diff --git a/pydatalab/docs/config.md b/pydatalab/docs/config.md
index 964c54b03..b0b838438 100644
--- a/pydatalab/docs/config.md
+++ b/pydatalab/docs/config.md
@@ -131,12 +131,64 @@ Currently, there are two mechanisms for accessing remote files:
 
 ## Customisation and branding
 
-Deployments can customise the look and feel of their *datalab* instance by providing files under a `public/custom/` directory in the web app.
+Deployments can customise the main navigation through the server configuration and customise the look and feel of their *datalab* instance by providing files under a `public/custom/` directory in the web app.
 This directory can be a symlink to a folder in your deployment repository, or mounted as a volume in Docker.
 It should be made available at `webapp/public/custom/` relative to the *datalab* source tree.
 
 The following customisations are supported:
 
+### Main navigation
+
+The [`NAVIGATION`][pydatalab.config.ServerConfig.NAVIGATION] setting controls which links appear in the main navigation, their order, labels, optional icons, and the landing view used for `/`.
+Each entry has a required `view` ID and optional `label`, `icon`, and `default` values.
+The server configuration is the source of this default and is returned to the web app by the `/info` endpoint.
+For example, the following configuration renames Inventory to Starting Materials, moves About to the end, and omits Collections:
+
+```json
+{
+  "NAVIGATION": [
+    {"view": "samples"},
+    {
+      "view": "starting-materials",
+      "label": "Starting Materials",
+      "icon": "vials",
+      "default": true
+    },
+    {"view": "equipment"},
+    {"view": "item-graph", "label": "Graph View", "icon": "project-diagram"},
+    {"view": "about"}
+  ]
+}
+```
+
+The same value can be supplied as JSON in the server's `.env` file or process environment:
+
+```dotenv
+PYDATALAB_NAVIGATION='[{"view":"samples"},{"view":"starting-materials","label":"Starting Materials","default":true},{"view":"about"}]'
+```
+
+The built-in views are:
+
+| View ID | Default label | Route |
+|---|---|---|
+| `about` | About | `/about` |
+| `samples` | Samples | `/samples` |
+| `collections` | Collections | `/collections` |
+| `starting-materials` | Inventory | `/starting-materials` |
+| `equipment` | Equipment | `/equipment` |
+| `item-graph` | Graph View | `/item-graph` |
+
+Entries are shown in the configured order, and omitted entries are only hidden from the navigation: their routes remain available unless the corresponding feature is disabled separately.
+Set `default` to `true` on the entry that should open when a user visits `/`; only one entry can be marked as the default.
+If no entry is explicitly marked as the default, the first entry is used.
+The built-in navigation marks Samples as the default to preserve the existing landing page.
+The navigation must contain at least one entry, and duplicate view IDs, multiple defaults, and malformed entries are rejected during server configuration.
+View IDs unknown to the installed web app are ignored by it.
+
+The `icon` value must name a Font Awesome solid icon already registered by the web app, such as `vials` or `project-diagram`.
+Unknown icons are omitted without hiding the link.
+The default configuration preserves the current six links and the Graph View icon; within a custom configuration, an omitted `icon` means that entry has no icon.
+
 ### CSS overrides (`public/custom/override.css`)
 
 A CSS file that is loaded globally before the app styles, allowing you to override any default styling.
@@ -255,6 +307,12 @@ public/custom/
       show_root_heading: true
       show_source: false
 
+::: pydatalab.config.NavigationEntry
+    options:
+      heading_level: 2
+      show_root_heading: true
+      show_source: false
+
 ::: pydatalab.config.SMTPSettings
     options:
       heading_level: 2
diff --git a/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/config.py b/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/config.py
index 3f9f9d431..8804819be 100644
--- a/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/config.py
+++ b/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/config.py
@@ -20,7 +20,13 @@
 from pydatalab.models import Person
 from pydatalab.models.utils import RandomAlphabeticalRefcodeFactory, RefCodeFactory
 
