How to Install Tabulizer on Joomla

How to Install Tabulizer on Joomla

Download the package for your Joomla version, upload it in the Joomla administrator, and check three things. The whole job takes a few minutes, and the same steps install Tabulizer for the first time or update an existing installation.

Before you start

You need Why
An active Tabulizer membership Downloads are for members. One membership covers every edition - Joomla 3, 4, 5 and 6, and WordPress.
A Joomla administrator account Installing extensions needs a Super User, or an account allowed to install extensions.
Your Joomla version There is one package per Joomla version and they are not interchangeable. The version is shown at the top of the administrator, and in System › System Information.
A server that runs Joomla well Tabulizer has no unusual demands; see the System Requirements for the details.

Step 1: log in, or get a membership

Tabulizer is downloaded from this site, tabulizer.com. Open Download › Tabulizer for Joomla:

✓

You are a member

Log In first, at the top of the page. The download page then shows your membership's end date and the files.

+

You are not a member yet

The page asks you to choose a plan. Buy a membership on the Pricing page, log in with the account you used, and come back.

!

Your membership has expired

The page says so and offers a renewal. Your rulesets and data sources are untouched; you only need the renewal to download new versions.

Step 2: download the package for your Joomla version

As a member you see one download per edition:

Your site runs Download File
Joomla 6 Tabulizer for Joomla 6 com_tabulizer_joomla6.zip
Joomla 5 Tabulizer for Joomla 5 com_tabulizer_joomla5.zip
Joomla 4 Tabulizer for Joomla 4 com_tabulizer_joomla4.zip
Joomla 3 Tabulizer for Joomla 3 com_tabulizer_joomla3.zip
Do not unzip it. Joomla installs the zip file as it is. If your computer unpacks downloads automatically, install the original zip, not the folder.

Step 3: install it in Joomla

In your Joomla administrator go to System › Install › Extensions - on Joomla 3 it is Extensions › Manage › Install. On the Upload Package File tab, drag the zip onto the box or press Or browse for file and choose it. Joomla uploads and installs it straight away.

The Extensions: Install page of the Joomla 5 administrator, with the Upload Package File tab open and its Upload and Install Joomla Extension box: Drag and drop file here to upload, an Or browse for file button and the maximum upload size of 180 MB.

When it is done, Joomla says Installation of the component was successful and lists what Tabulizer consists of:

The success message Installation of the component was successful, followed by Tabulizer's description listing its extensions: the Tabulizer component, the Tabulizer Wizard editor button, the Tabulizer CSS content plugin, the Tabulizer CSS system plugin and the Tabulizer Data Sources Smart Search plugin.

Below it, a status table reports each part - the component, every plugin and the sample rulesets - as installed. One package puts all of this in place:

Part What it does
Tabulizer (component) The back end: ruleset archives, data sources, preferences, the Status page.
Button - Tabulizer Wizard (editors-xtd plugin) The Tabulizer button in the article editor.
Content - Tabulizer CSS Turns Tabulizer tags in your articles into tables, with their styles.
System - Tabulizer CSS Does the same for the rest of the page - modules, other components.
Smart Search - Tabulizer Data Sources Lets Smart Search find text inside data source tables. The Joomla 3 package installs Search - Tabulizer Data Sources instead, for Joomla 3's Search component.
Tabulizer's Data Source Module Shows a data source in any module position.

The plugins are enabled automatically; there is nothing to switch on by hand.

Updating? Install the new package exactly the same way, on top of the old one. Joomla recognises it as an update, the table reports the parts as Updated, and your rulesets, data sources and settings stay as they were.
Never uninstall to update. Uninstalling Tabulizer deletes its database tables - every data source, its cache, your preferences and all form submissions. Install over the top instead.

Step 4: check that Tabulizer works

The component opens

Go to Components › Tabulizer. You should land on Ruleset Archives, with its toolbar - Import Archive, Data Sources, Import Language, User Preferences, Status and the rest - and a list of archives, including the sample ones that came with the package.

The Ruleset Archives page of Tabulizer in the Joomla 5 administrator: a toolbar with Import Archive, Export Archive(s), Delete Archive, Data Sources, Form Submissions, Calculator Leads, Import Language, User Preferences, Status, Options and Help, above a searchable list of archives with View, Preview, Edit and Delete actions.

The Status page is green

Press Status. The page shows the version you just installed, whether a newer release exists, your Joomla and PHP versions, the PHP libraries Tabulizer uses, and whether its folders are writable. Anything that needs your attention is marked.

The top of the Tabulizer Status page: a banner reading Tabulizer, Information and Health Status, v7.0.22, then Tabulizer Version 7.0.22 with Latest Release Up to date, and the Joomla and System section listing Joomla 5.4.6, PHP 8.1.34 and a PHP memory limit of 2G.

The editor button is there

Create or edit any article in the administrator (Content › Articles). In the editor toolbar open CMS Content: Tabulizer is the last entry (on Joomla 3 it is a Tabulizer button under the editor), and it opens the wizard that inserts tables into the article.

The CMS Content menu open in the Joomla 5 article editor, listing Article, Contact, Field, Media, Menu, Module, Page Break, Read More and, last, Tabulizer.

If all three checks pass, Tabulizer is installed and ready.

If the editor button is missing

Work down this list:

1

Are you in the administrator?

The button is offered only when you edit in the back end. Editing an article from the front end of the site does not show it.

2

Is the plugin enabled?

Go to System › Manage › Plugins (Extensions › Plugins on Joomla 3) and search for tabulizer. Button - Tabulizer Wizard - the plugin of type editors-xtd - must show a green tick. If it shows a grey cross, click it to enable it. While you are there, check that the two Tabulizer CSS plugins are enabled too: without them your tables do not appear on the site.

3

Does your editor show buttons?

In Joomla 4 and later, TinyMCE gathers editor buttons under CMS Content; on Joomla 3, and with Editor - None or CodeMirror, they appear as buttons under the text box. If you use another editor, check its settings for an option that hides the extension buttons.

The Plugins page of the Joomla 5 administrator filtered by tabulizer, listing Content - Tabulizer CSS, Button - Tabulizer Wizard, Smart Search - Tabulizer Data Sources, Search - Tabulizer Data Sources and System - Tabulizer CSS, each with a green enabled tick.

A site that has been updated from an older Tabulizer may also list Search - Tabulizer Data Sources, the plugin for Joomla 3's old Search component. A new Joomla 4, 5 or 6 installation does not have it, and it is not needed there.

Common questions

Joomla says the package is not valid, or cannot find an installation file.

You uploaded an unpacked folder, or the package for another Joomla version. Download the zip for your version again and upload it unchanged.

The upload fails or the page goes blank.

The server's upload limit is smaller than the package (about 5 MB). The Maximum upload size under the upload box shows the limit; ask your host to raise upload_max_filesize and post_max_size.

Can I install it on a Joomla 3 site and later move to Joomla 5?

Yes. After upgrading Joomla, install the Tabulizer package for the new version over the old one, as an update.

How do I see which version I have?

On the Status page, or under System › Manage › Extensions, searching for tabulizer.

Do I need anything else to see Tabulizer in my language?

Tabulizer ships in English. Other languages are separate packs; see How to Import a Language Pack.

Next steps

A tour of the back end you have just opened: The Ruleset Manager Dashboard and The Status Page. Then make your first table with the editor button: How to Create a Static HTML Table.

Ready to install?

Log in, download the package for your Joomla version, and upload it under System › Install › Extensions.

Download Tabulizer for Joomla