JoomCRM can connect your CRM contacts to your Joomla site members. When a Person is added in JoomCRM it can automatically create (or link to) a Joomla user account, keep the user and the CRM record in sync in both directions, and — when Community Builder is installed — create a matching CB profile at the same time.
The integration is delivered by two plugins plus optional Community Builder support:
| Piece | Type | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| JoomCRM – Auto User Creation | JoomCRM plugin (group joomcrm) |
Creates or links a Joomla user account — and a Community Builder profile — when a new Person is saved. |
| User – JoomCRM | Joomla user plugin (group user) |
Two-way synchronisation between a Joomla user and the linked JoomCRM person, including custom fields. |
| Community Builder | Third-party component (com_comprofiler) |
Detected automatically. When present, a CB profile is created alongside the Joomla user. |
You can see the live status of all three at any time under Administrator → JoomCRM → Integrations (Membership group).
1. Joomla User Integration (Auto User Creation)
The JoomCRM – Auto User Creation plugin links the CRM to Joomla's user system. Its behaviour is driven entirely by JoomCRM's configuration, so there is nothing to set inside the plugin itself — you only need to make sure it is enabled.
Enabling it
- Go to System → Manage → Plugins.
- Search for JoomCRM – Auto User Creation and enable it.
- Configure the behaviour in Components → JoomCRM → Options → Users (see below).
Configuration options (Components → JoomCRM → Options → Users)
| Setting | Options | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Create Joomla user on Person create | Off / Opt-in / Always | Off – no account is created. Opt-in – a “create user account” checkbox appears on the person form; the account is only created when it is ticked. Always – an account is created for every new person that has an email address. |
| Opt-in default checked | Yes / No | Only shown in Opt-in mode. Pre-ticks the “create user account” checkbox on the person form. |
| User group | Joomla user groups | The group assigned to newly created accounts. Defaults to Registered. If left empty, JoomCRM falls back to the default group configured in Users → Options. |
| Activation | Inherit / None / Self / Administrator | Inherit – use the Joomla Users activation setting. None – account is active immediately. Self – user activates via an emailed link. Administrator – account stays blocked until an administrator approves it. |
| Send email | Yes / No | Email the new user their username and a randomly generated password (which they reset on first login). |
| Subscribe to AcyMailing | Yes / No | Subscribe the new user to an AcyMailing list. Requires AcyMailing to be selected as the integration under the Mailing Lists tab. |
| AcyMailing list | List picker | Only shown when the option above is enabled. The list the new user is subscribed to. |
How account creation works
When a new Person is saved, the plugin runs through the following logic:
- If the person has no email address, nothing happens.
- If the mode is Off, nothing happens.
- Accounts are only created for newly created people, never on edits.
- In Opt-in mode the “create user account” checkbox must have been ticked.
- If the person is already linked to a Joomla user, no duplicate is created (only the optional AcyMailing subscription runs).
- If a Joomla user with the same email already exists, account creation is skipped to avoid a duplicate username/email.
- Otherwise a Joomla user is created: the username is the email address, the display name is the person’s first + last name, and a random password is generated. If activation is required, the account is blocked and an activation token is issued.
- If Community Builder is installed, a CB profile is created (see section 3).
- The person record is linked to the new user (the person’s
uidstores the Joomla user ID). - If “Send email” is on, the credentials email is sent.
- The optional AcyMailing subscription runs.
Linking to existing users
Linking does not require account creation to be enabled. Whenever a person is saved, JoomCRM looks for a Joomla user whose email matches the person’s email and that is not yet linked to any other person. If one is found, the person is automatically linked to that existing user. This means importing or editing contacts whose emails already belong to site members will connect them without creating duplicates.
2. Two-Way Synchronisation (User – JoomCRM plugin)
The User – JoomCRM plugin keeps a linked Joomla user and JoomCRM person in step. Synchronisation only applies to users whose user group is in the plugin’s Allowed User Groups list.
| Direction | Trigger | What is synced |
|---|---|---|
| Joomla user → CRM person | A Joomla user is updated (not on creation) | The linked person’s email is updated to match the user’s email. |
| CRM person → Joomla user | A linked person is saved in JoomCRM | The Joomla user’s name and email are updated, and mapped custom fields are written to the user. |
Plugin settings (System → Plugins → User – JoomCRM)
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Allowed User Groups | Only users in the selected groups are synchronised. Defaults to Registered. Multiple groups can be selected. |
| Enable Integration (Custom Fields → Person Sync) | Turns on mapping of JoomCRM person fields to Joomla user custom fields. |
| Field mapping | For each person field you want to sync, choose the matching Joomla Users custom field. Only mapped fields are written. |
Custom-field mapping
When the Person Sync integration is enabled, JoomCRM can copy person data into Joomla Users custom fields. You must first create the custom fields under Users → Manage → Fields, then map each one in the plugin. The following person fields can be mapped:
| Group | Person fields available for mapping |
|---|---|
| Identity | First Name, Last Name, Company Name, Position, Person Type (Contact / Lead), Source Name |
| Phone | Phone, Mobile Phone, Home Phone, Fax |
| Email, Home Email, Other Email | |
| Home address | Address 1, Address 2, City, State, Zip, Country |
| Work address | Address 1, Address 2, City, State, Zip, Country |
| Other | Website, Extra Info, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn |
Note: Company Name and Source Name are resolved to their readable names automatically (from the company and source the person is linked to), not stored as raw IDs.
3. Community Builder Integration
Community Builder support is automatic: nothing extra needs to be switched on inside JoomCRM. As long as Community Builder (com_comprofiler) is installed and enabled, JoomCRM detects it and includes it in the account-creation flow.
What happens
- When the Auto User Creation plugin creates a Joomla user, it also creates a matching Community Builder profile for that user.
- A CB profile’s ID mirrors the Joomla user ID. Because Community Builder does not provide an after-save hook for users created through the Joomla API, JoomCRM creates the profile row directly — the same way CB’s own “Synchronize Users” tool does. The profile is created approved, confirmed and active, with the person’s first and last name.
- If a CB profile already exists for that user (for example from a previous CB sync), JoomCRM leaves it untouched.
- If Community Builder is not installed, this step is simply skipped — the Joomla user is still created normally.
Requirements
| Requirement | Why |
|---|---|
| Community Builder installed and enabled | JoomCRM only creates CB profiles when com_comprofiler is active. |
| Auto User Creation plugin enabled | The CB profile is created as part of the user-creation flow. |
| Create mode set to Opt-in or Always | A Joomla user (and therefore a CB profile) is only created when a Person triggers account creation. |
Tip: Community Builder also ships its own system plugin that reroutes Joomla’s login, registration and profile URLs to the equivalent CB pages. That is independent of JoomCRM, but it means once CB is active your members manage their profiles through CB rather than the default Joomla user views.
Quick Setup Checklist
- Enable the JoomCRM – Auto User Creation plugin.
- In Components → JoomCRM → Options → Users, set the create mode (Opt-in or Always), user group, activation and email options.
- Enable the User – JoomCRM plugin and set the Allowed User Groups (and, optionally, custom-field mapping).
- If you use Community Builder, just make sure it is installed and enabled — profiles are created automatically.
- Add a Person with an email address and confirm the Joomla user (and CB profile) is created, then edit the person to confirm two-way sync.