Virtual Pages

How to create dynamic pages without modResource — the clean, modern way.

Why would you need this?

In traditional MODX, every document is a resource in the tree. It works fine, but:

• It becomes messy for large catalogs or dynamic content
• You're forced to use TVs, chunks, and rigid templates
• You can’t fully control logic or structure

PageBlocks changes that. You define how to handle URLs, what data to load, and what template to render — all through controllers.

What is a virtual page?

A virtual page is:

• Not created in the MODX resource tree
• Available at a custom URL (e.g., /product/macbook-pro)
• Fully managed by a controller
• Built from any data — database, API, cache, etc.

---

Example — Product page

Let’s say you have a products table. You want to open a product page by its alias, like /product/macbook.

1. Define a route (routes/web.php):

Route::get('/product/{alias}', [ProductController::class, 'show']);

2. Create a controller (ProductController.php):

class ProductController extends Controller
{
    public function show($alias)
    {
        $product = $this->modx->getObjct(\pbTableValue::class, ['alias' => $alias]);

        if (!$product) {
            return $this->abort(404);
        }

        return $this->view('templates/product', ['product' => $product->toArray()]);
    }
}

3. Create a template (templates/product.tpl):

<h1>{$product.name}</h1>
<div>{$product.description}</div>
<p>Price: {$product.price}</p>

Why controllers rock

• No dependency on modResource — you control structure entirely
• Better performance — no TVs, chunks, or unnecessary logic
• Flexible logic — access control, redirects, SEO, error handling
• Template freedom — write clean Fenom views without limitations
• Custom URLs — support any route structure and dynamic segments

Where virtual pages shine

• Product catalogs with thousands of items
• User profiles like /user/boshnik
• Blog articles from a custom table
• Multilingual URLs like /en/blog/title
• AJAX/API endpoints like /api/products/42
• Dynamic filters like /catalog/sale/smartphones

Conclusion

Controllers in PageBlocks = full MVC inside MODX. You gain Laravel-like control and flexibility while staying within the MODX ecosystem. No more relying on modResource. Just clean logic, custom structure, and full freedom.