Joomla Workflow and Publishing — Article Lifecycle Management

DodaTech Updated 2026-06-27 11 min read

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to manage the full article lifecycle in Joomla — from draft through review to published and archived — using article states, scheduling, version history, batch processing, and the Workflow component introduced in Joomla 4.

What You'll Learn

The four article states: Published, Unpublished, Archived, Trashed
Scheduling articles with Start and Finish publishing dates
Managing featured articles and their ordering
Using version history to track changes and restore previous versions
Batch processing articles for efficient management
Understanding check-in and force check-in for locked articles
Configuring article access levels and editing permissions
Using the Workflow component for custom publishing workflows

Why It Matters

On a single-author blog, you write, publish, and you are done. On a multi-author site with editors and publishers, content goes through stages — draft, review, scheduled, published, and archived. Joomla's workflow tools let you manage this lifecycle without chaos. Version history protects against mistakes. Scheduling enables time-sensitive content. Workflow ensures the right people approve content before it goes live.

Real-World Use

A news website has journalists, editors, and a publishing manager. A journalist writes an article and saves it as Unpublished (draft). An editor reviews it, makes changes, and sets it as Published with a scheduled start time of 8 AM tomorrow. The publishing manager reviews the version history to see what changed. After two weeks, the article is automatically archived. The journalist can restore it later if needed. Everything happens through Joomla's workflow without emailing files around.

Learning Path

flowchart LR
  A["Categories Deep Dive"] --> B["Workflow & Publishing
You are here"]:::current
  B --> C["Menu System"]
  C --> D["Menu Item Types"]
  D --> E["Modules & Positions"]

  classDef current fill:#38bdf8,color:#0f172a,stroke-width:2px

Article States

Every article in Joomla has one of four states. Understanding each state is essential for content lifecycle management.

Published

Published articles are visible on the front end to users with appropriate access levels. This is the final state for live content.

An article can be published directly, or it can move through other states before reaching Published. The transition path typically looks like:

Draft (Unpublished) > Review (Unpublished) > Scheduled (Published with future date) > Live (Published) > Archived

Unpublished

Unpublished articles are hidden from the front end. They remain in the database and are visible in the Article Manager admin with a red circle icon.

Uses for unpublished articles:

Drafts: Articles you are still writing
Review queue: Articles waiting for editorial approval
Seasonal content: Articles you hide off-season and republish later
Under construction: Articles that are not ready for public viewing

Archived

Archived articles are removed from normal listings but remain accessible through the archived articles component and direct URLs.

Archive is for content that is:

Still valuable but no longer prominent enough for main listings
Outdated but worth keeping for historical reference
Available by direct link or from the archive module

Trashed

Trashed articles are soft-deleted. They are not visible anywhere on the site and do not appear in normal admin views (you must filter by "Trashed" to see them).

You can recover trashed articles by changing their status back to Published. To permanently delete, use the Empty Trash button in the Article Manager.

Scheduling with Publishing Dates

Joomla lets you schedule articles to publish and unpublish automatically. This is done through the Publishing tab in the article editor.

Start Publishing

Set a future date and time. The article remains Unpublished until that moment, then automatically transitions to Published.

Use this for:

Announcements timed to a specific hour
Blog posts that should go live at a specific time
Content coordinated with marketing campaigns

Finish Publishing

Set a date and time. The article automatically transitions from Published to Unpublished at that moment.

Use this for:

Time-limited promotions and sales
Event announcements that expire after the event
Seasonal content that should disappear after a holiday

How Scheduling Works

Joomla checks scheduled dates on every page load through a plugin called "Content - Joomla." If the plugin is disabled, scheduled publishing does not work. Ensure this plugin is enabled in Extensions > Plugins.

Version History

Joomla saves a version history for every article. This is one of its most valuable features for content management.

How Version History Works

Every time you save an article, Joomla creates a new version. By default, Joomla keeps the last 10 versions. You can change this limit in Global Configuration.

Viewing Versions

Open an article for editing.
Click the Versions tab.
You see a list of saved versions with:
- Date and time of save
- User who saved it
- A "Keep Forever" flag
- Compare and Restore buttons

Comparing Versions

Click Compare next to two versions. Joomla shows a side-by-side diff with additions highlighted in green and deletions in red. This helps editors see exactly what changed between versions.

Restoring a Version

Click Restore on any version to revert the article to that point. The current version is preserved as a separate version, so you can undo the restore if needed.

Keeping Versions Forever

By default, Joomla deletes old versions when the limit is exceeded. Click the Keep Forever toggle on important versions to prevent them from being pruned.

Save as Copy

The Save as Copy button in the article toolbar creates a duplicate of the current article. The copy is saved as Unpublished with "Copy of [original title]" as the title.

Use Save as Copy to:

Create variations of an article for A/B testing
Base a new article on an existing one
Create translated versions manually

Check-In System

When a user opens an article for editing, Joomla locks it (checks it out) to prevent two people from editing simultaneously. If a user closes the browser without saving, the article remains checked out — locked by a session that no longer exists.

Force Check-In

Go to System > Global Check-in to release all locked items. This unlocks articles, modules, menu items, and any other checked-out content.

Check-In from Article Manager

In Article Manager, the Check-in column shows a lock icon for checked-out articles. Select the article and click the Check-in button to unlock it.

Batch Processing

Batch processing lets you perform actions on multiple articles at once.

Using Batch

Go to Content > Articles.
Select the articles using checkboxes.
Click the Batch button in the toolbar.
Choose the batch action:
- Copy: Copy articles to another category
- Move: Move articles to another category
- Add Tags: Attach tags to selected articles
- Change Access Level: Update access level
- Change Language: Update language assignment
Click Process.

