Template Set
A template set is the Jahia module that a site starts from: it carries the page templates and, if needed, the content types and views that go with them. It gives a team a shared starting point for new websites, and the set is chosen when the site is created.
Definition and how it works
For an organization that runs several sites (brands, countries, subsidiaries, campaigns) in a multisite CMS, a template set is the tool for consistency. Every new site can start from the same base and reuse its brand, layouts and components where that is wanted. Local teams save time at launch. The central team stays in control of what must remain shared.
Like any module, it is developed, versioned and deployed by the technical team, in Java and JSP or, since Jahia 8.2, as a JavaScript module. Its content type definitions belong to the same package.
Academy documentation: creating a site and choosing its template set
Related terms: Module · Template · Content type definition · Content Type · Content management system · Multisite CMS
Resources that cover this term
Template set vs template: the differences
A template is one layout. A template set is the complete collection used as a site’s starting point. A module is the delivery format both of them share.
| Concept | What distinguishes it |
|---|---|
| Template | One specific layout, such as a section page. A template set groups several of them. |
| Module | Any code package deployable on Jahia. A template set is a module whose role is to serve as a site’s base. |
| Content type definition | The declaration of a content type in a .cnd file. A template set can contain some, but does not have to. |
Template set in practice
A company present in several countries has a template set developed in its brand colors, with its page layouts and components. Each subsidiary creates its site from that base, then enters its own content in its languages. When the brand updates a component, the new module version is uploaded to the server, once the previous version has been undeployed, and is deployed automatically on the sites that use it. Starting the module can take from several seconds up to a few minutes, according to how complex it is, and the sites built on it are unavailable during that time. The update is therefore scheduled with the technical team, who can follow the node-by-node procedure documented on the Academy for clusters, while Jahia Cloud has its own upgrade procedure.
The boundary also needs settling between what this shared base imposes and what a site may add through other modules.
Sources: Module deployment, Jahia Academy (Jahia 8.2, page dated 8 October 2024); Updating module versions with minimal downtime, Jahia Academy (Jahia 8.2, page dated 8 October 2024).
Frequently asked questions
Do we need a different template set for each site?
Not necessarily. One template set can serve as the base for several sites. That is the whole benefit for a multi-site organization. A separate set makes sense when a site has a genuinely different identity or usage. In between, additional modules let you add components to one site without duplicating the whole base.
When is a site’s template set chosen?
When the site is created. It is one of the first choices, since the set provides the page templates and can also provide the content types and views the teams will work with. It is therefore best scoped before launch, between the central team that keeps control of what must stay shared and the local teams that will use it day to day.