Getting Started with Unfold CMS

Welcome to Unfold CMS! This guide will help you get started with the most modern Laravel CMS built with React, TypeScript, and shadcn/ui.

What is Unfold CMS?

Unfold CMS is a self-hosted, open-source content management system that combines the power of Laravel with modern frontend technologies:

  • Laravel 12 - Robust backend framework
  • React 19 - Modern, component-based UI
  • TypeScript - Type-safe frontend development
  • shadcn/ui - Beautiful, accessible components
  • Tailwind CSS v4 - Utility-first styling
  • Inertia.js - Seamless SPA experience

Key Features

Built-in Features (No Plugins Required)

  • ✅ SEO Optimization - Meta tags, OpenGraph, JSON-LD schemas
  • ✅ Multi-Language Support - Full i18n with RTL support
  • ✅ Newsletter Management - Built-in subscriber system
  • ✅ Comment System - Moderation, threading, spam protection
  • ✅ Ad Manager - Header bidding and placement management
  • ✅ 2FA Security - Fortify-powered authentication
  • ✅ Media Library - Drag & drop uploads with optimization
  • ✅ Template System - Powerful, flexible theming
  • ✅ Dynamic Sections - Database-backed content blocks
  • ✅ Menu Management - Unlimited menus with nesting
  • ✅ Activity Logging - Complete audit trail

Developer-Friendly

  • Full TypeScript support
  • Component-based architecture (shadcn/ui)
  • Hot module replacement
  • Child theme system
  • Custom Blade directives
  • Comprehensive helper functions
  • RESTful API ready

Shared Hosting Compatible

  • No queue workers required
  • Works on standard PHP hosting
  • Synchronous task execution
  • Simple cron job setup

System Requirements

Minimum Requirements:

  • PHP 8.2 or higher
  • MySQL 8.0+ / PostgreSQL 13+ / SQLite 3.35+
  • Composer 2.x
  • Node.js 18+ and npm
  • 256MB RAM minimum (512MB recommended)

Recommended:

  • PHP 8.3
  • MySQL 8.0+
  • 1GB RAM
  • SSL certificate (for production)

Installation Quick Start

Option A: Web Installer (Recommended)

  1. Download Unfold CMS from unfoldcms.com
  2. Extract the zip to your web root
  3. Visit https://yourdomain.com/install
  4. Follow the 7-step wizard

Option B: Command Line (Developers)

# Extract the downloaded zip to your web root
cd /path/to/your/webroot

# Install PHP dependencies
composer install --no-dev --optimize-autoloader

# Configure environment
cp .env.example .env
php artisan key:generate

# Setup database (edit .env first)
php artisan migrate --seed

# Install frontend dependencies and build
npm install
npm run build

# Start development server
php artisan serve

Visit http://localhost:8000 and log in with:

Warning: Change the default admin credentials immediately after your first login.

What's Next?

For Content Managers

  1. Content Management - Creating posts and pages
  2. Media Library - Managing images and files
  3. Comments - Managing comments and moderation
  4. Menus - Setting up navigation

For Designers

  1. Template System Overview - Understanding templates
  2. Sections - Dynamic content blocks
  3. Translations - Multi-language support

For Developers

  1. Template Development Guide - Complete template guide
  2. Blade Directives - Available directives
  3. Helper Functions - Utility functions
  4. Configuration Files - JSON schemas

Community & Support

Need Help?

Contributing:

License

Unfold CMS is open-source software licensed under the MIT license. Use it for personal projects, commercial sites, client work—anything!

What Makes Unfold Different?

vs WordPress

  • ✅ Modern tech stack (Laravel, React, TypeScript)
  • ✅ No plugin hell - everything built-in
  • ✅ Type-safe development
  • ✅ Component-based UI
  • ✅ Better performance

vs Ghost

  • ✅ More features out of the box
  • ✅ Works on shared hosting
  • ✅ Full CMS (not just blogging)
  • ✅ More customizable
  • ✅ Self-hosted control

vs Strapi

  • ✅ Complete frontend included
  • ✅ Easier for non-developers
  • ✅ Traditional CMS workflow
  • ✅ No complex setup
  • ✅ Shared hosting compatible

Version Information

Current Version: 1.0.0 Release Date: 2025 PHP Version: 8.2+ Laravel Version: 12.x

View Changelog

Ready to dive in? Start with the Installation Guide or jump straight into Template Development!

Requirements