Force sidebar height 100% using CSS (with a sticky bottom image)?

user_47895 0
Viewed 229766

I've been banging my head against the wall for hours trying to figure out this issue and think it must be something small I'm missing. I've searched online, but nothing I have found seems to work. The HTML is: 

<body>
  <div id="header">
    <div id="bannerleft">
    </div>

    <div id="bannerright">
      <div id="WebLinks">
        <span>Web Links:</span>
        <ul>
          <li><a href="#"><img src="../../Content/images/MySpace_32x32.png" alt="MySpace"/></a></li>
          <li><a href="#"><img src="../../Content/images/FaceBook_32x32.png" alt="Facebook"/></a></li>
          <li><a href="#"><img src="../../Content/images/Youtube_32x32.png" alt="YouTube"/></a></li>
        </ul>
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
  <div id="Sidebar">
    <div id="SidebarBottom">
    </div>
  </div>
  <div id="NavigationContainer">
    <ul id="Navigation">
      <li><a href="#">Nav</a></li>
      <li><a href="#">Nav</a></li>
      <li><a href="#">Nav</a></li>
      <li><a href="#">Nav</a></li>
      <li><a href="#">Nav</a></li>
      <li><a href="#">Nav</a></li>
    </ul>
  </div>
  <div id="Main">
    <!-- content -->
  </div>
</body>

My full CSS is:

* {
  margin: 0px;
  padding: 0px;
}

body {
  font-family: Calibri, Sans-Serif;
  height: 100%;
}

#header {
  width: 100%;
  z-index: 1;
  height: 340px;
  background-image: url("../../Content/images/bannercenter.gif");
  background-repeat: repeat-x;
}

#header #bannerleft {
  float: left;
  background-image: url("../../Content/images/bannerleft.gif");
  background-repeat: no-repeat;
  height: 340px;
  width: 439px;
  z-index: 2;
}

#bannerright {
  float: right;
  background-image: url("../../Content/images/bannerright.gif");
  background-repeat: no-repeat;
  width: 382px;
  height: 340px;
  background-color: White;
  z-index: 2;
}

#Sidebar {
  width: 180px;
  background: url("../../Content/images/Sidebar.png") repeat-y;
  z-index: 2;
  height: 100%;
  position: absolute;
}

#SidebarBottom {
  margin-left: 33px;
  height: 100%;
  background: url("../../Content/images/SidebarImage.png") no-repeat bottom;
}

#NavigationContainer {
  position: absolute;
  top: 350px;
  width: 100%;
  background-color: #bbc4c3;
  height: 29px;
  z-index: 1;
  left: 0px;
}

#Navigation {
  margin-left: 190px;
  font-family: Calibri, Sans-Serif;
}

#Navigation li {
  float: left;
  list-style: none;
  padding-right: 3%;
  padding-top: 6px;
  font-size: 100%;
}

#Navigation a:link, a:active, a:visited {
  color: #012235;
  text-decoration: none;
  font-weight: 500;
}

#Navigation a:hover {
  color: White;
}

#WebLinks {
  float: right;
  color: #00324b;
  margin-top: 50px;
  width: 375px;
}

#WebLinks span {
  float: left;
  margin-right: 7px;
  margin-left: 21px;
  font-size: 10pt;
  margin-top: 8px;
  font-family: Helvetica;
}

#WebLinks ul li {
  float: left;
  padding-right: 7px;
  list-style: none;
}

#WebLinks ul li a {
  text-decoration: none;
  font-size: 8pt;
  color: #00324b;
  font-weight: normal;
}

#WebLinks ul li a img {
  border-style: none;
}

#WebLinks ul li a:hover {
  color: #bcc5c4;
}

I'd like the sidebar to stretch in height with the content of my page and leave the sidebar bottom image always at the bottom of the sidebar.

sticky sidebar css
16 Answers

UPDATE: As this answer is still getting votes both up and down, and is at the time of writing eight years old: There are probably better techniques out there now. Original answer follows below.

Clearly you are looking for the Faux columns technique :-)

By how the height-property is calculated, you can't set height: 100% inside something that has auto-height.

Arve_Systad_397850
user_399920

I think your solution would be to wrap your content container and your sidebar in a parent containing div. Float your sidebar to the left and give it the background image. Create a wide margin at least the width of your sidebar for your content container. Add clearing a float hack to make it all work.

apphacker_664750

Try this. It forces navbar to grow as content added, and keeps main area centered.

   <html>
        <head>
            <style>
                    section.sidebar {
          width: 250px;
          min-height:100vh;
          position: sticky;
          top: 0;
          bottom: 0;
          background-color: green;
        }

        section.main { position:sticky; top:0;bottom:0;background-color: red; margin-left: 250px;min-height:100vh; }
            </style>
            <script lang="javascript">
            var i = 0;
            function AddOne()
            {
                for(i = 0;i<20;i++)
                {
                var node = document.createElement("LI");
                var textnode = document.createTextNode(' Water ' + i.toString());

                node.appendChild(textnode);
                document.getElementById("list").appendChild(node);
                }


            }
            </script>
        </head>
        <body>
                <section class="sidebar">
                    <button id="add" onclick="AddOne()">Add</button>
                    <ul id="list">
                        <li>bullshit 1</li>
                    </ul>
                </section>
                <section class="main">I'm the main section.</section>
        </body>    
    </html>
user_66738380

this is a simplified version of danield's answer

.container {
  display: table;
  height: 260px;
}
#sidebar {
  display: table-cell;
  vertical-align: top;
  background-color:red;
  position:relative;
} 

#sidebarbottom
{
  height:30px;
  position:absolute;
  bottom:0;
}
<div class="container">
  <div id="sidebar">
    SIDEBAR HERE
    <div id="sidebarbottom">
      Sidebar Bottom
    </div>
  </div>
</div>

user_23516960
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