Quick installer: Our self-extractor allows faster uploads and will automatically set permissions.

Wizard-based installation

Auto-scans for compatibility problems: Be informed of problems before installing

Get your site up and running in just a few minutes

Keep your site closed to regular visitors until you're happy to open it

Configures server: Automatically generates an htaccess file for you (for Apache).

Auto-detection of forum settings for easy integration

Install test content

Add virtually unlimited pages to your site

WYSIWYG editor (powered by CKEditor)

Convenient edit links: Staff see “edit this” links at the bottom of every page.

PHP support: Upload your PHP scripts and run them inside Composr (may require adjustments to the script code).

Hierarchical page structure: Supports parent and child pages

Periodic content reviews: Helping you ensure ongoing accuracy of your content.

Add Comcode pages (the default) or static HTML pages

Supports revisions and revision control systems (such as git); add new pages as files, and Composr will automatically register them in its system.

Clear organisation: Uses a tree structure for unlimited categorisation.

Anti-leech protection: download links contain a session ID

Community-centred: Allow users to comment upon and rate downloads

Many ways to add new files: Upload files. Link-to existing files. Copy existing files using a live URL. Batch import links from existing file stores.

Author support: Assign your downloads to authors, so users can find other downloads by the same author.

Set licences: Make users agree to a licence before downloading.

Images: Show images along with your downloads (e.g. screen-shots) (this implicitly uses galleries).

Basic file versioning support

Control monthly bandwidth use site-wide

Think “structured wikis”.

Create an encyclopaedic database for your website

Use a tree-structure or traditional cross-linking

Supports revisions: Track changes

Display the tree structure of your entire Wiki+

Allow users to jump in at random pages

Make your pages either wiki-style or topic-style

Allow members to contribute to Wiki+ pages by adding Wiki+ posts

Run a competition: Choose winners randomly from those who passed the quiz.

Surveys: Gather data and find trends.

Tests: Test members' knowledge on a variety of topics.

Cheat prevention: Settings to prevent cheating, such as time limits, question / answer shuffling, and re-testing rules.

Integration with points: Charge points to enter a competition, or award points for winning.

Member blogs: Allow members to have their own blogs on their profile

RSS and Atom support: Export and import feeds.

Trackback support: Send and receive trackbacks.

Scheduled publishing

Ping support and RSS Cloud support

Multiple news categories and filtering

Multiple ways to integrate news into your website

Import from RSS feeds

Supports geotargeting

Members can rate and comment on news articles and blog posts

Send out a news article as a newsletter

Day/week/month/year views

Advanced “recurring event” settings

Event subscriptions: Receive reminders and notifications by event or event type

Warnings about conflicting events

Microformats support

Integrate a calendar month view, or an upcoming events view, onto your design

Supports categories: Have multiple event types

Multiple time zones: Have different events in different time zones with configurable conversion settings.

Priority flagging: Choose between 5 priorities

Programmers can even use the calendar to schedule custom tasks (Commandr) to be run

RSS and Atom support: Export support, but also support for overlaying news feeds onto the calendar.

Supports geotargeting

Feedback: Allow members to comment and rate events. Segregate feedback on recurring events by date.

Multimedia: Supports images, videos, audio, and more.

Personal galleries: Allow your members to create their own galleries which show up on their profile.

Support for embedding YouTube videos: Save on bandwidth.

Auto-detection of video length and resolution (most file formats)

Full tree-structure support: Have galleries within galleries within galleries.

Multiple display modes

View entries as a slideshow

Automatic thumbnail generation

Mass import: Also supports importing metadata

Optional watermarking: To guard against thieving swines .

Geotargeting

Adjustments: Automatic size and orientation adjustments according to metadata.

Think “databases on my website”.

Flexible data control: Set up multiple catalogues, each with its own set of fields. There are many types of fields, such as short text fields, upload fields, and date fields.

Multiple display modes: Display the contents of categories using tables, boxes, or lists.

Powerful structure: Each catalogue contains categories which contain entries. Catalogues can have a tree structure of categories and/or work from an index.

Configurable searching: Choose which fields are shown on categories, and which can be used to perform searches (template searches).

