MODX Contexts for Multisite: Step-by-Step Guide

MODX Contexts for Multisite Setup

You need to run three sites—Russian, English, and Belarusian—each with its own domain, templates, and content. Usually that means three MODX installations: triple updates, backups, and configurations. MODX contexts solve this problem: one engine, multiple sites. Setup takes 2–3 days instead of a week for three separate installations. According to MODX documentation, contexts provide full isolation without core duplication. Our engineers with 5+ years of experience ensure a stable multisite structure. Over 50 successful projects on MODX. Average support cost savings of 30%, hosting savings up to 40%.

What Are Contexts and Why Do You Need Them?

Contexts are isolated environments within a single MODX installation. Each context has its own settings, root resources, templates, and even language parameters. Compare with other approaches:

Context setup is 3 times faster than deploying separate installations. Hosting savings up to 40%, support costs cut by 30% on average across our projects. Plus, you get a single entry point for management: MODX updates, plugins, and components are centrally managed.

How to Set Up Contexts: Step-by-Step Guide

Create and Configure a Context

System → Contexts → Create → key en (short Latin only). After creation, configure parameters:

Key: en
Name: English Version
Settings:
  base_url: /en/
  site_url: https://yourdomain.com/en/
  site_start: 55 (root resource ID)
  error_page: 56
  default_template: 3
  cultureKey: en
  locale: en_US.UTF-8

Automatic Domain-Based Switching

Plugin on the OnHandleRequest event switches context based on HTTP_HOST or URI:

$host = $_SERVER['HTTP_HOST'];
$uri  = $_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'];

$contextMap = [
    'ru.company.com'  => 'ru',
    'en.company.com'  => 'en',
    'by.company.com'  => 'by',
];

if (isset($contextMap[$host])) {
    $contextKey = $contextMap[$host];
    if ($modx->context->key !== $contextKey) {
        $modx->switchContext($contextKey);
    }
    return;
}

$prefixMap = ['/ru/' => 'ru', '/en/' => 'en', '/uk/' => 'uk'];
foreach ($prefixMap as $prefix => $contextKey) {
    if (strpos($uri, $prefix) === 0) {
        if ($modx->context->key !== $contextKey) {
            $modx->switchContext($contextKey);
        }
        return;
    }
}

Nginx Configuration for Subdomains

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name ru.company.com en.company.com by.company.com;
    root /var/www/company.com;

    location ~ \.php$ {
        fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php/php8.3-fpm.sock;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
        fastcgi_param HTTP_HOST $host;
        include fastcgi_params;
    }
}

Resources and Cross-Context Links

Each resource is tied to a context via the context_key field. To create a resource in context en:

$resource = $modx->newObject('modDocument');
$resource->set('pagetitle', 'About Us');
$resource->set('alias', 'about-us');
$resource->set('context_key', 'en');
$resource->set('template', 3);
$resource->set('parent', 55);
$resource->save();

For cross-context links, specify the context: [[~42? &context=en]].

Settings Synchronization

System settings have priority: Global > Context > Namespace. Context settings override global ones. Example of getting the URL for the current context:

$siteUrl = $modx->getOption('site_url');

Why Contexts Beat Separate Installations?

• Resource saving: single database, single core.
• Unified admin panel: manage all sites from one interface.
• Quick deployment: a new context can be set up in an hour.
• Easy updates: update MODX once.

See for yourself: contact us for a consultation. Our engineers with 5+ years of experience can assess your project. Get an accurate estimate and implementation plan.

What Typical Mistake Happen During Context Setup?

Even experienced developers make a few slips. The most common is incorrectly linking the root resource site_start. If the resource doesn't belong to the context, MODX can't display the site. The second problem is a missing switch plugin: without it, all domains lead to one context. Third is cache conflict: contexts share the MODX cache, so settings may overwrite each other. Solution: separate cache by context by enabling the cache_context option. Fourth: forgetting to set cultureKey for multilingual sites, breaking localization. Fifth: Nginx errors—wrong server_name directive or missing HTTP_HOST in fastcgi_param.

