Dear Readers,

Drupal might have a perception problem, notes John Picozzi in his latest blog post about the challenges Drupal faces despite its advancements. With Drupal 7 officially retiring and Drupal CMS v1 launching, Drupal has had significant changes in the beginning of the year itself.

"Although his learning curve became a meme, his approach imposed on you a working methodology that, at the time (2011!!), made you feel like Neo from the Matrix with a module and a couple of hooks placed well. And then that hierarchy of templates that allowed you to touch every point of the output: wonder."

shares Lorenzo Luci, a Drupal Specialist, about the official Drupal 7 end of life.

Drupal is a powerful open-source content management framework with a vibrant community and a strong commitment to the Digital Public Good philosophy. Despite its advancements in performance, usability, and scalability with versions 8, 9, and 10, Drupal continues to struggle with outdated perceptions that label it as an "old" and developer-focused CMS.

“The fact that Drupal is considered an ‘old’ CMS by some is laughable. Anyone with an informed and current point of view knows that Drupal is one of the more modern content frameworks on the market.”

notes John.

Negative experiences with poorly implemented older versions and misconceptions about open-source security contribute to this perception issue. However, Drupal’s robust security measures, continuous improvements, and commitment to transparency make it one of the most modern and secure platforms available. Addressing these misunderstandings requires educating stakeholders about Drupal's capabilities, such as its multi-site strengths, API-first approach, and seamless upgrade paths that eliminate the need for full rebuilds.

To combat Drupal's perception challenges, it's crucial to highlight its modern advancements, community-driven initiatives, and evolving ease of use. The introduction of tools like Experience Builder and Project Browser simplifies site-building and content management, addressing concerns about Drupal's learning curve. The Promote Drupal initiative and the newly formed Drupal marketing team are working to reshape its image, emphasizing strengths in scalability, structured content delivery, and third-party integrations. Drupal's open-source nature fosters innovation and collaboration, while the ongoing transformation of Drupal.org provides a more engaging, accessible platform to attract new users. By leveraging webinars, case studies, and community advocacy, Drupal can continue to dispel outdated notions and position itself as a powerful, future-ready CMS.

Here are the important stories from the past week.

Interviews

• The Making of DDEV: Past, Present and Future in Focus

Discover Drupal

• Date Range Availability Module for Managing Entity Availability in Drupal

Events

• DrupalCon Singapore 2024 Recap
• MidCamp 2025: Tech Conference Focused on Learning, Networking, and Growth
• Keynote Speakers Announced for Drupal Mountain Camp 2025 in Davos
• EU Open Source Policy Summit 2025 to Define Europe’s Digital Future
• Lullabot Webinar: Enhancing Drupal CMS with Olivero Theme Extensions
• Events of the Week: January 27 - February 02, 2025

Organization News

• Concord Debuts Multi-CMS Compliance Solution, Including New Drupal Module
• DDEV v1.24.2 Brings MySQL 8.4 and Key Updates
• RVO Cuts Costs by €10,000 Annually with Drupal and Webforms Module
• Bounteous and Accolite Rebrand Under Unified Bounteous Name
   

We acknowledge that there are more stories to share. However, due to selection constraints, we must pause further exploration for now.

To get timely updates, follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. You can also join us on Drupal Slack at #thedroptimes.

Thank you, 
Sincerely 
Alka Elizabeth 
Sub-editor, The DropTimes.

Sometimes, the Drupal site's navigation feels like a maze. Well, Drupal has heard your pleas and delivered a game-changer: the new Navigation Sidebar module. Hot off the presses and integrated right into Drupal core, this module is poised to revolutionize the way you navigate your site, opening up a world of possibilities. 
A team of enthusiasts and true Drupal professionals recently introduced a new Navigation Sidebar module. At the moment, this is an experimental solution. Its main task is to improve the administrative interface and simplify the management process significantly. And today, almost everyone can try out its new functions. Therefore, Golems Drupal web developers are excited to find out what features this module has and what opportunities it provides.

Authored by 

A CMS system is the foundation of any modern website or business platform. Choosing the right tool that adapts to a company's needs is crucial for effective content management. In this article, I’ll provide a detailed guide on understanding and matching a CMS to an organization's requirements. I’ll use the flexible and functional Drupal as an example. I invite you to read the article or watch an episode of “Nowoczesny Drupal” series.

The AI TMGMT (Translation Management) module is an AI translator plugin for the Translation Management Tools (TMGMT) project. It leverages the AI Module to allow you to use OpenAI, Ollama, and various other providers (it is both free and paid). This also ensures you can always access the trendiest and most cost-effective models for automated and accurate content translation. 

