JeffAdmin

Version: 1.0.10

JeffAdmin is a CakePHP 5 admin UI plugin: layout, assets, view helpers, display switches, and a Bake theme that generates list, form, and view screens in one consistent look.

Composer: kavezoo/jeffadmin

JeffAdmin’s visual foundation comes from CoolAdmin — the HTML admin template whose structure, sidebar, and card-based screens shaped the plugin’s CSS and layout.

PikeAdmin provided the idea of turning that kind of admin experience into a CakePHP-native package: Bake-driven CRUD, helpers, and a reusable plugin instead of a one-off theme copy.

JeffAdmin builds on both: CoolAdmin for how it looks, PikeAdmin for how a CakePHP admin plugin should be packaged and generated — then extends the result with Tom Select, SweetAlert delete flows, configurable $show switches, related-record tabs, and more.

• PHP 8.1+
• CakePHP 5.x
• cakephp/bake (dev) — only if you bake Admin controllers/templates with the JeffAdmin theme

Create a CakePHP ~5.4 app (or use an existing one), then require the plugin:

composer create-project --prefer-dist cakephp/app:~5.4 my_app_name
cd my_app_name
composer require kavezoo/jeffadmin:^1.0
composer require --dev cakephp/bake

Or, without a version constraint (latest stable):

composer require kavezoo/jeffadmin
composer require --dev cakephp/bake

On Windows, use php bin/cake.php … instead of the bin/cake shell script.

In config/plugins.php:

<?php

return [
    // …
    'JeffAdmin' => [],
];

Or in src/Application.php:

public function bootstrap(): void
{
    parent::bootstrap();

    $this->addPlugin('JeffAdmin');
}

The plugin bootstrap:

• loads JeffAdmin.show
• registers helpers: Icon, Action, Format, Input
• sets Bake.theme to JeffAdmin when no other bake theme is configured

Add session config at the end of config/bootstrap.php (Bake theme write is optional if the plugin already set it):

use Cake\Core\Configure;

Configure::write('Bake.theme', 'JeffAdmin');

Configure::write('Session', [
    'defaults' => 'php',
    'cookie' => 'NameOfCookie',
    'timeout' => 4320, // 3 days
]);

You do not need to load JeffAdmin helpers in src/View/AppView.php — the plugin registers them automatically.

Create src/Controller/Admin/AppController.php:

<?php
declare(strict_types=1);

namespace App\Controller\Admin;

use JeffAdmin\Controller\AppController as JeffAdminAppController;

class AppController extends JeffAdminAppController
{
    public function initialize(): void
    {
        parent::initialize();
    }
}

The layout (JeffAdmin.default) comes from the plugin AppController.

In config/routes.php:

$routes->prefix('Admin', function (RouteBuilder $builder) {
    $builder->setRouteClass(DashedRoute::class);
    $builder->connect('/', ['controller' => 'Cities', 'action' => 'index']);
    $builder->fallbacks(DashedRoute::class);
});

Point the default controller/action at your own models.

bin/cake bake model all
bin/cake bake controller all --prefix Admin --no-test
bin/cake bake template all --prefix Admin

Single model:

bin/cake bake model Cities --no-test
bin/cake bake controller Cities --prefix Admin --force --no-test
bin/cake bake template Cities --prefix Admin --force

1. Add the prefix in config/routes.php:

$routes->prefix('Member', function (RouteBuilder $builder) {
    $builder->setRouteClass(DashedRoute::class);
    $builder->connect('/', ['controller' => 'Clubs', 'action' => 'index']);
    $builder->fallbacks(DashedRoute::class);
});

2. Create src/Controller/Member/AppController.php the same way as Admin (extend JeffAdmin\Controller\AppController).

3. Bake:

bin/cake bake controller all --prefix Member --no-test
bin/cake bake template all --prefix Member

The layout calls $this->element('JeffAdmin.nav') (and header, header_top, footer the same way).

CakePHP looks under the current prefix first. If the host file exists, it wins; otherwise the plugin default is used.

templates/Admin/element/nav.php          ← your menu (copy & edit)
plugins/.../templates/element/nav.php    ← plugin default

Same pattern for header.php, header_top.php, footer.php.

No bootstrap menu config. Copy vendor/kavezoo/jeffadmin/templates/element/nav.php to templates/Admin/element/nav.php and add your links.

UI assets live only in the plugin — do not copy webroot into the host.

Global defaults: plugin config/show.php → Configure::read('JeffAdmin').

Notable defaults:

• index.rowId is false (id column off unless you enable it)
• password / passwords / passwd fields are skipped by the Bake theme (forms, index, view, related tables, and header search)

Per-template override in baked files:

use Cake\Core\Configure;

$show = Configure::read('JeffAdmin');
$showLocal = [];

$showLocal['edit'] = [
//    'relatedTables' => false,
//    'deleteButton'  => false,
];

$show = array_merge($show['edit'] ?? [], $showLocal['edit']);

View related tabs (HasMany / BelongsToMany): section markers Related: {Alias} (start|end); active columns like index (name/title, visible, pos, created/modified, actions); other fields in /* */. Per-table override via $relatedLocal['Alias'] (e.g. deleteGuardByCounts => false). Model bake keeps // 'dependent' => true commented for optional cascade delete.

Controller settings live in a separate file from $show: plugin config/paginate.php → JeffAdmin.paginate.limit / maxLimit (default 10 / 100). Applied by the plugin AppController.

Host override: Configure::write('JeffAdmin.paginate.limit', 25). Per controller in index(): $this->paginate['limit'] = 25.

composer update kavezoo/jeffadmin

If composer.json pins an exact version, widen the constraint (e.g. ^1.0) first, then update.

MIT — see LICENSE.

Enjoy JeffAdmin!

Jeff Shoemaker