We take these nuances into account when doing the turnkey setup.

Context Setup Checklist

1. Create context and set parameters.
2. Bind root resource (site_start).
3. Configure switch plugin (domain/prefix).
4. Update Nginx (pass HTTP_HOST).
5. Test cross-context links.
6. Test switching.

What's Included in Turnkey Setup

• Audit of current site structure.
• Creation of contexts and domain binding.
• Development of switch plugin.
• Server configuration (Nginx/Apache).
• Content migration to new contexts.
• Documentation and admin training.
• 2 weeks of technical support.

Order turnkey MODX context setup. Contact us to discuss your project details. Get a ready solution in 2–3 days with a performance guarantee.

Headless CMS: Strapi, Directus, Sanity, Contentful, Drupal

Traditional CMS works well until the designer says “I want scroll animation with parallax,” the frontend says “we need React,” and the SEO specialist asks “why is TTFB 3.4 seconds?” At that point, monolithic architecture starts to hinder everyone. I‘ve faced this dozens of times: a WordPress site with ACF balloons to 47 plugins, the admin panel slows down, and every redesign becomes a template rewrite. Headless CMS separates content management from presentation. Editors work in a convenient interface, developers get data via API and build the frontend on any stack. Sounds simple. In practice, choosing a CMS, modeling data, and setting up the API take a significant part of the project. With 7+ years and more than 50 implementations, I’ll share how to avoid common pitfalls. Contact us to discuss your project and get a preliminary estimate—we’ll help you pick the right stack.

What are the key benefits of headless CMS over monolithic?

Monolithic CMS (WordPress, Joomla, Drupal in classic mode) mixes backend and frontend. Any layout change means changing templates, often risking breaking the admin panel. Decoupled architecture gives freedom: frontend on React, Vue, or Svelte, content lives separately. Result: improved load speed (LCP often drops from 4–6 s to 1–1.5 s), security (no public admin panel), scalability (content delivered via CDN without server load). Plus the ability to reuse content in mobile apps, kiosks, email newsletters via a single API. A client we recently helped saw LCP improve from 6.2 s to 1.1 s — a 5.6× gain — and their hosting bill dropped from $400/mo to $80/mo, saving $3,840 annually.

How to choose a headless CMS for your project?

No universal tool exists. The choice depends on team, content complexity, and infrastructure. Let’s break down the key options.

Strapi — open-source, self-hosted, Node.js. Suitable for teams needing data control and API customization. Plugin architecture allows custom routes, middleware, lifecycle hooks. REST and GraphQL out of the box. Deploys in about an hour — three times faster than Drupal. Weakness: versions v4 and v5 are incompatible, migration is painful. Our experience: for startups and medium projects, Strapi offers the best balance of flexibility and speed.

Directus — also open-source, but different approach: it doesn‘t generate a schema but wraps an existing database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite) into a REST/GraphQL API. If you already have a database, Directus connects without migrations. Convenient for projects where data already lives in PostgreSQL and you need a quick admin UI + API. Saves up to 30% integration time.

Sanity — cloud CMS with real-time editor. Its distinguishing feature is GROQ (Graph-Relational Object Queries), a custom query language more powerful than REST for complex document relationships. Portable Text for structured content. Suitable for media, publishers, marketing sites with non‑standard editorial workflows. Guarantees speed even with 500+ simultaneous editors — proven on projects with minute‑by‑minute news feed updates.

Contentful — enterprise cloud CMS. Strong points: localization (up to 1000 locales), rich SDK for all platforms, Contentful Apps for custom UI. Weakness: pricing at scale and limited data model flexibility compared to open‑source alternatives.