-__all__ = ("CONFIG", "ServerConfig", "DeploymentMetadata", "RemoteFilesystem")
+__all__ = (
+    "CONFIG",
+    "ServerConfig",
+    "DeploymentMetadata",
+    "NavigationEntry",
+    "RemoteFilesystem",
+)
 
 config_logger = logging.getLogger("pydatalab.config")
 
@@ -128,6 +134,49 @@ class SMTPSettings(BaseModel):
     )
 
 
+class NavigationEntry(BaseModel):
+    """A configured entry in the web application's main navigation."""
+
+    view: str = Field(description="Stable identifier of a view known to the web application.")
+    label: str | None = Field(
+        None,
+        description="Optional navigation label. The view's default label is used when omitted.",
+    )
+    icon: str | None = Field(
+        None,
+        description="Optional name of a Font Awesome icon registered by the web application.",
+    )
+    default: bool = Field(
+        False,
+        description="Whether this entry is the landing view for the web application.",
+    )
+
+    model_config = ConfigDict(extra="forbid")
+
+    @field_validator("view", "label", "icon")
+    @classmethod
+    def strip_non_empty_strings(cls, value: str | None) -> str | None:
+        if value is None:
+            return None
+        value = value.strip()
+        if not value:
+            raise ValueError("navigation values must not be blank")
+        return value
+
+
+def default_navigation() -> list[NavigationEntry]:
+    """Return the navigation used when a deployment provides no customisation."""
+
+    return [
+        NavigationEntry(view="about"),
+        NavigationEntry(view="samples", default=True),
+        NavigationEntry(view="collections"),
+        NavigationEntry(view="starting-materials"),
+        NavigationEntry(view="equipment"),
+        NavigationEntry(view="item-graph", icon="project-diagram"),
+    ]
+
+
 class ServerConfig(BaseSettings):
     """A model that provides settings for deploying the API."""
 
@@ -279,6 +328,11 @@ class ServerConfig(BaseSettings):
         description="A list of dotted import paths ('package.module:ClassName') to custom `Item` subclasses to register as additional item types served through the generic item endpoints, e.g. ['mypackage.models:MySample']. Each model must declare its own unique `type` literal.",
     )
 
+    NAVIGATION: list[NavigationEntry] = Field(
+        default_factory=default_navigation,
+        description="Ordered views to display in the web application's main navigation.",
+    )
+
     PREDEFINED_LOCATIONS: set[str] = Field(
         default_factory=set,
         description="A list of additional lab locations to populate in the /locations endpoint that will be suggested globally for autocompletion. Use '>' to indicate location hierarchy",
@@ -400,6 +454,24 @@ def check_predefined_locations(cls, v):
         construct_location_hierarchy(v)
         return v
 
+    @field_validator("NAVIGATION")
+    @classmethod
+    def validate_navigation(cls, value: list[NavigationEntry]) -> list[NavigationEntry]:
+        if not value:
+            raise ValueError("NAVIGATION must contain at least one entry")
+
+        views = [entry.view for entry in value]
+        if len(views) != len(set(views)):
+            raise ValueError("NAVIGATION must not contain duplicate view IDs")
+
+        default_indices = [index for index, entry in enumerate(value) if entry.default]
+        if len(default_indices) > 1:
+            raise ValueError("NAVIGATION must not contain multiple default views")
+        if not default_indices:
+            value[0] = value[0].model_copy(update={"default": True})
+
+        return value
+
     @field_validator("LOG_FILE", mode="before")
     @classmethod
     def make_missing_log_directory(cls, v):
diff --git a/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/routes/v0_1/info.py b/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/routes/v0_1/info.py
index d16e61a2d..6c5113841 100644
--- a/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/routes/v0_1/info.py
+++ b/pydatalab/src/pydatalab/routes/v0_1/info.py
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@
 
 from pydatalab import __version__
 from pydatalab.apps import BLOCK_TYPES
-from pydatalab.config import CONFIG
+from pydatalab.config import CONFIG, NavigationEntry
 from pydatalab.deployment_stats import (
     STATS_REFRESH_INTERVAL,
     build_stats_summary,
@@ -117,6 +117,7 @@ class Info(Attributes, Meta):
     identifier_prefix: str
     features: FeatureFlags | None = None
     max_upload_bytes: int
+    navigation: list[NavigationEntry]
 
