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TYPO3 CMS 6.2 LTS - New features and changes

The final version of TYPO3 CMS 6.2 LTS was released on 25.03.2014. LTS stands for Long Term Support, which means that after 4.5 LTS, a current version is once again available that will be supported with updates for at least 3 years.

Introduction

A lot has happened in the development of version 6.2. The system was basically reprogrammed from scratch and converted to the latest technologies. However, it would go beyond the scope of this article to list every single innovation. We will therefore only present a few of the most interesting new features that you will encounter in your daily work.

Installation

The manual installation of TYPO3 CMS has been greatly simplified. The previously required dummy package is no longer necessary. It is sufficient to download the TYPO3 core and then create a project directory. The following files are placed in this directory:

  1. Symlink to the TYPO3 core, e.g. typo3_src ' ../typo3_src-6.2.*
  2. Symlink to the typo3 directory, typo3 ' typo3_src/typo3
  3. Copy of index.php from the typo3_src directory

If you then call up this directory in the browser, the installation starts automatically and TYPO3 sets up all other necessary directories and files automatically.

The install tool

The install tool has been completely rewritten. In the new "Important Actions" section, you will now find the link to "Database Compare", as well as a "Check for broken extensions" and a button for the new "Core Updater". Using the Core Updater, it is possible to update to new minor versions with a single click, for example an update from 6.2.0 to 6.2.1 or from 6.2.1 to 6.2.2.

Fortunately for our customers, these updates are installed automatically and you don't have to take care of them yourself.

The new "Clear All Cache" button can be used to delete or empty all cache files and cache tables in the database with a single click. This may be necessary if, for example, access to the frontend or backend is no longer possible due to a defective extension.

Another new feature is the environment check (System environment), which checks the server environment for compatibility with 6.2 and issues warnings or notes if necessary.

The "All Configuration" area has been tidied up and visually improved. The individual areas are now grouped together in so-called accordions and can also be expanded individually or as a whole.

There are also many small improvements to the display and usability.

FAL

The File Abstraction Layer introduced in TYPO3 6.0 has been further improved and extended. FAL's metadata management is extended via the filemetadata system extension. This extension may need to be activated first, which means that FAL can now be used as a complete replacement for the outdated DAM (Digital Asset Management) extension, which is no longer compatible with TYPO3 6.x.

Another new feature is the upload of files via drag'n drop in the file list module and also in content elements such as "Text with image". The images to be used can simply be dragged from the desktop into the browser.

Distribution Management

Distributions are a completely new feature. Distributions are packages with predefined page structures, layouts and templates and can be installed via a new section in the Extension Manager. For example, the new Introduction Package can be installed in this way. In principle, distributions are just a special, new type of extension.

TYPO3 goes Responsive

Of course, TYPO3 is no stranger to responsive web design and the new version supports it even better.

A responsive preview is now available in the "View" backend module so that the layout of the frontend can also be assessed directly in the backend. Many common viewport sizes are already preset here, others can simply be added via PageTSconfig. It is also possible to manually reduce/enlarge the viewport.

For the output of images in the frontend, it is now possible to choose between different techniques. For example, the <picture> element can also be used with details of different image sources for different viewport sizes and resolutions. At the moment, special JavaScripts still have to be used for these alternative outputs, as browser support is not yet fully developed. But TYPO3 is ready for the future.

Menus based on categories

System categories were already introduced in TYPO3 6.0. As an admin, you can create any number of categories, including nested categories. Pages and content elements can then be assigned to one or more categories.

There are now two new menu types based on these categories. This allows you to display a menu of pages or content elements based on categories. This is possible via TypoScript or via the content element "Special Menus".

Include TypoScript

TypoScript files can now be included completely from a directory (including subdirectories) in the Typoscript template. Via the specification

<INCLUDE TYPOSCRIPT: source="DIR:directorypath">

all TypoScript files in the directory directorypath are included, in alphabetical order. You can also restrict the file type using an additional parameter.

<INCLUDE TYPOSCRIPT: source="DIR:directorypath" extensions="ts">

only includes files with the extension .ts.

By default, only files with the extensions ts, t3, t3s, t3c and txt are included. However, this could be adjusted via a configuration variable.

Conditions in backend layouts

Conditions can now also be used in the definitions of backend layouts, as has long been possible in TypoScript. Whereas it may previously have been necessary to create several backend layouts for certain use cases, this can now be solved more easily and flexibly using conditions.

PackageStates.php

The management of extensions has been changed and is now based on the package management of TYPO3 Flow.

The most obvious change for the admin/integrator is that the list of extensions used can no longer be found in the localconf.php or LocalConfiguration.php file, but in the new PackageStates.php file, which is also located in the typo3conf/ directory. This file lists all extensions available in the system. Extensions can also be manually deactivated here by setting the status of an extension to "inactive". This can be helpful, for example, if a defective extension prevents access to the website or the backend.

TYPO3 Version:6 LTS

Upgrade from previous TYPO3 versions

Upgrading from older versions to TYPO3 6.2 is of course an important aspect of the new version. There is a lot to consider here and an upgrade can be more complex than you were used to. Above all, it depends on the extensions used, which should be available in a version compatible with 6.2. Please refer to our notes in the article "Plan the upgrade to TYPO3 CMS 6.2".

Using an example website, we also show an <link video-anleitungen/typo3/typo3-projekte-verwalten/upgrade-auf-typo3-62.html>upgrade to TYPO3 6.2.

Conclusion

The new version 6.2 features many, many changes and innovations. In this article, we have only mentioned a few of the new features. Once again, Patrick Lobacher has summarized all the new features in great detail and comprehensively. Interested parties can view his presentation on Slideshare, for example.

We are definitely looking forward to the new version and would like to congratulate everyone who has worked on the new version.

Updated: 17.07.2024