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OJS for EveryoneThe Practical GuidebookRSYN Research LLP

Plugins

Plugins extend the functionality of OJS. As a Journal Manager, you can enable and configure plugins that affect your journal's behaviour — from DOI management and statistics to themes and custom integrations — without any server access or PHP knowledge.

Accessing Journal-Level Plugins​

Settings → Website → Plugins

The Plugins page has two tabs:

  • Installed Plugins — all plugins currently available on your OJS installation
  • Plugin Gallery — additional plugins available to download and install (requires Site Administrator access for installation, but Journal Managers can enable pre-installed ones)

Plugin Categories​

CategoryExamples
Generic PluginsUsage Statistics, Custom Header, Custom Sidebar Block
Auth PluginsLDAP authentication
Gateway PluginsOAI-PMH harvesting interface
Import/Export PluginsCrossRef XML, DOAJ, PubMed, Native XML
Metadata PluginsDublin Core, OpenAIRE, JATS
Block PluginsSidebar blocks (Browse, Language toggle, Information)
Public Identifier PluginsDOI, URN
Report PluginsCounter statistics, reviewer activity
Theme PluginsDefault theme, Bootstrap3, Health Sciences, and others

Enabling a Plugin​

  1. Find the plugin in the Installed Plugins list.
  2. Use the toggle switch to enable it.
  3. OJS confirms the plugin is active.

Some plugins have a Settings link that appears after enabling — click it to configure the plugin.

Key Plugins for Journal Managers​

DOI Plugin​

Assigns and manages Digital Object Identifiers for your articles and issues.

  1. Enable DOI under Public Identifier Plugins.
  2. Click Settings to configure:
    • Your DOI prefix (e.g., 10.12345)
    • Suffix pattern (e.g., %j.v%vi%i%a)
    • When DOIs are assigned (on publication or on scheduling)

See the Enable DOIs with CrossRef tutorial for the full setup process.

Google Scholar Plugin​

Inserts structured metadata metatags that Google Scholar reads when indexing your article pages. Enable under Generic Plugins — no additional configuration needed.

Usage Statistics Plugin​

Tracks and reports article and issue view/download counts. Enable under Generic Plugins. Configure the statistics granularity (country, city, institution) in the plugin settings.

DOAJ Export Plugin​

Exports article metadata to the Directory of Open Access Journals in the required format. Requires DOAJ membership and an API key.

CrossRef XML Export Plugin​

Deposits DOI metadata to CrossRef. Requires CrossRef membership, depositor name, email, and account credentials in the plugin settings.

Custom Block Manager​

Allows you to create HTML sidebar blocks with custom content — announcements, sponsor logos, calls for submissions.

  1. Enable the plugin.
  2. Go to Settings → Website → Appearance → Sidebar.
  3. Add a new custom block and place it in the sidebar.

Open Graph / Social Media Plugins​

Adds Open Graph meta tags to article pages, improving how article links appear when shared on social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter/X, LinkedIn).

Citation Style Language (CSL) Plugin​

Provides formatted citations in multiple styles (APA, MLA, Vancouver, etc.) on each article page, making it easy for readers to copy a correctly formatted citation.

Theme Plugins​

Themes control the visual appearance of your journal. To change your journal's theme:

  1. Go to Settings → Website → Appearance → Theme.
  2. Select a theme from the dropdown.
  3. Save and reload the site to preview.

Only themes that are installed on the server appear in this list. To install additional themes, the Site Administrator uses the Plugin Gallery.

Plugin Conflicts and Troubleshooting​

If a newly enabled plugin causes display issues or errors:

  1. Disable the plugin immediately.
  2. Clear caches: Administration → Clear Template Cache and Clear Data Cache.
  3. Reload the site to confirm the issue is resolved.
  4. Check the PKP Community Forum for known compatibility issues with your OJS version.
warning

Never enable multiple unfamiliar plugins simultaneously — if a problem occurs, you will not be able to identify which plugin caused it.

Further Reading​