Auto Menu Links with Direct Homepage Integration

 Joomla     Install  Activate

 

Overview

 

The plugin is compatible with Joomla 4 and 5; it also works on Joomla 3, but it is not recommended as it presents some bugs in that version.

 

The Auto Menu Link is a free Joomla plugin that, upon publishing an article, automatically ensures a friendly URL directly at the site root (without category path), such as https://site.com/friendly-url, and creates the corresponding hidden menu item.

 

The Auto Menu Link was developed to simplify article publishing in Joomla. Upon saving an article, the plugin automatically creates a menu link for it.

 

This is particularly useful for beginner users, who don’t need to worry about manually creating menus and categories to publish their articles.

 

By default, Auto Menu Link uses the hidden-menu. For more experienced users, the plugin can also be used to create article and blog categories.

 

 

You can have a category (blog) with a menu link: demo.vitapotentia.com/cat-blog-1

As shown in the image, click to enlarge.

 

 When clicking on the article, you’ll see that its link is directly associated with the homepage.

 

 

 

When clicking on an article from a category list, you’ll see that its link is also directly associated with the homepage.

 

La nave da guerra solca forte l’oceano

 

 

 

For example: simply rename the category as desired, and when publishing an article in it, the plugin will automatically create a direct link from the homepage to the article, without needing to display the category name in the menu.

  

 

The Auto Menu Link uses the site’s default template.

 

  

The package includes support in the plugin’s XML for sitemap generators (facilitating content detection/discovery).

 

If you want to publish articles without them appearing in the menu — and without needing to create a menu item — simply create a category (for better organization). Then, associate all the articles you publish with it.

Upon saving the article, Joomla will automatically generate the link. Then, just copy the path and insert it into the browser after your URL.

For example: if the article title is “Test only category,” the path will be /test-only-category.

 

 

It automatically creates the hidden menu when the article is published

 

 

It does not interfere with existing categories or menus.

 

Important note:

If you use categories or menus, please note: keep Auto Menu Link disabled so you can create articles normally within existing categories and menus.

 

When you want to create articles with a direct link from the homepage, enable Auto Menu Link — nothing will be lost.

 

 

 

Features

Root URL + Automatic Hidden Menu

 

Upon saving/publishing the article, the plugin creates a hidden menu item in hidden-menu using an SEF URL without a category path.

 

 

If you have generated articles and they are not associated with any frontend menu, and your sitemap generator cannot add the link(s).

 

 

Dynamic Links Page (Optional) — Disabled by Default

 

Generates /plugins/content/automenulink/links.html with 0, 2, 10, 30, or 50 recent articles, styled with Bootstrap 5 and Google Fonts.

 

 

Homepage Link Injection (Optional)

 

Adds a link to links.html on the homepage via one of the following methods:

 

• Function 1: Hidden Link (visibility: hidden)
• Function 2: Visible Link (displayed on page)

 

Designed to, as a last resort, temporarily enable the word Article on the homepage, allowing the sitemap generator to follow through to the links.html page and, from there, identify the articles to add them to the sitemap.

 

 

 

And click save

 

 

 

 Cache Management

Can clear Joomla caches (com_content, com_modules, mod_menu) after creating/editing menus or article states.

 

 

Sitemap Support via XML

The plugin provides support in the XML file (manifest) and optional tags that facilitate discovery by most sitemap generators.

 

Configurable Article Limit

 

Choose between 0, 2, 10, 30, or 50 items in links.html.

 

 

Compatibility

• Compatible with Joomla 4.x and 5.x. Use on Joomla 3.x is not advisable.
• Languages: optimized for single-language sites; works in multilingual setups, but recommended for use in single-language environments.
• PHP: PHP 7.4+ (J4) and PHP 8.0+ (J5).
• Write permission 755 in /plugins/content/automenulink/

 

 

 

Install on Joomla

 

Extensions > Manage > Install → Upload Package File tab → select the ZIP → Upload & Install.

 

 

Activate the Plugin

Extensions > Plugins → search for Auto Menu Link → enable.

 

 

Configuration

Extensions > Plugins → System - Auto Menu Link.

 

 

Options

Clear Cache

Clears Joomla caches after creating/editing menus or article states. Options: Yes (default) / No — Recommended: Yes.

 

 

Include Link in Homepage

 

 

Injects a link to /plugins/content/automenulink/links.html on the homepage to facilitate discovery by sitemap generators.

Options: YES / No (default) — Recommended: No. - Only for generating sitemaps, if needed, select Yes.

 

 

Link Display Method

 

Defines how the link to links.html is added:

 

• Hidden Link (default)
• in
• Hidden Div
• Visible Link

 

Recommended: Function 1 (non-intrusive).

 

Number of Articles in links.html

 

Maximum number of articles displayed: 0 (disables), 2, 10, 30, 50. Tip: 2 or 10 (smaller sites), 30 or 50 (larger sites).

 

Save

Click Save or Save & Close. The links.html will be (re)generated based on the set limit.

 

Usage

When Publishing an Article

• Generates a friendly URL at the root (e.g., https://site.com/friendly-url).
• Creates/updates the corresponding hidden menu item.
• (Optional) Updates links.html with the configured number of articles.

 

When Unpublishing/Deleting

• Removes/adjusts the corresponding menu item.
• Regenerates links.html to reflect changes.

 

Troubleshooting

links.html Not Generated

• Check permissions in /plugins/content/automenulink/ (e.g., 755).
• Confirm that Number of Articles in links.html is greater than 0.

 

 

Check in Global Check-in if it is locked; if so, unlock.

 

In Maintenance Tools, run it twice for the links.html page to be created the first time.

 

With each save in the plugin, the options revert to default (Maintenance Tools, Regenerate links.html).

 

Create or delete an article, check global configurations in Joomla, and clear the cache.

 

 

 

Incorrect URLs

• Enable SEF in System > Global Configuration > SEO Settings.

 

 

Cache

• Enable Clear Cache in the plugin.
• Manually clear in System > Clear Cache if the issue persists.

 

If there’s an issue with the Cache option, disable it.

 

 

Limitations

• Recommended for use in single-language sites. The multilingual mode requires additional configurations and should be used at your own risk, not recommended.

 

• Up to 50 articles in links.html for performance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vita Potentia — https://vitapotentia.com

Includes a rel="nofollow" link to https://vitapotentia.com in the footer of links.html, with a Font Awesome icon.

Version

1.0.0 (August 2025)