Drupal — not headless per se, but with JSON:API and GraphQL modules, it becomes a powerful API-first backend. Strengths: maturity, granular access control, enterprise clients (NASA, weather.com). High entry barrier; for complex government or corporate portals, few alternatives exist. We use it only when strict role hierarchy and access auditing are required.

Consequences of poor content modeling

Content modeling is critical. Mistakes at this stage are costly. A typical problem: a body field of type rich text for everything. Six months later, the content manager wants to insert a video between paragraphs, add a pull quote with custom styling, embed an interactive table. Rich text can‘t handle that. Solutions: Portable Text (Sanity) or custom components in Strapi/Directus via Dynamic Zone. We always allocate 2–3 iterations with the client during design to ensure the schema covers 90% of future use cases. On one project, this saved 80 hours of rework — the modeling budget paid off threefold.

How we build projects on headless CMS

Frontend for headless CMS almost always uses Next.js (App Router) or Nuxt. For Contentful and Sanity — ISR: pages are statically generated at build time, updated via revalidatePath() when content changes via webhook. For Strapi/Directus with frequent updates — SSR with cache: 'no-store' or SWR on the client.

Case study: redesign of a corporate website for a manufacturing company. Previous site: WordPress with ACF, 200+ pages, 4 languages. Problems: TTFB 3.8 s, editors complained about slow admin. Migrated to Strapi (self-hosted, PostgreSQL), Next.js App Router. Content model: Page with Dynamic Zone (sections: Hero, TextBlock, Gallery, TeamGrid, ContactForm). Localization via Strapi i18n plugin + next-intl on frontend. Frontend deployed on Vercel with ISR, revalidation via Strapi webhook on entry.publish. According to the client: TTFB dropped from 3.8 s to 180 ms (static with CDN) — a 21× improvement. Editors got a clean interface without 47 plugins. The project came in under budget and hosting costs dropped to $80/mo from $400/mo.

Implementation process broken into stages:

1. Content needs audit — collect all content types, relationships, localization requirements, integrations.
2. Data schema design — create models, fields, validation, access roles. Document in Swagger/OpenAPI.
3. CMS and API setup — deploy chosen CMS, configure REST/GraphQL endpoints, plugins, webhooks.
4. Frontend development — connect Next.js/Nuxt, configure ISR/SSR, section components, routing.
5. Content migration (if legacy) — automated loading via API or scripts.
6. Testing — check API endpoints, regression, load testing, Core Web Vitals.
7. Deployment — configure CDN, SSL, CI/CD, monitoring.

How long does implementation take?

The standard path includes all stages. Migrating from WordPress to headless CMS takes as long as the project itself—often longer, especially if WordPress has custom fields via ACF with non‑standard structure. Our typical timelines:

Cost is calculated individually after a brief. Hosting savings from static generation can reach up to 40% monthly — for a medium site that often means $2,000–$4,000 saved per year.

Non‑obvious considerations when choosing a headless CMS

• Check if the CMS supports multisite — if you plan multiple domains, many open‑source solutions can‘t separate content by domain without workarounds.
• Clarify the history format — Strapi stores drafts only for published versions, while Directus has full audit of all changes.
• Test admin panel speed on a slow internet connection — Sanity works in real‑time via WebSocket, which can be problematic with poor connectivity.
• Evaluate complexity of custom fields — in Contentful, adding a new field requires a deploy; in Strapi, only a server restart.
• Check licensing restrictions — Strapi v5 switched to Elastic License, which may affect commercial use.

What is included

• Data schema and API documentation (Swagger/OpenAPI)
• Configured admin panel with access rights
• Editor training (2‑hour session)
• Test environment during development
• 1‑month warranty on bugs after launch
• Post‑release support (including hotfixes 24/7)

Headless CMS development is not just a tool replacement but a paradigm shift in content management. We help make this transition without downtime or data loss. Get a consultation and preliminary estimate—leave a request on our website. Order headless CMS implementation with guaranteed results.