     @field_validator("maintainer", mode="before")
     @classmethod
@@ -139,6 +140,7 @@ def _get_deployment_metadata_once() -> dict:
             "identifier_prefix": identifier_prefix,
             "max_upload_bytes": CONFIG.MAX_CONTENT_LENGTH,
             "features": FEATURE_FLAGS,
+            "navigation": CONFIG.NAVIGATION,
         }
     )
     return metadata
diff --git a/pydatalab/tests/server/test_info_and_health.py b/pydatalab/tests/server/test_info_and_health.py
index 614740aab..323bc9681 100644
--- a/pydatalab/tests/server/test_info_and_health.py
+++ b/pydatalab/tests/server/test_info_and_health.py
@@ -99,3 +99,54 @@ def test_info_endpoint_includes_max_upload_bytes(client, app):
     assert isinstance(attributes["max_upload_bytes"], int)
     assert attributes["max_upload_bytes"] > 0
     assert attributes["max_upload_bytes"] == 10 * 1000 * 1000
+
+
+def test_info_endpoint_includes_navigation(client):
+    response = client.get("/info")
+
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    assert response.json["data"]["attributes"]["navigation"] == [
+        {"view": "about", "label": None, "icon": None, "default": False},
+        {"view": "samples", "label": None, "icon": None, "default": True},
+        {"view": "collections", "label": None, "icon": None, "default": False},
+        {"view": "starting-materials", "label": None, "icon": None, "default": False},
+        {"view": "equipment", "label": None, "icon": None, "default": False},
+        {
+            "view": "item-graph",
+            "label": None,
+            "icon": "project-diagram",
+            "default": False,
+        },
+    ]
+
+
+def test_info_endpoint_includes_custom_navigation(client, monkeypatch):
+    from pydatalab.config import CONFIG, ServerConfig
+    from pydatalab.routes.v0_1.info import _get_deployment_metadata_once
+
+    custom_config = ServerConfig(
+        TESTING=True,
+        _env_file=None,
+        NAVIGATION=[
+            {"view": "equipment"},
+            {"view": "starting-materials", "label": "Materials", "default": True},
+        ],
+    )
+    monkeypatch.setattr(CONFIG, "NAVIGATION", custom_config.NAVIGATION)
+    _get_deployment_metadata_once.cache_clear()
+
+    try:
+        response = client.get("/info")
+    finally:
+        _get_deployment_metadata_once.cache_clear()
+
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    assert response.json["data"]["attributes"]["navigation"] == [
+        {"view": "equipment", "label": None, "icon": None, "default": False},
+        {
+            "view": "starting-materials",
+            "label": "Materials",
+            "icon": None,
+            "default": True,
+        },
+    ]
diff --git a/pydatalab/tests/test_config.py b/pydatalab/tests/test_config.py
index 0637c5794..a2cab9bdc 100644
--- a/pydatalab/tests/test_config.py
+++ b/pydatalab/tests/test_config.py
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 from pathlib import Path
 
 import pytest
+from pydantic import ValidationError
 
 
 def test_default_settings():
@@ -28,6 +29,140 @@ def test_update_settings():
     assert Path(config.FILE_DIRECTORY).name == "files"
 