Related Blog: Learn how to set up a multilingual site in Drupal transition Module 

Key Features Of TMGMT

Given below are the key features overview of TMGMT:

Drupal's log system

To understand the limitations of the Drupal log and the improvements introduced by Monolog, it is first necessary to know what both systems consist of.

What does Drupal provide us with?

The most commonly used logging system that Drupal offers is dblog, a tool that logs events and errors that happen on the site, storing these logs directly in the system's database. Although dblog is useful for its accessibility and simplicity of integration, it can present significant performance issues when dealing with a high amount of traffic or frequent and massive logs.

On the other hand, there is syslog, a more robust alternative for log management. It allows system administrators to collect and store log messages on a dedicated server, thereby centralizing logs from multiple systems in a single location. However, it can be more complex to configure and is less accessible for users with limited system knowledge.

What if I don't want everything to go to the same place?

Drupal natively only allows you to choose one way to manage all logs. Sometimes, we need logs to be stored differently depending on their source. For this purpose, Monolog allows the management of each channel, enabling the processing of messages, selection of their format, and their destination.

In the context of this article, we want to keep dblog for…

Are you ready to migrate with confidence? Our newest migration guide shares proven techniques for transforming field collection data into paragraph entities, including proper entity reference handling, revision management, and custom process plugins for field transformations. Insights from our experts will help your team deliver successful results.

Discover how Drupal CMS 1.0 stacks up against WordPress in our detailed performance comparison! From front-end optimization to back-end efficiency, we dive into caching strategies, responsive images, and real-world scenarios to reveal which CMS delivers the best out-of-the-box experience.

Supporting Drupal 7 Beyond EOL: Dropsolid’s Comprehensive Commitment to the Community

As of January 5, 2025, the Drupal 7 End-of-Life (EOL) has officially passed, marking the end of an era for a platform that has powered countless digital experiences for well over a decade. While many organizations have already migrated to newer versions of Drupal, thousands of mission-critical Drupal 7 sites are still in use. For these organizations, the challenge now is keeping their sites secure, stable, and compliant in a post-EOL world. At Dropsolid, we’ve taken on the responsibility of helping the Drupal community navigate this transition, ensuring that Drupal 7 sites can continue to thrive while organizations plan their next steps.

Our Mission: Safeguarding Drupal 7 Websites with Unparalleled Expertise

Our mission is simple: to safeguard Drupal 7 websites while continuing to contribute to the open-source ecosystem that has given us so much. We achieve this through a multifaceted approach that leverages our extensive assets and expertise.

Why Drupal 7 Still Matters

Supporting Drupal 7 beyond its official EOL date is critical. It ensures that organizations can continue to operate their websites safely while taking the time to plan their long-term digital strategies. Drupal 7 has empowered organizations of all sizes, from large enterprises to local nonprofits. Our goal is to ensure that these organizations don’t have to compromise on security or performance simply because they haven’t migrated yet.

How Dropsolid is Supporting Drupal 7 Users

Our approach to Drupal 7 post-EOL support is built on our comprehensive assets and deep community involvement. Here’s how we’re supporting Drupal 7 users beyond EOL:

• Proactive Security Updates: We provide high-value security patches to address emerging vulnerabilities and keep sites secure in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
• Performance Optimization: We ensure that Drupal 7 sites remain fast and reliable, even as web standards continue to evolve.
• Custom Development Support: We help organizations maintain and enhance custom functionality on their Drupal 7 sites, ensuring that their unique needs continue to be met.
• Compliance Monitoring: We work with organizations to ensure that their sites remain compliant with GDPR, accessibility standards, and other regulations.
• Bug Bounty Program: Our bug bounty program delivers a higher probability of detecting issues first, providing enhanced protection for your sites.
• ISO27001 Certification: Our entire company, including our Drupal 7 processes, services, support desk, DevOps/hosting platform, and DXP, are ISO27001 certified. This ensures that everything operates at the highest standards.
• Expert Drupal 7 Team: We have the most Drupal 7 developers on staff and can source Drupal 7 experts, ensuring you can continue on D7 and even introduce new features.
• Experienced Security Team: With 13 years of dedicated security team members, we provide security advisory for other open-source projects like Mautic, making us well-rounded security experts.
• Comprehensive Drupal and DXP Support: We offer a wide range of services for Drupal, Mautic, and open DXP, helping you with much more than just Drupal 7.
• Seamless Migration Services: We handle migrations from Drupal 7 to Drupal 11, ensuring both your past and future are secure and up-to-date.
• Dedicated Multitiered Support Department: Our support includes first, second, and third-line support, supplemented by AI-driven agents for maintenance and support, delivering the highest quality service.
• Advanced DevOps and Hosting Platform: We are the only provider with a DevOps and hosting platform that automates beyond ordinary Drupal and security agencies. As a tech product company, we invest deeply in AI to enhance our customers' security.
• Scalable Security Management: Unlike others, we do not offer free patches on platforms we don’t control, nor do we introduce security issues for our customers. We handle security at scale, ensuring your site’s integrity.

