Exponential Platform DXP skeleton: create-project and a documented install #

This page is for developers who start a new project on Exponential Platform (the Symfony based platform) from a clean skeleton, without a demo design.

Repositories: se7enxweb/exponential-platform-dxp-skeleton (Platform v5), se7enxweb/exponential-platform-v4x-dxp-skeleton (Platform 4.6.x), se7enxweb/exponential-platform-dxp (the metapackage both require), se7enxweb/oss, se7enxweb/oss-skeleton.

What it is #

A clean Symfony project for Exponential Platform with no demo design. composer create-project downloads the packages, a Symfony Flex recipe configures them, and the skeleton's own guide (INSTALL.md, 22 sections) takes you from an empty folder to a running administration interface. Use the Nexus starter when you want a finished demo site instead.

The metapackage se7enxweb/exponential-platform-dxp was created on 2026-03-12 and, on 2026-03-21, its core and admin packages were switched to the se7enxweb forks (core tagged v5.0.1.0). In April 2026 it also replaced ibexa/system-info, ibexa/admin-ui-assets and ibexa/fieldtype-richtext with the se7enxweb packages and required the layouts-core fork. See the package map.

Why it helps #

• One documented path. Every command in the guide carries the Exponential name (exponential:install, exponential:reindex); the old ibexa:* names are kept as aliases so old scripts keep working.
• The Flex recipe endpoint of the se7enxweb recipes is placed before the upstream recipes in the skeleton's composer.json (commit "Add sevenx-recipes Flex endpoint before ibexa/recipes", 2026-03-12), so bundles are configured with the fork-aware recipes.
• Three databases are documented: MySQL / MariaDB, PostgreSQL, and SQLite without any server (SQLite for the platform).

Create a project #

composer create-project se7enxweb/exponential-platform-dxp-skeleton my-project
cd my-project

Composer downloads the packages, runs the recipes and the post-install scripts (assets:install, cache:clear).

Configure the environment (never commit .env.local):

cp .env .env.local
$EDITOR .env.local

Minimum variables for MySQL / MariaDB:

DATABASE_URL is derived from the parts, or you can set a full DSN directly.

Create the database and install:

mysql -e "CREATE DATABASE exponential CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_520_ci;"
php bin/console exponential:install exponential-oss

Then build the assets and the keys:

source ~/.nvm/nvm.sh && nvm use 20
yarn install
yarn dev                                              # site assets (yarn build for production)
php bin/console assets:install --symlink --relative public
yarn ibexa:build                                      # admin interface assets
php bin/console lexik:jwt:generate-keypair            # REST API keys
php bin/console ibexa:graphql:generate-schema         # GraphQL schema
php bin/console exponential:reindex                   # search index
php bin/console cache:clear

File permissions for the web server user (replace www-data):

setfacl -R  -m u:www-data:rwX -m g:www-data:rwX var/ public/var/
setfacl -dR -m u:www-data:rwX -m g:www-data:rwX var/ public/var/

Siteaccesses: site serves the Twig front end at /, admin serves the administration interface at /adminui/. REST is at /api/ezp/v2/, GraphQL at /graphql.

The demo data creates an administrator account that the guide documents publicly. Change its password in the admin interface immediately.

Day to day #

php bin/console cache:clear --env=prod                # after configuration or code changes
php bin/console cache:warmup --env=prod
php bin/console cache:pool:clear cache.tagaware.filesystem
php bin/console fos:httpcache:invalidate:path / --all # when Varnish or the HTTP cache is in use
php bin/console exponential:reindex --content-type=article
php bin/console doctrine:migration:migrate --dry-run  # preview pending migrations
php bin/console doctrine:migration:migrate --allow-no-migration

Cron (every five minutes):

*/5 * * * * /usr/bin/php /var/www/exponential/bin/console ibexa:cron:run --env=prod >> /var/log/exponential-cron.log 2>&1

Note that ibexa:cron:run and ibexa:graphql:generate-schema still carry their upstream names in this release; only commands that were migrated have an exponential: name (list).

Database conversion #

The guide (section 21) describes moving between engines: any database to SQLite (mysql2sqlite for MySQL, pgloader for PostgreSQL), SQLite to MySQL or PostgreSQL, MySQL to PostgreSQL and the reverse, and an export-only path to Oracle. It ends with a post-conversion checklist. After converting to SQLite set DATABASE_URL="sqlite:///%kernel.project_dir%/var/data_dev.db" and MESSENGER_TRANSPORT_DSN=sync://.

Limits #

• The v5 skeleton refuses PHP older than 8.3. The 4.6.x skeleton keeps PHP 8.0 to 8.5 (PHP 7.4 usable without support) and Symfony 5.4.
• Node.js: the v5 skeleton guide says use Node 20 LTS only; the Nexus v5 starter requires Node 22. Follow the guide of the project you install.
• A clone of the skeleton with git clone instead of create-project needs composer install --keep-vcs and the same steps in order.

Related pages #

• Installing Exponential 6 itself
• Platform features: Nexus starter, legacy bridge, platform administration interface, Layouts on the platform, PHP 8.5 framework forks, site bundles, SQLite for Exponential Platform, AdminNeo database manager
• Specifications: platform console command names, platform package map, platform SQLite installer, legacy bridge bundle
• Upgrade notes: package forks and command renames
• Changelog: platform changelog
• History: exponential-platform-dxp-skeleton, exponential-platform-v4x-dxp-skeleton, exponential-platform-dxp, oss, ecosystem overview, ecosystem months, change ledger