 
+def test_default_navigation(monkeypatch):
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    monkeypatch.delenv("PYDATALAB_NAVIGATION", raising=False)
+    config = ServerConfig(TESTING=True, _env_file=None)
+
+    assert [entry.model_dump(exclude_none=True) for entry in config.NAVIGATION] == [
+        {"view": "about", "default": False},
+        {"view": "samples", "default": True},
+        {"view": "collections", "default": False},
+        {"view": "starting-materials", "default": False},
+        {"view": "equipment", "default": False},
+        {"view": "item-graph", "icon": "project-diagram", "default": False},
+    ]
+
+
+def test_custom_navigation():
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    config = ServerConfig(
+        TESTING=True,
+        NAVIGATION=[
+            {
+                "view": "starting-materials",
+                "label": "Starting Materials",
+                "icon": "vials",
+                "default": True,
+            },
+            {"view": "my-custom-view"},
+        ],
+    )
+
+    assert [entry.model_dump(exclude_none=True) for entry in config.NAVIGATION] == [
+        {
+            "view": "starting-materials",
+            "label": "Starting Materials",
+            "icon": "vials",
+            "default": True,
+        },
+        {"view": "my-custom-view", "default": False},
+    ]
+
+
+def test_navigation_uses_first_entry_as_default():
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    config = ServerConfig(
+        TESTING=True,
+        NAVIGATION=[{"view": "equipment"}, {"view": "about"}],
+    )
+
+    assert [entry.default for entry in config.NAVIGATION] == [True, False]
+
+
+def test_navigation_from_environment(monkeypatch):
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    monkeypatch.setenv(
+        "PYDATALAB_NAVIGATION",
+        '[{"view":"samples","label":"Experiments"},{"view":"about","default":true}]',
+    )
+
+    config = ServerConfig(TESTING=True, _env_file=None)
+
+    assert [entry.model_dump(exclude_none=True) for entry in config.NAVIGATION] == [
+        {"view": "samples", "label": "Experiments", "default": False},
+        {"view": "about", "default": True},
+    ]
+
+
+def test_navigation_from_dotenv(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    monkeypatch.delenv("PYDATALAB_NAVIGATION", raising=False)
+    env_file = tmp_path / ".env"
+    env_file.write_text(
+        "PYDATALAB_NAVIGATION='["
+        '{"view":"starting-materials","label":"Starting Materials"},'
+        '{"view":"about"}'
+        "]'\n",
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+
+    config = ServerConfig(TESTING=True, _env_file=env_file)
+
+    assert [entry.model_dump(exclude_none=True) for entry in config.NAVIGATION] == [
+        {"view": "starting-materials", "label": "Starting Materials", "default": True},
+        {"view": "about", "default": False},
+    ]
+
+
+def test_navigation_rejects_duplicate_views():
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    with pytest.raises(ValidationError, match="duplicate view IDs"):
+        ServerConfig(TESTING=True, NAVIGATION=[{"view": "samples"}, {"view": "samples"}])
+
+
+def test_navigation_rejects_empty_list():
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    with pytest.raises(ValidationError, match="at least one entry"):
+        ServerConfig(TESTING=True, NAVIGATION=[])
+
+
+def test_navigation_rejects_multiple_default_views():
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    with pytest.raises(ValidationError, match="multiple default views"):
+        ServerConfig(
+            TESTING=True,
+            NAVIGATION=[
+                {"view": "samples", "default": True},
+                {"view": "about", "default": True},
+            ],
+        )
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    "entry",
+    [
+        {"view": ""},
+        {"view": "samples", "label": " "},
+        {"view": "samples", "icon": ""},
+        {"view": "samples", "unknown": "value"},
+    ],
+)
+def test_navigation_rejects_malformed_entries(entry):
+    from pydatalab.config import ServerConfig
+
+    with pytest.raises(ValidationError):
+        ServerConfig(TESTING=True, NAVIGATION=[entry])
+
+
 def test_config_override():
     from pydatalab.main import create_app
 
