Modules

What is a Module?

• A Module is a type of Java JAR file called an "OSGi Bundle" and is stored in[Jahia-Installation-Folder]/digital-factory-data/modules.
• They are specially designed plug-ins for building upon Jahia’s infrastructure and services. They can
  • Define new types of content like articles, news items, and sports events
  • Add features on sites like Tagcloud and Google Analytics
  • Extend the technology stack like OpenSocial, and LDAP

Key Advantages

Portability and reusability

Module are independent from each other and reusable across projects. 

Easy to maintain

All of a module's required elements are packaged in a single directory. As such, module updates can be performed independently from the rest of the platform.

Reliability

A defective module does not cause a general error on a page or site.

Team work

For large projects, it is easier to divide the work between developers with each being responsible for a set of modules.

Jahia Developers work on Modules by...

• Modifying or adapting Modules provided out-of-the-box
• Deploying new Modules from the Jahia AppStore
• Creating new Modules from scratch

A Module's Contents

The standard structure of a Jahia module is generated with a Maven archetype. The Felix Maven Bundle plugin then generates an OSGi bundle out of the maven project.  

A Module can contain:

How to Create a Module

Using Maven

 

Modules can be created with Apache Maven using a command like the one below:

mvn archetype:generate -Dfilter=org.jahia.archetypes:

In the menu choose archetype number 2 : jahia-module-archetype

Module creation requires a specified name, artifactId, and Jahia version.

See the Module Creation tutorial here: Module Management Tutorial

Using Eclipse

In Eclipse, a Module is created with a new Maven project.

For Jahia modules, the remote catalogue http://maven.jahia.org/maven2 is used.

Using Jahia Studio

 

• "New Module" can be found in the "New" dropdown

• The running Jahia version number is auto-populated.

Enabling a Module

To make a Module available to editors it must first be enabled. This can be done from Administration mode under Components/Modules. In the “Usage in sites” area, the 'Enable' button would be selected on the relevant site. 

Exercise: Create a Module

1. In Jahia Studio, create a new module.
2. Ensure it's created as a 'module' type.
3. Name the Module “acmeCompany”.