Build a website (CMS)

Melis is, first and foremost, a CMS. This page explains the content model — sites, pages, templates and plugins — and how a page is rendered on the front office. It's the mental model you need before editing templates or building a site module.

The content model

Concept	What it is	Main table(s)
Site	A website. Has a home page, languages and one or more domains per environment.	melis_cms_site, melis_cms_site_domain
Page	A node in the site's page tree. Has a type (site/folder/page), a template and content.	melis_cms_page_tree, melis_cms_page_published, melis_cms_page_saved
Template	The layout a page uses — it points at a site-module controller/action/view.	melis_cms_template
SEO	Per-page URL slug and meta tags.	melis_cms_page_seo
Language	A page can have translations linked together.	melis_cms_lang, melis_cms_page_lang

Pages are versioned

Every page exists in two versions:

• Saved (melis_cms_page_saved) — the working draft you edit in the backoffice.
• Published (melis_cms_page_published) — the live version served on the front office.

You edit the draft, then publish when ready. The page's editable content (see zones and plugins below) is stored on the page record.

Templates

A template (melis_cms_template) is the bridge between a page and the code that renders it. For the common ZF2 template type, it stores:

• tpl_zf2_website_folder — the site module (e.g. MelisDemoCms),
• tpl_zf2_controller, tpl_zf2_action — which controller/action renders the page,
• tpl_zf2_layout — the layout to wrap it in.

So a page → references a template → which routes to a .phtml view inside a site module.

Editable content: zones & plugins

Templates expose two kinds of editable areas, via view helpers:

MelisTag — simple editable zones

A named HTML/text/media zone an editor edits inline (TinyMCE) in the backoffice:

<?= $this->MelisTag($this->idPage, 'home-html-1', 'html', '<h1>Default heading</h1>') ?>

The default content shows until an editor overrides it; the saved value is stored on the page. Helper: vendor/melisplatform/melis-front/src/View/Helper/MelisTagsHelper.php.

MelisDragDropZone — templating plugins

A drop zone where editors drag templating plugins — reusable content blocks (a slider, a news list, a contact form):

<?= $this->MelisDragDropZone($this->idPage, 'dragdropzone_home_1') ?>

Helper: vendor/melisplatform/melis-front/src/View/Helper/MelisDragDropZoneHelper.php.

A templating plugin extends MelisEngine\Controller\Plugin\MelisTemplatingPlugin and implements:

• front() — returns the data/view rendered on the live site,
• back() — the configuration form shown in the backoffice editor.

MelisCmsSlider and MelisCmsNews are good reference plugins; use MelisTemplatingPluginCreator to scaffold your own.

How a page renders on the front office

The front office is served by MelisFront (the engine that displays sites) on top of MelisEngine (page/data services). Roughly:

1. The vhost sets MELIS_MODULE → selects the site module to serve.
2. A URL like …/id/5 resolves to page id 5 (route in vendor/melisplatform/melis-front/config/module.config.php). SEO URLs map to page ids too.
3. MelisEngine loads the page + its template (vendor/melisplatform/melis-engine/src/Service/MelisPageService.php).
4. The template's ZF2 controller/action renders the site module's .phtml view.
5. MelisTag zones and MelisDragDropZone plugins are filled from the page's published content.
6. The result is wrapped in the site layout.

Edit / preview modes

The same page can be requested in different modes: …/id/5 (live), …/id/5/preview (saved draft), …/id/5/renderMode/melis (in-backoffice editing).

Anatomy of a site module

A site module is a normal Laminas module that holds a website's templates, views and assets. The reference is vendor/melisplatform/melis-demo-cms/; custom sites usually live under module/MelisSites/<YourSite>/:

MelisDemoCms/
├── config/
│   ├── module.load.php           # modules this site needs (MelisEngine, MelisFront, plugins…)
│   ├── module.config.php         # routes / controllers / services
│   ├── assets.config.php         # front-office CSS & JS
│   └── melis.plugins.config.php  # templating plugins available to templates
├── src/Controller/               # Home, Contact… (render the template views)
├── view/
│   ├── layout/                   # site layouts
│   └── melis-demo-cms/home/index.phtml   # a page template (uses MelisTag / MelisDragDropZone)
└── public/                       # css / js / images

Creating a new site (overview)

At a high level:

1. Create the site in the backoffice (Sites tool) — name, languages, home page.
2. Provide a site module under module/MelisSites/<YourSite>/ (controllers + .phtml templates + assets).
3. Declare templates (melis_cms_template) pointing at your module's controller/action.
4. Build the page tree and assign templates; add MelisTag/MelisDragDropZone to your views.
5. Point a vhost at public/ with SetEnv MELIS_MODULE "<YourSite>" (see Installation).
6. Publish and browse the front office.

Start by reading vendor/melisplatform/melis-demo-cms/ end to end — it's the canonical, working example of every concept on this page.

Key files

Concern	Path
CMS services (pages/sites)	vendor/melisplatform/melis-cms/src/Service/
Page service (engine)	vendor/melisplatform/melis-engine/src/Service/MelisPageService.php
Front rendering	vendor/melisplatform/melis-front/
Editable-zone helpers	vendor/melisplatform/melis-front/src/View/Helper/
Templating plugin base	vendor/melisplatform/melis-engine/src/Controller/Plugin/MelisTemplatingPlugin.php
Reference demo site	vendor/melisplatform/melis-demo-cms/