diff --git a/webapp/cypress/component/NavbarTest.cy.jsx b/webapp/cypress/component/NavbarTest.cy.jsx
index 2900fc2dc..0b32fc679 100644
--- a/webapp/cypress/component/NavbarTest.cy.jsx
+++ b/webapp/cypress/component/NavbarTest.cy.jsx
@@ -2,6 +2,11 @@ import Navbar from "@/components/Navbar.vue";
 import { createRouter, createWebHistory } from "vue-router";
 import { createStore } from "vuex";
 import LoginDetails from "@/components/LoginDetails.vue";
+import { NAVIGATION_VIEWS, resolveDefaultRouteName } from "@/navigation.js";
+import { library } from "@fortawesome/fontawesome-svg-core";
+import { faProjectDiagram, faVials } from "@fortawesome/free-solid-svg-icons";
+
+library.add(faProjectDiagram, faVials);
 
 describe("Navbar", () => {
   let store;
@@ -11,6 +16,16 @@ describe("Navbar", () => {
     store = createStore({
       state: {
         currentUserDisplayName: null,
+        serverInfo: {
+          navigation: [
+            { view: "about" },
+            { view: "samples", default: true },
+            { view: "collections" },
+            { view: "starting-materials" },
+            { view: "equipment" },
+            { view: "item-graph", icon: "project-diagram" },
+          ],
+        },
       },
     });
 
@@ -18,15 +33,19 @@ describe("Navbar", () => {
       history: createWebHistory(),
       routes: [
         { path: "/about", name: "About" },
-        { path: "/samples", name: "Samples" },
-        { path: "/collections", name: "Collections" },
-        { path: "/starting-materials", name: "Inventory" },
-        { path: "/equipment", name: "Equipment" },
-        { path: "/item-graph", name: "GraphView" },
+        { path: "/samples", name: "samples" },
+        { path: "/collections", name: "collections" },
+        { path: "/starting-materials", name: "starting-materials" },
+        { path: "/equipment", name: "equipment" },
+        { path: "/item-graph", name: "item-graph" },
       ],
     });
   });
 
