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Content

Contents

Content is the core entity in Enonic CMS. Every content item has a specific content type and life cycle.

Introduction

Content is normally managed via Content Studio, but can also be accessed and manipulated programmatically via APIs. Content items have a specific Content Type, which defines its data structure and capabilities. Content items are stored in isolated Content Projects, and can optionally be organized as a hierarchy within each project.

Standard properties

Content items are stored in JSON format, within an XP repo. Every content item has a set of standard properties that are automatically generated and maintained via the Content API. Below is an overview of the JSON structure of a content item:

{
  "_id": "a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890",  (1)
  "_name": "my-article",  (2)
  "_path": "/my-site/articles/my-article",  (3)
  "_parentPath": "/my-site/articles",
  "_versionKey": "f1e2d3c4-b5a6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890",  (4)
  "_timestamp": "2025-06-15T12:00:00Z",  (5)
  "_sortorder": "modifiedTime DESC",  (6)
  "_manualordervalue": 0,

  "type": "com.example:article",  (7)
  "language": "en",  (8)

  "displayName": "My Article",  (9)
  "data": { ... }, (10)
  "x": [ ... ],  (11)
  "components": [ ... ],  (12)
  "attachments": [ ... ],  (13)

  "creator": "user:system:admin",  (14)
  "createdTime": "2025-01-01T10:00:00Z",
  "modifier": "user:system:editor",
  "modifiedTime": "2025-06-15T12:00:00Z",
  "owner": "user:system:admin",

  "publish": {  (15)
    "from": "2025-01-15T08:00:00Z",
    "to": "2026-01-15T08:00:00Z",
    "first": "2025-01-15T08:00:00Z",
    "time": "2025-06-15T12:00:00Z"
  },

  "_references": [ ... ],  (16)
  "_alltext": "My Article ...",  (17)
  "_score": 1.23,  (18)
  "_permissions": { ... }  (19)

}
1 _id — unique content identifier (UUID), generated automatically.
2 _name — content name, used in the URL path.
3 _path / _parentPath — full content path, and parent path.
4 _versionKey — identifier of the current content version.
5 _timestamp — last change to the content version.
6 _sortorder / _manualordervalue — controls default sorting of child items. Defaults to modifiedTime DESC.
7 type — the qualified content type name. Set at creation, cannot be changed.
8 language — locale of the content.
9 displayName — human-readable name, typically used in lists, search results, and as the content title.
10 data — the editorial content, structured according to the content type form definition.
11 x — structured by mixin form definition, grouped by namespaced keys.
12 components — present if the item contains a page with components.
13 attachments — optional array of attachments stored within the content item.
14 creator / createdTime / modifier / modifiedTime / owner — audit trail properties.
15 publish — publishing metadata. from/to define the publish window. first is set on first publish and never changes. time is updated on every publish.
16 _references — aggregation of all outbound references to other content items in the project.
17 _alltext — all fulltext-analyzed fields (TextLine, TextArea, HtmlArea) gathered in one property, used for search.
18 _score — calculated relevance score, only present in search results.
19 _permissions — access control settings for the content item.

Contents

Contents