Compliance with data protection legislation: Specify which fields may contain sensitive data. These fields will be anonymised as appropriate when members download or purge their data.

Entirely customisable: Full support for customising catalogues, categories, and entries, exactly as you want them- field by field. You can even make custom page templates per-catalogue.

Classified ads: Entries can automatically expire and get archived. You can also send out view reports.

Community interaction: You can allow users to comment upon and rate entries.

Import data from CSV files

Periodic content reviews: Helping you ensure ongoing accuracy of your data.

Joined Chris Graham behind the scenes in the development of Composr CMS in 2016.

Took on the lead developer role in 2023 when Chris Graham stepped back to attend to his new lifestyle changes.

Spearheaded the development of Composr CMS v11 and the new website, Composr.app.

Formed the company PDStig, LLC to take on professional support and development for Composr CMS users especially after the discontinuation of ocProducts, Ltd.

PDStig, LLC

• Email Tracking: Composr marks emails as read when processing posts. Marking an email unread will trigger re-processing.
• Log File: Create an empty file named data_custom/mail_integration.log to capture detailed log data for troubleshooting.

• Forum View Access: Determine which usergroups can view each forum.
• Privilege Overrides: Grant or deny specific privileges (e.g., posting) to usergroups within a forum.
• Bypass Validation: Allow trusted members to post without moderation (or vice versa, require validation for certain usergroups).

• Advanced Polls: Blind polls, forcing or setting of default options, and point-weighting.
• Private Topics: More sophisticated than traditional private messages.
• Forum Introduction Questions: A flexible way to control access and encourage engagement (e.g. forum-specific rules or forum passwords).
• Cascading Topics: Pinned topics that appear in multiple forums.
• Integrated Moderation: Streamlined moderation tools within the forum interface.

• Control Result Visibility: Choose whether results are visible before voting.
• Require Topic Reply: Force users to reply to the topic before voting.
• Show Voter Identities: Optionally display which members voted for each option.
• Allow Vote Revocation: Let voters change their vote while the poll is open.
• Set Voting Close Time: Define a specific date or time for the poll to close.
• Restrict Selections: Limit the number of options voters can choose.
• Allow Guest Voting: Enable voting for unregistered users.
• Weight Votes by Points: Give more influential members greater voting power (requires the points addon).

• Regular Posts: Standard posts made by members within a topic.
• Quick Replies: Shorter replies made directly from the topic view.
• Anonymous Posts: Members can choose to post anonymously, appearing as a guest. Staff can track the actual user if needed.
• Emphasised posts: Posts made by staff (or marked by staff) which are highlighted to draw attention as they are important.
• Whispers: Private messages embedded within public topics, allowing for side conversations.
• Private Topic Posts: Private messages sent between specific members (e.g. an on-site "inbox").

• PHP IMAP extension installed
• System scheduler (Cron) running
• IMAP-compatible mail server

• Mail server enforces SPF and DKIM for email validation
• Mail server limits email size to prevent abuse
• System scheduler runs frequently (e.g., every minute) so members get prompt updates

• Structure: Composr's forums follow a hierarchical structure. You can create forum groupings, forums, and sub-forums (and sub-sub-forums etc) in that order of hierarchy.
• Strategies: Avoid creating too many forums, which can dilute activity. Start with a few well-defined forums and expand as needed.
• Permissions: Use Composr's permission system to control access to forums and features. For example, you can create private staff forums.

• Virtual Forums: Special forums like "Posts since last visit" and "Topics with unread posts" provide filtered views of recent activity.
• Read Status: Topics with unread posts are displayed in bold with a jump-to-first-unread link. You can manually mark topics or entire forums as read or unread.
• Notifications: You can enable email notifications for specific topics or forums, either manually or automatically based on your activity.

• Sales list management: Cancel purchases, view sales history, and manage refunds (Admin Zone > Audit > eCommerce > Sales list management).
• Charts: Generate profit/loss accounts and cash flow diagrams for specific periods (Admin Zone > Audit > eCommerce, and Admin Zone > Audit > Site statistics).
• Manual transactions: Record transactions outside of Composr for accurate accounting (Admin Zone > Audit > eCommerce > Manual transaction).