+  afterEach(() => {
+    delete NAVIGATION_VIEWS.collections.isAvailable;
+  });
+
   it("renders logo image when logo_url is provided", () => {
     cy.mount(Navbar, {
       global: {
@@ -109,6 +128,165 @@ describe("Navbar", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it("renders configured links in order with custom labels and icons", () => {
+    store.state.serverInfo.navigation = [
+      { view: "equipment" },
+      { view: "starting-materials", label: "Starting Materials", icon: "vials" },
+      { view: "about", label: "About this deployment" },
+    ];
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get("#nav a").then(($links) => {
+      expect([...$links].map((link) => link.textContent.trim())).to.deep.equal([
+        "Equipment",
+        "Starting Materials",
+        "About this deployment",
+      ]);
+    });
+    cy.get('[data-testid="navbar-link-starting-materials"]')
+      .should("have.attr", "href", "/starting-materials")
+      .find('font-awesome-icon[icon="vials"]')
+      .should("exist");
+    cy.get("#nav .nav-separator").should("have.length", 2);
+  });
+
+  it("supports an explicitly empty navigation", () => {
+    store.state.serverInfo.navigation = [];
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get("#nav a").should("not.exist");
+    cy.get("#nav .nav-separator").should("not.exist");
+  });
+
+  it("uses the legacy navigation when loaded server metadata has no navigation", () => {
+    store.state.serverInfo = {};
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get("#nav a").should("have.length", 6);
+    cy.get('[data-testid="navbar-link-item-graph"] font-awesome-icon').should("exist");
+  });
+
+  it("resolves an explicitly configured default route", () => {
+    const serverInfo = {
+      navigation: [{ view: "samples" }, { view: "starting-materials", default: true }],
+    };
+
+    expect(resolveDefaultRouteName(serverInfo)).to.equal("starting-materials");
+  });
+
+  it("uses the first resolved route when no default is marked", () => {
+    const serverInfo = {
+      navigation: [{ view: "equipment" }, { view: "about" }],
+    };
+
+    expect(resolveDefaultRouteName(serverInfo)).to.equal("equipment");
+  });
+
+  it("uses Samples as the legacy and final defensive default", () => {
+    expect(resolveDefaultRouteName({})).to.equal("samples");
+    expect(
+      resolveDefaultRouteName({ navigation: [{ view: "missing-view", default: true }] }),
+    ).to.equal("samples");
+  });
+
+  it("falls back when the configured default is unknown or unavailable", () => {
+    expect(
+      resolveDefaultRouteName({
+        navigation: [{ view: "missing-view", default: true }, { view: "equipment" }],
+      }),
+    ).to.equal("equipment");
+
+    NAVIGATION_VIEWS.collections.isAvailable = (serverInfo) => serverInfo.features.test_enabled;
+    expect(
+      resolveDefaultRouteName({
+        features: { test_enabled: false },
+        navigation: [{ view: "collections", default: true }, { view: "about" }],
+      }),
+    ).to.equal("About");
+  });
+
+  it("does not render links before server metadata is loaded", () => {
+    store.state.serverInfo = null;
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+        stubs: {
+          LoginDetails: true,
+        },
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get("#nav a").should("not.exist");
+    cy.get("#nav .nav-separator").should("not.exist");
+  });
+
+  it("skips unknown views and icons without affecting valid links", () => {
+    store.state.serverInfo.navigation = [
+      { view: "missing-view" },
+      { view: "constructor" },
+      { view: "__proto__" },
+      { view: "samples", icon: "missing-icon" },
+      { view: "about" },
+    ];
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get("#nav a").should("have.length", 2);
+    cy.get('[data-testid="navbar-link-samples"] font-awesome-icon').should("not.exist");
+    cy.get("#nav .nav-separator").should("have.length", 1);
+  });
+
+  it("hides a configured view when its catalog availability predicate returns false", () => {
+    NAVIGATION_VIEWS.collections.isAvailable = (serverInfo) => serverInfo.features.test_enabled;
+    store.state.serverInfo = {
+      features: { test_enabled: false },
+      navigation: [{ view: "samples" }, { view: "collections" }, { view: "equipment" }],
+    };
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get('[data-testid="navbar-link-collections"]').should("not.exist");
+    cy.get("#nav a").should("have.length", 2);
+    cy.get("#nav .nav-separator").should("have.length", 1);
+  });
+
+  it("only hides omitted links and leaves their routes registered", () => {
+    store.state.serverInfo.navigation = [{ view: "samples" }];
+
+    cy.mount(Navbar, {
+      global: {
+        plugins: [store, router],
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.get('[data-testid="navbar-link-collections"]').should("not.exist");
+    expect(router.hasRoute("collections")).to.equal(true);
+  });
+
   it("navigates to the correct route on link click", () => {
     cy.mount(Navbar, {
       global: {
diff --git a/webapp/cypress/component/RouterTest.cy.js b/webapp/cypress/component/RouterTest.cy.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7797a1727
--- /dev/null
+++ b/webapp/cypress/component/RouterTest.cy.js
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+import router from "@/router/index.js";
+import store from "@/store/index.js";
+import { invalidateCurrentUserCache } from "@/server_fetch_utils.js";
+
+describe("Router", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    store.state.serverInfo = null;
+    invalidateCurrentUserCache();
+  });
+
+  it("uses one explicit home route without changing direct routes", () => {
+    expect(router.resolve("/").name).to.equal("home");
+    expect(router.resolve("/samples").name).to.equal("samples");
+    expect(router.resolve("/equipment").name).to.equal("equipment");
+    expect(router.resolve("/admin").name).to.equal("admin");
+  });
+
+  it("redirects the root path to the configured default route", () => {
+    cy.intercept("GET", "**/get-current-user/", {
+      immutable_id: "test-user",
+      display_name: "Test User",
+      role: "user",
+      account_status: "active",
+    });
+    cy.intercept("GET", "**/info", {
+      data: {
+        attributes: {
+          navigation: [
+            { view: "samples", default: false },
+            { view: "equipment", default: true },
+          ],
+        },
+      },
+    });
+
+    cy.then(async () => {
+      await router.push("/");
+      await router.isReady();
+
+      expect(router.currentRoute.value.name).to.equal("equipment");
+      expect(router.currentRoute.value.path).to.equal("/equipment");
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/webapp/src/components/Navbar.vue b/webapp/src/components/Navbar.vue
index d98fb1fe1..758415892 100644
--- a/webapp/src/components/Navbar.vue
+++ b/webapp/src/components/Navbar.vue
@@ -18,14 +18,13 @@
   </div>
 
