── appinfo/
│   ├── info.xml          # App metadata
│   └── routes.php        # API routes
├── css/
│   ├── fonts.css         # Fira Sans font declarations
│   ├── theme.css         # Maps NL Design tokens to Nextcloud variables
│   ├── tokens/           # Token set files per organization
│   │   ├── rijkshuisstijl.css
│   │   ├── utrecht.css
│   │   ├── amsterdam.css
│   │   ├── denhaag.css
│   │   └── rotterdam.css
│   └── admin.css         # Admin settings styles
├── js/
│   └── admin.js          # Admin settings JavaScript
├── lib/
│   ├── AppInfo/
│   │   └── Application.php  # Loads CSS files
│   ├── Controller/
│   │   └── SettingsController.php
│   └── Settings/
│       └── Admin.php
├── templates/
│   └── settings/
│       └── admin.php     # Settings UI
├── package.json          # NPM dependencies
└── node_modules/         # Fonts from npm
    └── @fontsource/fira-sans/

How It Works

Two-Layer CSS Variable System

1. Token Layer: Each organization has a token file (e.g., rijkshuisstijl.css) that defines design tokens as CSS variables:

   :root {
       --nldesign-color-primary: #154273;
       --nldesign-font-family: 'Fira Sans', sans-serif;
   }

2. Mapping Layer: The theme.css file maps these to Nextcloud's CSS variables:

   body {
       --color-primary: var(--nldesign-color-primary) !important;
       font-family: var(--nldesign-font-family) !important;
   }

3. Font Loading: The fonts.css file loads Fira Sans from CDN:

   @font-face {
       font-family: 'Fira Sans';
       src: url('https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/fira-sans@5.0.0/...');
   }

Loading Order

// In Application.php
\OCP\Util::addStyle(self::APP_ID, 'fonts');         // 1. Load Fira Sans
\OCP\Util::addStyle(self::APP_ID, 'tokens/utrecht'); // 2. Load token set
\OCP\Util::addStyle(self::APP_ID, 'theme');         // 3. Map to Nextcloud

Development

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• npm

Setup

cd nldesign
npm install

Updating Fonts

The fonts are loaded from CDN, so no build step is required. However, if you want to download fonts locally:

# Fonts are in node_modules/@fontsource/fira-sans/files/
cp node_modules/@fontsource/fira-sans/files/*.woff2 css/fonts/

Then update css/fonts.css to use local paths instead of CDN.

Creating New Token Sets

To add a new municipality or organization:

1. Create a new file in css/tokens/ (e.g., tilburg.css)
2. Define the --nldesign-* variables following the existing pattern
3. Add the option to templates/settings/admin.php
4. Update lib/Controller/SettingsController.php to validate the new option

NPM Packages Used

Current Dependencies

• @fontsource/fira-sans (v5.0.0)
  • Open-source web fonts
  • Self-hosted option for Fira Sans
  • Includes all weights and styles

Community Packages (Reference)

These packages inspired our token definitions but are not direct dependencies:

• @rijkshuisstijl-community/design-tokens - Official Rijkshuisstijl tokens
• @rijkshuisstijl-community/font - Font package (includes Fira Sans)
• @utrecht/design-tokens - Utrecht municipality tokens

Note: We maintain manual CSS token files for better compatibility with Nextcloud's asset pipeline, but they're based on the official NL Design System specifications.

Compliance

Open Source Implementation

✅ What's Included (Free & Legal):

• Fira Sans fonts (SIL OFL 1.1 license)
• Design token values (colors, spacing, etc.)
• CSS mapping to Nextcloud variables
• All municipality color schemes

❌ What's NOT Included (Requires Permission):

• Official Rijkslogo (crown logo)
• RijksoverheidSansWebText proprietary fonts
• Official government imagery

Legal Usage

This implementation is fully legal and open-source for:

• Demonstrations and prototypes
• Educational purposes
• Municipal websites (with their respective themes)
• Any organization using open-source alternatives

Permission Required for:

• Official Rijksoverheid organizations using the Rijkslogo
• Using proprietary RijksoverheidSansWebText fonts
• Official government communications

Resources

Official Documentation

• NL Design System
• Rijkshuisstijl Community
• Utrecht Design System
• Rijkshuisstijl Online

Font Resources

• Fira Sans on Google Fonts
• Fontsource Documentation
• @fontsource/fira-sans on npm

Community

• NL Design System Community Slack - Join #nl-design-system
• GitHub Discussions

License

AGPL-3.0-or-later

Component Licenses

• This App: AGPL-3.0-or-later
• Fira Sans Font: SIL Open Font License 1.1
• Design Tokens: Public domain (color values, measurements)

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Adding New Token Sets

1. Research the official design system
2. Create a new token file in css/tokens/
3. Follow the existing pattern with --nldesign-* variables
4. Add to admin UI
5. Test in Nextcloud
6. Submit PR with documentation

Authors

• Conduction

Changelog

v0.1.0 (2026-02-03)

• Initial release
• Support for 5 token sets (Rijkshuisstijl, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam)
• Fira Sans font integration via @fontsource
• CDN-based font loading
• Full CSS variable mapping
• Admin settings panel
• Background image removal for clean Rijkshuisstijl compliance