Discover Joomla 5.0 - a modern architecture and PHP 8.2 ready

06 December 2023

Joomla 5 represents a significant advancement in the Joomla platform, incorporating a host of new features and enhancements aimed at improving speed, security, and overall user experience. Under the hood, Joomla 5 has undergone a complete overhaul, leveraging the latest server languages to provide a more seamless and efficient performance.

Notably, the transition from Joomla 4.4.x to Joomla 5.x is not just a migration, but an Upgrade, emphasizing the substantial improvements that come with this latest version. Whether you are an individual, blogger, charity, web agency, or a multinational corporation, Joomla 5 is designed to cater to your diverse needs and facilitate business growth.

Curious about how Joomla 5 can benefit you? Explore more at joomla.org/5.

Key features of Joomla 5 include:

Dark Mode in Administrator Panel: A refined dark mode for both users and administrators, enhancing the visual experience.
Web Assets and Caching: Numerous improvements in web asset caching, contributing to faster loading times.
Schema.org Integration: Automatic activation of Schema.org data for organization and site names, boosting search engine optimization.
Code Optimisation: Speed enhancements facilitated by automatic source code optimization through the phpcs fixer.
PHP & Bootstrap Updates: Enhanced compatibility with PHP 8+ and an update to Bootstrap 5.3.2 to ensure the platform remains contemporary.
User Interface: Enhancements in dark mode for the Atum administrator template and a new Joomla modal window for select buttons, promising a smoother user experience.
Tools & Plugins: Upgraded TinyMCE editor to version 6.7 with added image alignment features, as well as improved performance through the migration of several scheduled tasks to scheduler plugins.
Media Management: Introduction of AVIF support in the media manager and the ability to exclude archived content from smart search indexing, enhancing media handling capabilities.
Menu Sorting: Empowering users to sort the menu according to their preferences.
Enhanced Security: Migration of events to their classes and removal of non-functional Recaptcha plugins to bolster security.
Modern Technologies: Internal code restructuring to leverage more modern APIs, along with added JS Import map support for Web Asset Manager and fixes tailored for PHP 8.2 deprecation.
Extensions & Compatibility: Integration of Fontawesome 6.4, Codemirror 6, and an updated Webauthn Library, accompanied by system requirements that now mandate PHP 8.1, MySQL 8.0.13+, MariaDB 10.4+, and PostgreSQL 12+ for optimal performance.
Cleaner Code Base: A stronger emphasis on code cleanliness through the transition from older APIs and the removal of es5 support, resulting in a more efficient CMS operation.

Joomla 5 stands as a testament to its commitment to meeting modern CMS requirements, promising users a seamless combination of speed, security, and an intuitive interface.

Compatibility of NorrNext's products with Joomla 5

Joomla 5 Native:

NorrCompetition - the component and its core modules and plugins
NorrCompetition add-ons - all add-ons except AltaUserPoints rules
Stripe for Phoca Cart
Stripe Checkout for Phoca Cart
QuickPay for Phoca Cart
Open Graph for ZOO
Social Share for ZOO

By the way, the original Phoca Cart e-commerce component is already adapted to Joomla 5 (is now available as ver.5.0.0 beta) and works as a native extension and our payment plugins work with this version too.

Extensions that work on Joomla 5 via Behaviour - Backward Compatibility plugin

Please note that Behaviour - Backward Compatibility plugin must be enabled on Joomla 5 site to run the following extension:

Quantum Manager

Update Joomla 4 to Joomla 5

Joomla 5 has internal changes and the system requirements have increased: you need minimal versions of PHP 8.2 and MySQL 8.0 (MariaDB 10.0). A good to see the CMS actualised and working with modern technologies. If you want to use Joomla 5, it will be an update of the CMS, not a migration. We recommend making a copy of your site or a backup (it's always necessary to do before performing any update!) and make sure the extensions of 3rd party developers are compatible with Joomla 5. Some extensions aren't natively work on Joomla 5 and there is Behaviour - Backward Compatibility plugin which should be enabled.
By the way, you can still stay with Joomla 4 (it will be actual until 2025). However, Joomla 5 is a modern and powerful tool for building sites and you can choose it and make sure our products are compatible with this version.