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Review: Joomla 1.7

updated 21 October 2026

Joomla 1.7 came six months after 1.6 as the first release in the new six-month rhythm and was built on the separate Joomla Platform. For this review we installed Joomla 1.7.5 of 2 February 2012, the last version of this line, and photographed it.

Series "Joomla history" · minor version · back to Review: Joomla 1.6 · next: Review: Joomla 2.5

Released19 July 2011 (Joomla 1.7.0)
Last version1.7.5 of 2 February 2012 (6 versions)
Followed byJoomla 2.5 on 24 January 2012
RequirementsPHP from 5.2.4
TemplatesBeez2 (default), Atomic, Beez5; Bluestork in the backend, Hathor
Included in the installation109 extensions
End of supportEnd of Life: Joomla 1.7

What was new in Joomla 1.7

According to the Joomla 1.7 announcement:

  • The new Joomla Platform as the foundation.
  • TinyMCE 3.4 and PHP and HTML modes for CodeMirror.
  • Associations between menu items in different languages and new settings for the language switcher.
  • The Language Manager shows the installed languages in tabs.
  • Saved searches as a menu item and OpenSearch for the search.
  • Automatic database updates and an improved installation.
  • "Save & New" and "Save as Copy" buttons consistent across all components.
Joomla 1.7: The Language Manager with tabs
The Language Manager with tabs.
Joomla 1.7: Editing an article with TinyMCE 3.4
Editing an article with TinyMCE 3.4.

The installation

Joomla 1.7 installer: step 1
Step 1: the language of the installation.
Joomla 1.7 installer: step 2
Step 2: the server check.
Joomla 1.7 installer: step 3
Step 3: the licence, GNU GPL.
Joomla 1.7 installer: step 4
Step 4: the database.
Joomla 1.7 installer: step 5
Step 5: FTP – for servers where PHP may not write files.
Joomla 1.7 installer: step 6
Step 6: site name and login.
Joomla 1.7 installer: step 7
Step 7: done.

The website

Joomla 1.7: home page
The freshly installed website with the sample data.
Joomla 1.7: Sample Sites
The page "Sample Sites".
Joomla 1.7: Getting Started
The page "Getting Started".
Joomla 1.7: Using Joomla!
The page "Using Joomla!".
Joomla 1.7: The Joomla! Project
The page "The Joomla! Project".
Joomla 1.7: The Joomla! Community
The page "The Joomla! Community".
Joomla 1.7: Site Map
The page "Site Map".

The backend

Joomla 1.7: The backend login
The backend login.
Joomla 1.7: The control panel
The control panel.
Joomla 1.7: The
The "Content" menu.
Joomla 1.7: The article list
The article list.
Joomla 1.7: The categories
The categories.
Joomla 1.7: The items of a menu
The items of a menu.
Joomla 1.7: The modules of the website
The modules of the website.
Joomla 1.7: The plugins
The plugins.
Joomla 1.7: 109 extensions in a fresh installation
109 extensions in a fresh installation.
Joomla 1.7: The template styles
The template styles.
Joomla 1.7: The global configuration
The global configuration.
Joomla 1.7: The user groups
The user groups.
Joomla 1.7: The Media Manager
The Media Manager.
Joomla 1.7: System information – with PHP 5.6 from our test environment
System information – with PHP 5.6 from our test environment.
Joomla 1.7: Joomla Update
Joomla Update.

2011 and today

For comparison: the same views in a fresh Joomla 6.2.

Joomla 1.7.
2011Joomla 1.7.
Joomla 6.2.
2026Joomla 6.2.
Editing an article in 1.7.
2011Editing an article in 1.7.
Editing an article in 6.2.
2026Editing an article in 6.2.

All 6 versions of Joomla 1.7

According to the Joomla downloads:

  1. 1.7.019 Jul 2011
  2. 1.7.126 Sep 2011
  3. 1.7.217 Oct 2011
  4. 1.7.314 Nov 2011
  5. 1.7.424 Jan 2012
  6. 1.7.52 Feb 2012

From Joomla 1.6 to 2.5

VersionFirst releaseLast releaseVersions
Joomla 1.610 Jan 20111.6.6 · 26 Jul 20117
Joomla 1.719 Jul 20111.7.5 · 2 Feb 20126

Still running a website on Joomla 1.7?

It gets no security updates any more. We bring it to Joomla 6 – we name the effort after an inventory.

See Joomla update and migration

How we did it: Joomla 1.7.5 in the original package from downloads.joomla.org, locally in Docker with PHP 5.6 and MySQL 5.5, reachable only on our own machine, files unchanged, with the default sample data. PHP error display is switched off so that notices about outdated functions do not cover the pictures.

Sources: Joomla 1.7 announcement, Joomla downloads and our own screenshots. As of 21 October 2026.

From Joomla 1.6 to Joomla 2.5

All parts of the series "Joomla history"

  1. Part 1: Joomla 1.0 (2005)
  2. Part 2: Joomla 1.5 (2008)
  3. Part 3: Joomla 2.5 (2012)
  4. Part 4: Joomla 3.0 (2012)
  5. Part 5: Joomla 4.0 (2021)
  6. Part 6: Joomla 5.0 (2023)
  7. Part 7: Joomla 6.0 (2025)
Ufuk Avcu

Owner and developer of the Joomla Agency. Has been building and looking after Joomla websites since 2009.

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