   <div id="nav" data-testid="navbar-navigation">
-    <router-link to="/about">About</router-link> |
-    <router-link to="/samples">Samples</router-link> |
-    <router-link to="/collections">Collections</router-link> |
-    <router-link to="/starting-materials">Inventory</router-link> |
-    <router-link to="/equipment">Equipment</router-link> |
-    <router-link to="/item-graph"
-      ><font-awesome-icon icon="project-diagram" />&nbsp;Graph View</router-link
-    >
+    <template v-for="(entry, index) in navigationEntries" :key="entry.view">
+      <span v-if="index > 0" class="nav-separator" aria-hidden="true"> | </span>
+      <router-link :to="{ name: entry.routeName }" :data-testid="`navbar-link-${entry.view}`">
+        <font-awesome-icon v-if="entry.icon" :icon="entry.icon" />
+        <span v-if="entry.icon">&nbsp;</span>{{ entry.label }}
+      </router-link>
+    </template>
   </div>
   <div v-if="!isLoggedIn" class="container">
     <div class="alert alert-info col-md-6 col-lg-4 text-center mx-auto info-banner">
@@ -50,6 +49,7 @@
 <script>
 import { API_URL, LOGO_URL, LOGO_WIDTH, HOMEPAGE_URL } from "@/resources.js";
 import LoginDetails from "@/components/LoginDetails.vue";
+import { resolveNavigation } from "@/navigation.js";
 
