Create a content class

A content class is the type of a content object: its fields (attributes), each of a datatype, and how its objects are named. You create the class Note (identifier note) with a required Title (Text line, ezstring) and a Body (Text block, eztext): first by hand in the administration, then with a script you can keep in an extension and run on every installation that needs the class.

Prerequisites: an administrator login with the class policies; for the script, a shell in the installation root.

1. By hand in the administration

Open Setup > Classes (/class/grouplist). The page lists the class groups.
Open the group Content and press New class.
Name Note, Identifier note, Object name pattern <title>.
Under Add attribute choose Text line and press Add: name Title, identifier title, tick Required. Add a Text block: name Body, identifier body.
Press OK. The class appears in the group; /class/view/<id> shows it with two attributes.

The identifiers are what templates and code use ($node.data_map.title), so choose them once: lower case, letters, digits and underscores.

2. By a script

Keep the script in your extension, for example extension/expexample/scripts/create_note_class.php. It looks the class up by its identifier first, so running it twice changes nothing:

<?php
/**
 * Creates the content class "Note" (identifier note) with a title and a body, in the class group "Content".
 * Run it from the installation root with the kernel loaded:
 *
 *   php bin/php/ezexec.php extension/expexample/scripts/create_note_class.php
 *
 * Running it a second time changes nothing: the class is looked up by its identifier first.
 *
 * @copyright Copyright (C) 2026 Example Company
 * @license GNU General Public License v2.0 (or any later version)
 * @package expexample
 */

$identifier = 'note';
$language   = 'eng-US';

if ( eZContentClass::fetchByIdentifier( $identifier ) instanceof eZContentClass )
{
    echo "The class $identifier exists already, nothing to do\n";
    return;
}

$group = eZContentClassGroup::fetchByName( 'Content' );
if ( !$group instanceof eZContentClassGroup )
{
    echo "The class group Content does not exist\n";
    return;
}

// The administrator (user id 14 in a new installation) is the creator, as the command line has no signed-in user
$creatorID = 14;

$db = eZDB::instance();
$db->begin();

$class = eZContentClass::create( $creatorID, array(
    'version'            => eZContentClass::VERSION_STATUS_DEFINED,
    'identifier'         => $identifier,
    'remote_id'          => 'expexample-class-note',
    'contentobject_name' => '<title>',
    'is_container'       => 0,
    'always_available'   => 0,
    'name'               => 'Note',
    'description'        => 'A short note with a title and a body',
), $language );
$class->store();

$attributes = array(
    // identifier => array( datatype, name, required, searchable, translatable, extra columns )
    'title' => array( 'ezstring', 'Title', 1, 1, 1, array( 'data_int1' => 255 ) ),   // data_int1: maximum length
    'body'  => array( 'eztext',   'Body',  0, 1, 1, array( 'data_int1' => 10 ) ),    // data_int1: rows of the field
);
$placement = 0;
foreach ( $attributes as $attributeIdentifier => $definition )
{
    list( $dataTypeString, $name, $required, $searchable, $translatable, $extra ) = $definition;
    $attribute = eZContentClassAttribute::create( (int)$class->attribute( 'id' ), $dataTypeString, array_merge( array(
        'version'                  => eZContentClass::VERSION_STATUS_DEFINED,
        'identifier'               => $attributeIdentifier,
        'name'                     => $name,
        'placement'                => ++$placement,
        'is_required'              => $required,
        'is_searchable'            => $searchable,
        'can_translate'            => $translatable,
        'is_information_collector' => 0,
    ), $extra ), $language );
    $attribute->dataType()->initializeClassAttribute( $attribute );
    $attribute->store();
}

eZContentClassClassGroup::create( $class->attribute( 'id' ), eZContentClass::VERSION_STATUS_DEFINED,
                                  $group->attribute( 'id' ), $group->attribute( 'name' ) )->store();
$db->commit();

eZContentClass::expireCache();
eZContentClassAttribute::expireCache();

echo "Created the class $identifier (id " . $class->attribute( 'id' ) . ")\n";

What each call does:

Call	Does
`eZContentClass::fetchByIdentifier( $identifier )`	the defined (published) class with that identifier, or `null`
`eZContentClass::create( $userID, $values, $locale )`	a new class object, not stored yet; `name` and `description` are stored for `$locale`
`eZContentClassAttribute::create( $classID, $datatype, $values, $locale )`	a new attribute; `data_int1` ... `data_text5` are the datatype's own class settings
`$attribute->dataType()->initializeClassAttribute( $attribute )`	lets the datatype set its defaults
`eZContentClassClassGroup::create( ... )->store()`	puts the class in a class group
`eZContentClass::expireCache()`	the class caches of every process see the new class

Writing version as VERSION_STATUS_DEFINED stores the class directly as published. A class that already has objects is changed through the class edit (a temporary version, then Apply), never by writing its defined version underneath them: adding an attribute to such a class also needs $attribute->initializeObjectAttributes().

Run it:

php -l extension/expexample/scripts/create_note_class.php
php bin/php/ezexec.php extension/expexample/scripts/create_note_class.php --allow-root-user

Expected: Created the class note (id <n>); a second run prints The class note exists already, nothing to do.

3. Check it

Setup > Classes > Content lists Note; its page shows the two attributes in order.
The object name pattern works: create a Note with the title Shopping list; it is named Shopping list.
In a template: {$node.data_map.title.content|wash} and {attribute_view_gui attribute=$node.data_map.body}.

Checked for this page (2026-10-18): php -l on the script; every method it calls exists with this signature in kernel/classes/ezcontentclass.php, ezcontentclassattribute.php, ezcontentclassgroup.php, ezcontentclassclassgroup.php and ezdatatype.php. The script was not run against a database for this page.

Common mistakes

Symptom	Cause
The class shows no name in another language	`name` was stored for `$locale` only; add translations on the class edit page
`fetchByName( 'Content' )` finds nothing	the group was renamed; use its id with `eZContentClassGroup::fetch( <id> )`
The new class does not appear in the Create here menu	the role of the user lacks `content/create` for the class, or the parent's class limits the classes allowed below it
A changed attribute is not seen at once	the class caches: `eZContentClass::expireCache()`, or `php bin/php/ezcache.php --clear-id=classid --allow-root-user`

Derived from

kernel/classes/ezcontentclass.php (create(), fetchByIdentifier(), expireCache())
kernel/classes/ezcontentclassattribute.php (create(), dataType(), initializeObjectAttributes())
kernel/classes/help/content/exphelpcontentinstaller.php (ensureClass(), createAttribute(): the kernel's own re-runnable class creation, which this script follows)
doc/eng-us/guides/content-model-and-editing.md, section 2

Cookbook
Content model and editing and Class groups
Datatypes: every datatype and its template attributes
A custom datatype and A template override
The coding rules and the pattern catalogue: the standards
Free documentation: this page is free to copy, translate and improve.

Create a content class

Create a content class

1. By hand in the administration

2. By a script

3. Check it

Common mistakes

Derived from

Documentation license

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Create a content class

1. By hand in the administration

2. By a script

3. Check it

Common mistakes

Derived from

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