MODX Package Manager is a tool that allows you to manage the installation and update of components (add-ons) for MODX. It provides the ability to quickly and easily install additional functionality on the site.
To get to the package manager, go to Packages -> Installer
.
The Package Manager page will open, which has two tabs: “Packages” and “Providers”. In the first, you can download and install add-ons. In the second, you can manage providers: add, edit and delete providers.
MODX Packages
Downloading and installing packages from the MODX repository
To download and install the add-on, open the package manager. On the “Packages” tab (active by default), click the “Download packages” button.
A list of available packages will open, divided into 2 columns: the first one contains the most popular ones, and the second one contains the most recently released ones.
These are packages from the official repository https://modx.com/extras/ which is connected to MODX by default.
You can also expand the Extracs tab in the tree on the left and select the category you need to see what packages are in it.
Download the packages you need (as many as you like) by clicking on the corresponding button. The package will be downloaded to the corresponding MODX directory (core/packages).
After downloading, return to the Package Manager. And you will see the downloaded packages and click “Install” to install.
Important! Not all packages are compatible with MODX 3 and may break the site.
After clicking the “Install” button, a console will load showing the package installation details.
If the package has a license agreement, you will need to agree to it before continuing. In addition, the package may provide a README file, which you can read before installing. Some packages also have dependencies (for example: php version > or = 7.3, MODX version > or = 3.0.3) and you cannot install it until you fix them.
After that, the package may or may not request some pre-installation parameters and settings, such as: Name, email, etc.
If you see opcional everywhere – usually you can leave it blank and immediately click Install package
Then the package will be installed in your MODX system.
Manual download and installation of transport packages
All packages that are in the official repository (discussed above) can be found and downloaded at https://modx.com/extras/, where you can also see their descriptions, installation instructions, etc. (in English). The only thing I recommend when searching is to indicate that you have version 3, so that only compatible packages are displayed.
Find what you need, click on it and you’ll be taken to a page with a description, links to documentation, etc. (not all packages have them). And scrolling down the page to the end, you’ll see links to download this package.
You can download and manually copy the package to the core/packages
directory. The package must be a transport.zip archive, such as migx-3.0.2-beta1.transport.zip
. Or download it via the package manager (does the same thing), selecting “Download package from computer”.
Then click “Download packages” in the list and select “Search packages locally”. The package will now appear in the package list and you can install it as usual.
Downloading packages requires that you have cURL or sockets installed on your web server. If they are not installed, the package list will bet empty.
Updating packages
You can easily update any package that you downloaded from a provider. Just click the “Check for updates” or “Update” button, and MODX will show you any new versions of the package. If your package is updated, a message will appear to let you know.
You can then select the version you want to install, and MODX will download the package and begin the installation process.
If you want to revert to a previous version of the package, you need to click “Uninstall”.
Uninstalling packages
You can remove any package, or delete or uninstall it. Uninstalling completely removes the zip file from your core/packages
directory. Uninstalling simply removes the latest version.
Please note the three methods of uninstalling a package:
Package Providers
If you open the “Providers” tab in the package manager, you will see the official provider there: modx.com, which has the URL: https://rest.modx.com/extras/ (it comes bundled with MODX).
The URL: https://rest.modx.com/extras/ is a transport provider – a remote source from which you can download transport packages. By simply specifying the service URL, you can easily connect to a transport provider and easily get the latest transport packages from it.
MODX supports an unlimited number of transport providers, and each of them can be from any source.
Editing, deleting providers
To configure or delete a transport provider, simply go to the package management page and there click on the “Providers” tab header. This will open a grid of providers that you can easily manage.
Here you can edit or delete a provider by clicking on the gear.
Adding new providers
To add a new provider, click the “Create” button, then in the pop-up window specify the name of the provider and the URL of the service, example:
Also, most providers will not connect without a username and API key (you will get it after registering with the provider).
Information on connecting to providers is provided below.
Additional providers list and their connection details
Here are the sources and available marketplaces that usually offer a combination of free and premium addons:
Name | Addon quantity | Connection details |
---|---|---|
modstore.pro (Russian) | 100+ (EN), 400+ (RU) | Name — modstore.pro. Service URL — https://modstore.pro/extras/ (if https doesn’t work, try http) That’s it, to download free add-ons. If you need premium ones, then you need to register, and then specify: Username — the email you use to log in to this site. API Key — your generated access key. Here is an article that describes how to buy and install paid add-ons from modstore.pro |
modmore.com | 20+ | You can’t download anything here without an API key, so you need to register: https://modmore.com/signup/ and confirm your email, then create an API key at https://modmore.com/account/api-keys/, after that you will receive everything data for connecting this provider. |
extras.io | 5 | Register, create a project here https://extras.io/account/projects/ and get data for connecting. |
bobsguides.com | 47 | It is not clear how to connect, in my opinion everything is available for free and uploaded to the general repository. Paid add-ons are purchased through a left site. |
I advise you to add the modstore.pro repository (added without registration on it), the data in the table above and in the screenshot above. We will install many add-ons from it.
If you were unable to add any provider and you need detailed instructions on how to add them, write in the comments, I will do it)
How to install third-party provider add-ons
After you have added additional providers:
On the Packages tab, you can switch between them by clicking on the arrow next to the “Download packages” button -> Select a supplier
Next, in the pop-up window, select the desired supplier and click the “Save and go to package browser” button.
A page with a set of packages from this supplier will open.
Then download what you need and install as usual (indicated above). As I said above, not all packages are compatible with MODX 3, so do not rush to install everything in a row (which is recommended in outdated MODX 2 tutorials). For now, you can install the ACE add-on for training – it will help us with the design integration. It can be installed either from the official repository or from modstore.pro, and since its main support is in modstore.pro, it is better to install it from there.
Next, we will analyze the main add-ons that we will need for website development.