We are asked this question all the time - how can I update private plugins and themes in October CMS? There are various ways to do it, but no option is as convenient as the native October CMS gateway. Today we have an answer - welcome October CMS Private Plugins & Themes!

If you are a freelancer or running a digital agency, you likely have many plugins and themes that you reuse in your projects. Publishing those products in the Marketplace doesn't make much sense - they are specific to your company, and you don't want to waste your time with satisfying the Quality Requirements, writing the documentation, etc. The more projects you build with October CMS, the more time and effort it takes to install and update your private plugins on each of your websites. Finally, there is a solution.

How does it work?

If you are a Marketplace Author, the process should be familiar to you - you can create private plugins and themes in My Account after signing up for the Private Plugins & Themes service.

Private plugins and themes do not require approval from the Marketplace editors and can be used as soon as they are compiled by our servers. It is possible to convert private plugins to public and vice versa. Converted public products still require approval before they can be published.

After installing a private plugin on your October CMS website, you can enjoy the one-click updates - in the same way as you update public plugins.

Private plugins and themes are not visible in the Marketplace and never appear in search results. To install a private plugin or theme you must know its code.

Signing up

Private Plugins & Themes is a subscription-based service. You can start a free 30-day trial without a credit card. When the trial ends you can choose a manual or annual plan.

The service is completely free for October CMS Partners of all levels.

End of support for updatable hidden public products

Until now it was possible to hide a published product and use it internally. This feature is now covered by the Private Plugins & Themes and we will be phasing out the option of installing or updating hidden public products. If you need the ability to use your plugins or themes internally, please consider signing up for the new service and converting your public products to private.

This release represents an important update for October CMS ecosystems and fulfills a long-existing need for our users. We hope you will enjoy the new service!

Learn more:

• Private Plugins & Themes documentation
• Sign up