Content Elements

For YAML reference refer to this page.

Content Elements are a special Content Type in TYPO3. The basic structure is already defined in the TYPO3 Core. Content Blocks only adds new types to it.

A minimal Content Element looks like this:

EXT:your_extension/ContentBlocks/ContentElements/cta/config.yaml

name: example/cta
fields:
  - identifier: header
    useExistingField: true

In case you need the well-known Appearance tab back, you can add pre-defined Basics to your definition:

EXT:your_extension/ContentBlocks/ContentElements/cta/config.yaml

name: example/cta
basics:
    - TYPO3/Appearance
    - TYPO3/Links
fields:
  - identifier: header
    useExistingField: true

The Appearance tab will then be added after all your custom fields.

About TYPO3 Content Elements

Defining "Content Elements" in TYPO3 is hard and the learning curve is steep.

Despite the possibility to customize TYPO3 to ones needs, most people used the standard Content Elements shipped with TYPO3 Core. This is, of course, convenient, but has several drawbacks as soon as customizations are needed. One override follows the next, until the Core Content Element has more modifications than the initial implementation. This is where the concept of Content Blocks stepped in. First of all, it makes creating new types a no-brainer, so that the temptation to overrides is weakened. Secondly, for the same reason, it makes standard Content Elements almost obsolete. If you need a specific element, you can always copy/paste it into your project as your own element. Owning the elements means there will be no breaking changes to the Fluid templates.