Plain FAQ 

Classification

plain_faq

Version

main

Language

en

Description

Plain FAQ

Keywords

faq, frequently asked questions

Copyright

2026

Author

Torben Hansen

Email

torben@derhansen.com

License

This document is published under the Open Content License available from http://www.opencontent.org/opl.shtml

Rendered

Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:56:32 +0000

The content of this document is related to TYPO3, a GNU/GPL CMS/Framework available from www.typo3.org.

Table of Contents

Introduction 

What does it do? 

This extension for TYPO3 CMS is a solution to manage frequently asked questions. The focus of the extension is to keep things simple and to have a modern and clean code basis.

Summary of features

• Easy usage for editors
• Uses TYPO3 system categories to structure FAQs by category
• Field for media and files
• Possibility to add related FAQs
• Configurable template layouts for the views
• Automatic cache clearing when FAQ has been changed in backend
• Symfony Console commands to migrate from ext:irfaq
• Signal slots to extend the extension with own functionality

Background

• Based on Extbase and Fluid
• Covered with many unit and functional tests
• Actively maintained

Screenshots 

FAQ backend form

Updates and support 

The source code of this extension is hosted on GitHub. Please report bugs and changerequests directly at https://github.com/derhansen/plain_faq

Updates will be published directly on TER and Packagist.

Say thanks 

If you like this extension and want to say thanks, feel free to drop me an e-mail or sponsor the development of the extension. Please also consider to support the TYPO3 community by sponsoring events, code sprints or by becoming a TYPO3 association member.

For Editors 

FAQs 

FAQs are the main record of this extesion. A FAQ contains several fields, which are used to describe the frequently asked question.

General 

The general tab is used to add general information about the FAQ like a question, answer and categories.

Field:	Description:
Question	The Question
URL Segment	URL slug field
Answer	The answer to the questions
Keywords	One or multiple keywords

Categories 

You can assign one or multiple categories to a FAQ.

Field:	Description:
Category	One or multiple categories for the FAQ

Media 

If media items are required for a FAQ, you can add images or files.

Field:	Description:
Images	One or multiple images for the FAQ
Files	One or multiple files for the FAQ

Relations 

The relations tab contains a fiels to select related FAQs.

Field:	Description:
Related FAQs	One or multiple related FAQ records

Categories 

You can create categories to structure FAQ records in the frontend (e.g. show FAQs which belong to one or more categories)

Since the extension uses TYPO3 system categories, you create new categories by choosing "System records" -> "Category"

For Administrators 

Installation 

The installation and initial configuration of the extension is as following:

1. Install the extension with the extension manager or using composer
2. Include the static TypoScript configuration “Plain FAQ (plain_faq)” in your TypoScript template
3. Create a new sysfolder in your page tree, where you create FAQs and categories.
4. Depending on your needs, create a TYPO3 page for FAQ listing and FAQ details.
5. Add the plugin FAQs to the newly created pages and configure the plugin settings.
6. Configure extension TypoScript settings depending on your needs.

Configuration 

Plugins 

FAQs 

Nearly all important settings can be made through the plugin, which override the settings made with TypoScript. All plugin settings can also be configured with TypoScript (use plugin.tx_plainfaq_pi1.settings. with the keys shown below).

TypoScript reference 

More TypoScript settings are available on the FAQs page. Also make sure to check the included setup.txt file for available/default TypoScript settings.

Page TSConfig 

The following Page TSConfig can be used with the extension.

tx_plainfaq_pi1.templateLayouts {
  1 = 2 column layout
  2 = FAQ-Slider
}

Templates 

Changing paths of the template 

Please do never change templates directly in the Ressources folder of the extensions, since your changes will get overwritten by extension updates.

Configure your TypoScript setup like shown below (note the plural of the path-name):

plugin.tx_plainfaq {
  view {
    templateRootPaths {
      0 = {$plugin.tx_plainfaq_pi1.view.templateRootPath}
      1 = fileadmin/templates/faq/Templates/
    }
    partialRootPaths {
      0 = {$plugin.tx_plainfaq_pi1.view.partialRootPath}
      1 = fileadmin/templates/faq/Partials/
    }
    layoutRootPaths {
      0 = {$plugin.tx_plainfaq_pi1.view.layoutRootPath}
      1 = fileadmin/templates/faq/Layouts/
    }
  }
}

Doing so, you can just override single files from the original templates.

Using template layouts for listview 

Different template layouts can be configured in Page TSConfig.:

tx_plainfaq_pi1.templateLayouts {
  1 = 2 column layout
  2 = FAQ-Slider
}

This TypoScript above defines 2 new template layouts, which will appear in the template layout selectbox in the plugin settings like shown below.

The choosen template layout can be used in the fluid templates as shown below.:

<f:if condition="{settings.templateLayout} == 1">
  <f:render partial="List/Faq-Slider" arguments="{faqItem: faq, settings:settings}"/>
</f:if>

Template objects 

The following objects are available in the different views.

Please have a look at the templates included with the extension, since they show many of the properties of the given objects and how to use them.

Tip: You can use <f:debug>{object}</f:debug> in your template to see available properties of each object.

For Developers 

PSR-14 Events 

The extensions contains many PSR-14 Events which make it possible to extend the extension with own functionality.

Please note, that there is no documentation for each PSR-14 event in detail, so you have to check each event individually for supported properties. Generally I tried to make the events as self explaining as possible.

If you are new to PSR-14 Events, please reffer to the official TYPO3 documentation about PSR-14 Events and Event Listeners.

https://docs.typo3.org/m/typo3/reference-coreapi/master/en-us/ApiOverview/Hooks/EventDispatcher/Index.html

The following PSR-14 Events are available:

Changelog 

A list of changes can be found on GitHub at https://github.com/derhansen/plain_faq/releases