The migration from Joomla 3 to Joomla 4 can be quite complicated, depending on the installed plugins, components and settings within. The result can be Error 500, and you cannot access the administrator backend anymore. For free advice on the migration see the end of this article.
We migrated the majority of our clients from Joomla3 to Joomla4 last month, many with different components like Acymailing, RS Forms, Akeeba, Seblod, RO Payments, Email authentication plugin by Michael Ritchey and ofcourse our Component My Member Software. Some of the plugins in your installation might have been abandoned; and are not Joomla4 compatible.
Based on our experience we created a step-by-step list, which generally works well:
- Create a full backup, for example with Akeebabackup
- Extensions -> Manage -> Update sites : Rebuild
- Update all components, also JCE editor
- Select frontend template Protostar and backend Isis
- Extensions -> Manage -> Filter for templates. Uninstall all templates except for protostar and isis. If this is the last style, remove at least template related system plugins such as system/plugins/rsmelia).
- Uninstall plugin “mms export”, “AkeebaStrapper”
- Extensies -> Manage ->Database : Check for errors in
- Install latest version MMS 8.0.9_J3
- Acymailing check configuratie, disable “AcyMailing : (auto)Subscribe during Joomla registration”
- Create a full backup, for example with Akeebabackup
- Components -> Joomla update options (Next Joomla) : migrate to Joomla 4
- Update all components (don't forget MMS 8.1.21_J4), and check if NL language and weblinks are updated
- Select Cassiopia style as default and choose positions for the enabled modules
- Delete files from folder /tmp with FTP
Free advice from our team
If you are about to do the migration and don't feel comfortable even with the above step-by-step list, you can fill in our contact form and ask for a free consult based on your configuration. We will host an interactive session and will look at your Joomla 3 backend. At the end we will give you 1 free tip on how to have a smooth migration from J3 to J4.
NEW ! We migrated the frontend coding language from Angular to VUE.js. We expect VUE to be a stable and safe language for a number of years.
No new functions, we tried to keep it as close to the previous frontend as possible.
The action price of MMS ended in 2022, which makes a better reflection of the costs made for maintenance. By upgrading the price, the continuity of MMS is saved.
Current clients can renew their license for 79 EUR (VAT included).
NEW ! 2 new functions, 8 bugfixes, 2 security improvements make version 7.9.3 a major update. To maintain quality we added new robot tests and got MMS through the ironer for changes in Acymailing 7 and several bugfixes.
Most popular new functions:
- Assign Joomla groups to members. In combination with the separate available MMS Logging plugin it is possible to assign groups to members through the member administration. Through these groups a multitude of permissions is available, for example for Commissions, Platforms, Task groups, and so on without having to change the membertype. These groups are added on top of the normal membership.
- Automatic activation of applicants. Until now, applicants always needed to be manually promoted by the secretary or a commission. The included cli script makes it possible to do this automatically.
- Bridge of the member portal to Wordpress. Combining the best of both (CMS) worlds: the userfriendly Wordpress environment plus the advanced Joomla intranet. Send out newsletters from Wordpress posts to an up to date list of members at the member portal instantly.
Quality is secured by the newly added robot tests that we created for Acymailing 7 and the bugs that have been solved. Read more.
Current clients can renew their license for 35 EUR (VAT included).
Combine the strengths of the Wordpress content management and our affordable member portal by using a custom bridge.
The bridge does 2 things: Show the member portal to members at the existing www website and sync the member data to the existing website.
Build the bridge yourself, or outsource the work to one of our Certified Partners. Contact us for more information and costings.
The technical documentation can be found here.
Introducing 7 new functions, 5 bugfixes, making version 7.8.1 an attractive upgrade. To assure quality we also wrote separate robot tests for Acymailing 6 and bugfixes. Enhancing the quality of this version to a high level.
Top 3 new functions:
- Added logging functions for audit trails. In conjunction with the separate MMS Logging plugin track who (Joomla user) changed what fields which old value in what new value when (date/time).
- Acymailing 6 compatibility.. Exactly the same mapping which we developed for Acymailing 5 that also runs as Wordpress plugin.
- Payment of the initial subscription fee. Redirect users to a payment page, where the subscription fee is calculated and paid online with Credit Card, Paypal or iDEAL.
Apart from this, we have added invisible recaptcha, translated MMS into French, added Quality assurance by programming robot tests specifically for Acymailing 6, made the key figures readable and solved several bugs. Read more.
Current clients can renew their license for 35 EURO a year.
Our new software version of MMS (7.8.0) is in beta fro now. Integrated in the new Acymailing 6 and a complete audit trail option are only a few of the improvements. To test the new functions, we added 30 robot tests, and the existing have been rewritten completely; the quality of this beta is very well.
Top 5 new functions:
- Acymailing 6 integration. With Aycmailing you can send professional newsletters to members. After Acymailing 5 Acyba brings us nr 6, which is a completely rewritten product that also runs on Wordpress.
- Logging changes for Audit Trails. Many member administrators had questions about who changed what field, when, and what old value was replaced with what new value. Updates and added members will be logged, and accessed via front or backend by using logman.
- French translation. The software is now also translated to French.
- Payment page after application. After the application, the applicants can be send to a payment page where the subscription fee is calculated and paid by Credit Card, Paypal, or iDEAL.
- Adding new members. We divided the permissions for adding members and the member overview.
There were also made changes in the logic, for example dates older than 1900 are now invalid.
Current clients can renew their license for 35 EURO a year.
Introducing 8 new functions, 5 bugfixes and 1 security fix, making version 7.7.20 a good and meaningfull step. We also wrote separate robot tests for all important new functions and bugfixes. Enhancing the quality of this version to a high level.
Top 3 new functions:
- Extra acymailing integration. Every member with a valid e-mail address is added to the Acymailing userlist. With our new Acymailing plugin, you can add the member to different lists, based on his member data in MMS. Send out newsletters from Wordpress or Joomla. Read more.
- Applications can be edited afterwards.. The applicants can edit their member data as long as they aren't yet approved by the administration. Read more.
- All customized fields and their values can have language overrides. The last step to make MMS multi langual is complete, now that language overrides can also be done on the customized fields. Read more.
Apart from this, the IBAN field is more userfriendly, the child overview for parentshas some added logic, member id = 0 isn't assigned anymore, a cli script is added that simulates database triggers. Read more.
Current clients can renew their license for 35 EURO a year.
Since january 2019 we have been working on our project Robot Tests. Now, the first 42 robot tests are ready. The goal is to increase and maintain the quality of the software at a high level, despite the growing complexity.
The first tests consist of:
- Applying by an aspirant member
- Edit the application data by an aspirant member
- Activating to membership by a member admin
- Edit the member data by a member
- Assigning a parent to a member
- Editing child data by the parent
- Checking if e-mail address changes are also changed in Joomla and Wordpress users and Acymailing.
Want to know more about our project ? Read the article about improving software quality by Robots.