 export default {
   name: "Navbar",
@@ -66,6 +66,9 @@ export default {
     };
   },
   computed: {
+    navigationEntries() {
+      return resolveNavigation(this.$store.state.serverInfo);
+    },
     isLoggedIn() {
       return Boolean(this.$store.state.currentUserDisplayName);
     },
diff --git a/webapp/src/navigation.js b/webapp/src/navigation.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..cbe946755
--- /dev/null
+++ b/webapp/src/navigation.js
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+import { findIconDefinition } from "@fortawesome/fontawesome-svg-core";
+
+export const NAVIGATION_VIEWS = {
+  about: {
+    routeName: "About",
+    defaultLabel: "About",
+  },
+  samples: {
+    routeName: "samples",
+    defaultLabel: "Samples",
+  },
+  collections: {
+    routeName: "collections",
+    defaultLabel: "Collections",
+  },
+  "starting-materials": {
+    routeName: "starting-materials",
+    defaultLabel: "Inventory",
+  },
+  equipment: {
+    routeName: "equipment",
+    defaultLabel: "Equipment",
+  },
+  "item-graph": {
+    routeName: "item-graph",
+    defaultLabel: "Graph View",
+  },
+};
+
+// Compatibility fallback for API versions that predate `/info.navigation`.
+// This can happen when a newer frontend connects to an older backend.
+// Keep this list frozen at the original six-link navbar;
+// current navigation defaults belong to the backend configuration.
+const LEGACY_NAVIGATION = Object.freeze([
+  { view: "about" },
+  { view: "samples", default: true },
+  { view: "collections" },
+  { view: "starting-materials" },
+  { view: "equipment" },
+  { view: "item-graph", icon: "project-diagram" },
+]);
+
+function resolveIcon(icon, view) {
+  if (!icon) return null;
+  if (findIconDefinition({ prefix: "fas", iconName: icon })) return icon;
+
+  console.warn(`Ignoring unregistered navigation icon ${JSON.stringify(icon)} for view ${view}.`);
+  return null;
+}
+
+export function resolveNavigation(serverInfo) {
+  if (serverInfo === null || serverInfo === undefined) return [];
+
+  const navigation = Array.isArray(serverInfo.navigation)
+    ? serverInfo.navigation
+    : LEGACY_NAVIGATION;
+
+  return navigation.flatMap((entry) => {
+    const view = entry?.view;
+    if (!Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(NAVIGATION_VIEWS, view)) {
+      console.warn(`Ignoring unknown navigation view ${JSON.stringify(view)}.`);
+      return [];
+    }
+    const definition = NAVIGATION_VIEWS[view];
+    // Views can become conditional when their corresponding feature exists by adding, e.g.,
+    // `isAvailable: (info) => info.features.collections_enabled` to their catalog entry.
+    if (definition.isAvailable && !definition.isAvailable(serverInfo)) {
+      console.warn(`Ignoring unavailable navigation view ${JSON.stringify(view)}.`);
+      return [];
+    }
+
+    return [
+      {
+        view,
+        routeName: definition.routeName,
+        label: entry.label || definition.defaultLabel,
+        icon: resolveIcon(entry.icon, view),
+        default: entry.default,
+      },
+    ];
+  });
+}
+
+export function resolveDefaultRouteName(serverInfo) {
+  const navigation = resolveNavigation(serverInfo);
+  const defaultEntry = navigation.find((entry) => entry.default);
+
+  return defaultEntry?.routeName || navigation[0]?.routeName || NAVIGATION_VIEWS.samples.routeName;
+}
diff --git a/webapp/src/router/index.js b/webapp/src/router/index.js
index 82866a936..d5c462d3d 100644
--- a/webapp/src/router/index.js
+++ b/webapp/src/router/index.js
@@ -10,11 +10,19 @@ import CollectionPage from "../views/CollectionPage.vue";
 import ItemGraphPage from "@/views/ItemGraphPage.vue";
 import Admin from "@/views/Admin.vue";
 import Login from "../views/Login.vue";
+import { resolveDefaultRouteName } from "@/navigation.js";
 import { API_URL, WEBSITE_TITLE } from "@/resources.js";
 import { getInfo } from "@/server_fetch_utils.js";
 import store from "@/store/index.js";
 
 const routes = [
+  {
+    path: "/",
+    name: "home",
+    // The navigation guard always redirects this route to the configured landing view,
+    // so this component is required by the route definition but is never rendered here.
+    component: Samples,
+  },
   {
     path: "/about",
     name: "About",
@@ -26,7 +34,6 @@ const routes = [
   {
     path: "/samples",
     name: "samples",
-    alias: "/",
     component: Samples,
   },
   {
@@ -38,7 +45,6 @@ const routes = [
   {
     path: "/equipment",
     name: "equipment",
-    alias: "/",
     component: Equipment,
   },
   {
@@ -99,7 +105,6 @@ const routes = [
   {
     path: "/admin",
     name: "admin",
-    alias: "/",
     component: Admin,
   },
 ];
@@ -127,6 +132,12 @@ router.beforeEach(async (to, from, next) => {
     return;
   }
 
+  if (to.name === "home") {
+    const serverInfo = store.state.serverInfo ?? (await getInfo());
+    next({ name: resolveDefaultRouteName(serverInfo) });
+    return;
+  }
+
   const capitalizeFirstLetter = (string) => {
     return string ? string.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + string.slice(1) : "";
   };