Batch processing saves enormous time when reorganizing content. Instead of editing 20 articles one by one, you can do it in one operation.

Article Access Levels

Access levels control who can view an article. Default levels:

Public: Anyone, including non-logged-in visitors
Registered: Only logged-in users
Special: Users in the Special group (typically Super Users and Administrators)

You can create custom access levels in Users > Access Levels. For example, "Premium Members" or "Staff Only."

Editing Permissions per Article

In the article's Permissions tab, you can override default permissions for specific user groups:

Delete: Who can delete this article
Edit: Who can edit this article
Edit State: Who can change its status

These permissions override category-level and global settings. Use them sparingly — only for articles that need special handling.

Workflow Component (Joomla 4+)

Joomla 4 introduced the Workflow component, which replaces the simple published/unpublished system with custom workflows.

What a Workflow Is

A workflow defines stages (states) that content moves through, and transitions between those stages.

Default Workflow

Joomla ships with a default workflow containing three states:

Unpublished: Initial state for new articles
Published: Live and visible on the front end
Trashed: Soft-deleted

Custom Workflows

You can create custom workflows with additional states:

Draft > Review > Approved > Scheduled > Published > Archived

Each state has:

Name: Human-readable label
Description: Explanation of the state
Color: Visual indicator in Article Manager

Creating Transitions

Transitions define how content moves between states:

Submit for Review: Unpublished to In Review
Approve: In Review to Approved
Schedule: Approved to Scheduled
Publish: Scheduled to Published
Archive: Published to Archived
Send Back: In Review to Unpublished

Each transition can have:

Allowed User Groups: Who can perform this transition
Notification: Email notification sent to specific users

Enabling Workflow

Workflow is enabled per category:

Go to Content > Categories.
Edit a category.
In the Options tab, set Workflow to "Enabled."
Save.

Articles in that category now use the workflow's states instead of the basic published/unpublished system.

Common Mistakes

Not using scheduled publishing for time-sensitive content: Beginners manually publish articles at the right time. Use scheduled publishing to automate this. Set the start date and Joomla handles the rest.
Leaving articles checked out: A user opens an article, gets interrupted, and the article stays locked. Other users cannot edit it. Use Global Check-in regularly to release locked items.
Not enabling version history limits: By default, Joomla keeps 10 versions per article. On a busy site, this can use significant database space. Review and adjust the limit in Global Configuration.
Ignoring the Workflow component: Many beginners stick with basic publish/unpublish even on multi-author sites. Custom workflows improve editorial control and accountability.
Forgetting to test scheduled publishing: Scheduling depends on the Content - Joomla plugin being enabled. If you schedule an article and it does not publish, check that this plugin is active.

Practice Questions

What is the difference between Unpublished and Archived articles? Answer: Unpublished articles are hidden from front end but visible in admin listings. Archived articles are removed from category listings but accessible via the archive component. Archive is for preservation; Unpublished is for temporary hiding.
How does Joomla's version history help content editors? Answer: Version history saves every article revision, lets editors compare versions with a color-coded diff, and allows restoring any previous version. This prevents data loss and provides accountability.
What is the purpose of the Workflow component in Joomla 4+? Answer: Workflow replaces the simple published/unpublished system with customizable stages (Draft, Review, Approved, Scheduled, Published) and transitions that control who can move content between stages.
Challenge: Create a custom workflow for a magazine site with five states: Pitch, Assigned, In Writing, In Review, Approved, Scheduled, Published. Define transitions between each state with appropriate user group permissions. Enable workflow on a test category and walk an article through the full workflow from pitch to publication.

FAQ

Can I schedule an article to publish at a specific time?

Yes. In the article's Publishing tab, set the Start Publishing date and time. Joomla automatically publishes the article at that moment, provided the Content - Joomla plugin is enabled.

How do I recover a deleted article?

If you trashed an article, go to Article Manager, set the Status filter to 'Trashed', select the article, and change its status to Published. If you permanently deleted it (Empty Trash), it cannot be recovered from the database.

How many article versions does Joomla keep?

The default is 10 versions per article. You can change this in System > Global Configuration > Articles tab: 'Save History' settings.

What happens if two users edit the same article simultaneously?

Joomla locks the article when the first user opens it. The second user sees a warning that the article is checked out by another user and cannot save changes.

Can I set different workflows for different categories?

Yes. Workflow is enabled per category. You can have one category with a simple publish/unpublish workflow and another with a complex multi-stage workflow.

Mini Project

Your task: Implement an editorial workflow for a small news team.

Create a custom workflow with states: Draft, In Review, Approved, Scheduled, Published.
Create transitions: Submit for Review (Draft to In Review), Approve (In Review to Approved), Schedule (Approved to Scheduled), Publish Now (Approved to Published).
Create user groups: Journalists, Editors, Publishers. Assign appropriate permissions to transitions.
Enable workflow on a "News" category.
Create three articles in various workflow stages.
Use version history to track changes on one article through the review process.
Schedule one article to publish tomorrow at 9 AM.

What's Next

Now that you understand publishing workflows, learn about the menu system:

Continue to Lesson 11: Menu System — Learn menu types, menu items, and hierarchy in Joomla.

Related lessons:

Joomla Articles and Categories — Categories are the foundation of content that menus display
Joomla Menu Item Types — Detailed guide to every menu item type

← Previous Joomla Categories Deep Dive — Nested Hierarchies and Category Permissions Next → Joomla Menu System — Menu Types, Menu Items and Hierarchy

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