WM Open · Joomla 6

WM Downloads for Joomla

Free v2.4.2

Free download manager extension

Lightweight, modern download manager for Joomla 6. Publish files and external links in a clean, searchable list — with Smart Search so published downloads show up in site search.

Download free package ↓ Documentation License Support

Requires Joomla 6.0+ · PHP 8.3+ · GNU General Public License version 2 or later · Package pkg_wmdownloads

Why this package?

Sites that only need a simple, reliable way to:

Store documents securely (not as open media URLs)
Organise downloads by category
Track download counts
Mix real files with external links
Present everything in a polished front-end list

WM Downloads focuses on that job — without the weight of a full document management suite.

Capabilities

What’s included

Package contents

com_wmdownloads — Main component (admin + site)
mod_wmdownloads_latest — “Latest downloads” module for sidebars, footers or home pages
plg_finder_wmdownloads — Smart Search (Finder) plugin — enabled on install so published files and links appear in site search

Current version: 2.4.2

Features

Files or links — upload documents or point to an external URL
Protected storage — files served through Joomla, not open directory browsing
Categories — own wmDownloads categories (not com_content)
Hit counting on every download or link open
Publishing window — start and finish dates
Ordering — manual order for list priority
Front-end list — search, sort, type icons, subcategory filter
Latest module — sidebar/home “latest downloads”
CSV import for bulk creation
Smart Search — published downloads indexed for Joomla site search

Admin

Create file downloads or external link items
Upload files into a protected storage folder
Use wmDownloads categories (Components → wmDownloads → Categories)
Set author, description, icon override, access level and language
Publishing options: status, created date, publish start/end, ordering, hits
Publish / unpublish / trash from the items list
CSV import for bulk creation (files already in storage)
Clean Joomla 6 admin UI (search tools, tabs, toolbar actions)

Front end

Category menu view (assign a category to a menu item)
Search downloads on the page
Sort by date, title, author, size or category
Optional subcategory filter
File size, date, hits, author and category meta
Type-aware icons (PDF, Word, Excel, etc.)
Responsive layout that works with modern templates
Smart Search results link to the same SEF download URL as the listing

Module & plugin

Show the latest N downloads
Optional category filter, file/link mode and ordering
List or cards layout
Show/hide date, size, type, category, author, hits and description
Open downloads in a new window/tab
Finder plugin indexes title, description, original filename, author, file type and category
Saving, publishing, trashing or deleting a download updates the search index automatically

Best suited for

Association and industry council resource libraries
University / faculty document portals
Annual reports, statistics packs and submissions
Any Joomla 6 site that needs a tidy public download list

2.4.0 · Smart Search

Finder plugin — downloads in site search

wmDownloads now ships with a Finder plugin so published files and links show up in Joomla Smart Search. The package includes plg_finder_wmdownloads and enables it on install.

Indexed fields: title, description, original filename, author, file type and category
A result links to the download — the same SEF URL as the listing (for example /resources/download/5-file-alias)
Saving, publishing, trashing or deleting a download updates the index automatically

After you install the package

Make sure System → Plugins → Content - Smart Search is enabled (core plugin).
Open Components → Smart Search → Index and click Index so existing downloads are picked up.
Put a Smart Search module in the site header, or add a Smart Search → Search menu item.

Until that index run, only items saved after install will appear in search.

Documentation

Install, configure & use

WM Downloads is a free Joomla package (component + latest-downloads module + Smart Search plugin) for public document libraries. Publish files or external links, organise by category, track hits, and show a searchable front-end list. Published items can also appear in Joomla site search.

Requirements

Joomla 6.0 or later
PHP 8.3 or newer
MySQL 8 / MariaDB 10.4 or PostgreSQL 12

Install

Download the package zip from this page.
In Joomla: System → Install → Extensions → Upload Package File.
Select pkg_wmdownloads_v2.4.2.zip and install.
Confirm com_wmdownloads, mod_wmdownloads_latest and plg_finder_wmdownloads installed successfully.

Quick start

Open Components → wmDownloads → Categories and create your library sections.
Open Components → wmDownloads → Downloads.
New → choose File (upload into protected storage) or Link (external URL).
Set title, category, author, description, publish dates, ordering and access as needed.
Menus → Add New Menu Item → wmDownloads → Category Downloads, then select the category.
(Optional) Modules → New → wmDownloads Latest for a sidebar or home module.
(Optional) Index existing downloads in Components → Smart Search — see Smart Search below.

More detail

Bulk import: Components → wmDownloads → Import. Files must already exist in media/com_wmdownloads/files/. Columns: filename, title, description, category_alias, author, created_date, hits.

Downloads are delivered via a component task (hit counting + access checks). Physical files live under a protected media path. After install, clear Joomla cache if styles or language strings don’t appear immediately.

License

GNU General Public License version 2 or later

GPL-2.0-or-later

This software is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

A copy of the license is included in the package as LICENSE.txt. Full text: gnu.org · GPL v2.

Install on as many of your own Joomla sites as you like
Licensed under GPL-2.0-or-later (same family as Joomla)
Support and custom development available on request

Support

Get help

Community support via the contact form on this site. Commercial support, branding and custom features available on request from WM Studios.

Contact support ↗ Download package ↓

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Support & custom work

Built for real production use — including document-heavy resource libraries. For support, branding tweaks or custom features, contact WM Studios.

Contact WM Open ↗ Download package ↓ All open source