# Full Screen Cover Image
**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690
**Category:** Theme component
**Created:** [April 1, 2026, 9:34am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690 "2026-04-01T09:34:54Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@RGJ](https://meta.discourse.org/u/RGJ)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 9:34am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/1 "2026-04-01T09:34:54Z")
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| --- | --- | --- |
| ℹ | **Summary** | A Discourse theme component that displays a fullscreen cover image over the entire forum on page load. |
| 🛠 | **Repository** | [GitHub - communiteq/discourse-tc-fullscreen-coverimage · GitHub](https://github.com/communiteq/discourse-tc-fullscreen-coverimage) |
| ❓ | **Install Guide** | [How to install a theme or theme component](https://meta.discourse.org/t/how-do-i-install-a-theme-or-theme-component/63682) |
| 📖 | **New to Discourse Themes?** | [Beginner’s guide to using Discourse Themes](https://meta.discourse.org/t/beginners-guide-to-using-discourse-themes/91966) |
Install this theme component
A Discourse theme component that displays a fullscreen cover image over the entire forum on page load.
Originally developed for a government agency (“this site has been seized”), but generic enough for any use case — maintenance notices, splash screens, event announcements, etc.
## How it works
On page load the image is rendered centred on screen, scaled to fill as much of the viewport as possible while preserving its aspect ratio (`object-fit: contain`). The remaining area outside the image is filled with a configurable background colour.
The overlay disappears when **either** condition is met first:
- the configured number of **seconds** has elapsed, or
- the user has clicked the overlay the configured number of **times**.
Set either value to `0` to disable that dismissal method.
## Settings
| Setting | Type | Default | Description |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `cover_image` | upload | _(none)_ | The image to display fullscreen |
| `trigger_after` | string | _(none)_ | ISO-8601 UTC datetime after which the overlay activates, e.g. `2026-04-01T08:00:00Z` |
| `display_seconds` | integer | `5` | Seconds before auto-dismiss (`0` = never) |
| `dismiss_on_clicks` | integer | `3` | Clicks required to dismiss (`0` = disabled) |
| `background_color` | string | `#000000` | CSS colour for the area outside the image |
## Cookie behaviour
Once a visitor dismisses the overlay (by timer or clicks), a cookie named `tc_coverimage_seen` is set recording the `trigger_after` value. The overlay will not show again until `trigger_after` is changed to a new value — which resets everyone’s seen state and causes it to show again on their next page navigation.
## Example
Set `trigger_after: "2026-04-01T00:00:00Z"`, `display_seconds: 0`, `dismiss_on_clicks: 1` for a single-click splash that activates at midnight UTC on April 1st and each visitor only sees once.
Obviously this theme component was not developed for a government agency but for @WorldIsMine who kindly open sourced it 🥰
---
### Author:  [@Lilly](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Lilly)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 9:46am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/2 "2026-04-01T09:46:16Z")
> [@RGJ](#):
>
> single-click splash that activates at midnight UTC on **April 1st** and each visitor only sees once.
This is awesome. i am so doing this to my forum today 😁
cool component. thanks! 🙂
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### Author:  [@WorldIsMine](https://meta.discourse.org/u/WorldIsMine)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 10:01am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/3 "2026-04-01T10:01:32Z")
You can see it live (only today) on [SWAPD](https://swapd.co/) EDIT: I turned it off as its EOD for me. I have to say this April Fools joke pushes the limits, it’s [giving virtually every member a heart attack.](https://swapd.co/t/attn-everyone-really-really-bad-news/1968781)
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### Author:  [@WorldIsMine](https://meta.discourse.org/u/WorldIsMine)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 12:06pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/4 "2026-04-01T12:06:46Z")
> [@RGJ](#):
>
> maintenance notices, splash screens, event announcements, etc.
Now that I think of it, this will be useful down the road. For ensuring that EVERYONE sees what you want to announce.
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### Author:  [@eisammy](https://meta.discourse.org/u/eisammy)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 12:44pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/5 "2026-04-01T12:44:07Z")
Haha I love it hey guys nice joke
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### Author:  [@Lilly](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Lilly)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 1:38pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/6 "2026-04-01T13:38:29Z")
hahaha fantastic - a lot of my forum members fell for it too. one guy on vacation out of country lost it and was going to start burning documents until he remembered what date it is.
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### Author:  [@WorldIsMine](https://meta.discourse.org/u/WorldIsMine)
#### Post date: [April 1, 2026, 6:08pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/full-screen-cover-image/399690/8 "2026-04-01T18:08:46Z")
> [@Lilly](#):
>
> a lot of my forum members fell for it too. one guy on vacation out of country lost it and was going to start burning documents until he remembered what date it is.
Same here. I don’t think I saw a single “I knew it” comment. This component made me realize how many people depend on our website, as we’ve received MANY comments like this:
> I woke up, grabbed my phone, opened SWAPD… and my heart dropped. My first thought was: “wtf… are we this cooked?”
> I just sat there staring at the ceiling for a few minutes, thinking:
> Should I get a job?
> Should I start selling drugs?
> Should I go back to college?
> None of that was even in my plans last night… but today, they felt real. I refreshed the page a few more times, hoping for a second chance… And thank God, it was back.
>
> Now I’m here, eating pizza, scrolling through posts, and laughing at people who still think SWAPD is seized. Life is good