Documentation

Everything you need to build fast, file-based websites with Bolt CMS. No database, no dependencies, no complexity.

Installation

Set up Bolt CMS from scratch in under five minutes with just PHP and Apache.

Routing

How URLs map to files and directories with automatic resolution and path sanitization.

API Routing

Method-routed handler files, path parameters, shared bootstraps, and a uniform JSON contract.

Layouts & Templates

Compose pages from headers, layouts, and footers with a simple configuration system.

Page Types

PHP pages, Markdown pages, and how frontmatter configuration works.

Extensions

Package pages, blocks, and API endpoints under extensions/, with core-first resolution and no registry to edit.

Paradigm CSS

The inline styling engine — responsive tokens, states, variables, and components rendered at load with no build step.

Design System

Typography, color palette, spacing scale, and visual conventions used across Bolt sites.

Component Patterns

Author reusable PHP partials in the includes folder, pass them data, and render their markup in any page.

Blocks

Self-contained partials that bundle their own scoped CSS, markup, and JavaScript per instance.

Data Store

BOLT_DB, the connectionless flat-file store for web-served JSON snapshots and secured private records.

SQL Data Layer

BOLT_SQL, the single-class PDO/MySQL layer: JSON-defined schema, prepared-statement CRUD, write validation, and read-time type casting.

Sending Email

BOLT_MAIL, the single-class SMTP library: send, queue, log, and blacklist email with no dependencies — available to core and every extension.

Authentication

Two interchangeable auth backends — a zero-setup flat file, or SQL accounts with registration, one-time codes, and recovery — switchable from the dashboard.

Organizations

Multi-tenancy and organization-scoped authorization — an organization hierarchy, email-linked staff with permissions, and the predicates for who may act on which organization.

JavaScript Libraries

ParadigmCSS rendering, the page boot sequence, and the SITEURL global available to your scripts.

What Bolt CMS is

Bolt CMS is a minimalist, file-based content management system. There is no database, no admin panel, and no build step. Your file system is the CMS.

• File-based routing — drop a PHP or Markdown file into pages/ and it becomes a URL.
• Composable layouts — mix and match headers, layouts, and footers per page via simple config arrays.
• Zero dependencies — only requires PHP and Apache with mod_rewrite. No Composer, no Node, no database.
• AI-friendly — simple conventions make it easy for AI agents to generate entire pages and sections.

How it works

Every request flows through a single index.php entry point. The routing resolution chain determines which file to load:

1. 1 The URL path is sanitized (query params stripped, traversal characters removed, segments lowercased).
2. 2 Bolt checks for pages/{path}.php (direct file match).
3. 3 If no direct match, checks pages/{path}/index.php (directory-based).
4. 4 The matched file sets $page['config'] and captures content via output buffering.
5. 5 The HTML shell renders the specified header, layout (with content injected), and footer.