We Are Unique: Security Experts and Top-Notch Drupal Service Providers

Dropsolid stands alone as the only provider that is both a security expert and a top-tier Drupal service and platform provider. We are an enterprise category provider that guarantees quality and exceptional service, ensuring that your Drupal 7 sites remain secure and performant long after EOL.

The Critical Importance of Security and Support

In today’s digital landscape, security is paramount. Having the best patches and support is not just important—it’s essential. Without robust security measures and reliable support, organizations risk exposing their sites to vulnerabilities, data breaches, and compliance issues. Dropsolid offers the highest level of security and support, acting as the best insurance against potential threats and ensuring your digital assets remain protected.

Contributing Back to the Drupal Ecosystem

At Dropsolid, community involvement is central to everything we do. Supporting Drupal 7 users post-EOL is an extension of our commitment to the open-source community. Through our maker-taker model, we ensure that contributions to the community are shared among collaborators. By partnering with organizations that need extended Drupal 7 support, we reinvest in the Drupal project through revenue-sharing initiatives and direct contributions to the Drupal Association.

Lessons Learned from the Drupal 7 Transition

The Drupal 7 EOL transition has been a learning experience for the entire community. We’ve learned that every organization’s journey is different. While some businesses are ready to migrate to Drupal 11 or a modern DXP, others need more time to plan their migration path. Community-driven support models are essential for ensuring that all Drupal users are cared for, regardless of their version. By working closely with other D7 Extended Support providers, the Drupal Security Team, and the Drupal Association, we’ve shared knowledge, coordinated security efforts, and ensured that Drupal 7 sites remain secure.

Looking Ahead: Building a Secure Future Together

As we look beyond the Drupal 7 EOL, our focus remains on supporting the community and helping organizations build secure, future-ready digital experiences. The strength of Drupal lies in its people—the developers, site owners, contributors, and partners who make this ecosystem what it is. Whether your organization is planning a migration or needs help maintaining a Drupal 7 site, Dropsolid is committed to being a trusted partner in your journey. Our team is ready to work with the community to keep Drupal secure, open, and thriving.

Why Choose Dropsolid?

• Unmatched Security Expertise: With a dedicated security team of 13 years, ISO27001 certification, and a robust bug bounty program, Dropsolid ensures your Drupal 7 site is protected at the highest standards.
• Comprehensive Support and Services: From performance optimization and custom development to seamless migrations and AI-driven support, we offer a wide range of services tailored to your needs.
• Top-Tier Drupal Expertise: Our extensive team of Drupal 7 developers and ability to source experts guarantee that your site remains functional and can even evolve with new features.
• Advanced Technology Integration: Our DevOps and hosting platform, combined with deep investments in AI, provide automated, secure, and scalable solutions beyond what ordinary Drupal agencies offer.
• Enterprise-Grade Quality and Service: As an enterprise category provider, we guarantee exceptional quality and service, ensuring that your digital infrastructure is robust and reliable.

Secure Your Future with Dropsolid

The importance of security and having the best patches and support cannot be overstated. In a world where digital threats are constantly evolving, you cannot afford to take risks with your website’s security. Dropsolid provides the best insurance by delivering unparalleled security, support, and expertise, ensuring that your Drupal 7 site remains secure, stable, and compliant long after EOL.

Contact Us Today

Don’t leave the security and stability of your Drupal 7 site to chance. Partner with Dropsolid and leverage our comprehensive support, advanced security measures, and unmatched expertise to keep your digital presence strong and secure. Together, we’ll navigate the post-EOL landscape and build a safer, more resilient future for Drupal.

The Importance of Security and Top-Notch Support

In the digital age, the security of your website is paramount. Without the best patches and reliable support, your site becomes vulnerable to cyber threats, which can lead to data breaches, financial loss, and damage to your reputation. Investing in top-tier security and support is not just a precaution—it’s a necessity. Dropsolid understands the critical nature of these needs and offers unparalleled solutions to ensure your Drupal 7 site remains secure and operational. Don’t risk your digital assets; choose Dropsolid for the best protection and peace of mind.