Description:
After upgrading to 1.0.9 all the read more links result in a "you are not authorised to view this resource" message

Reported on:
1.0.9

Classification:
Critical

Affected functions:
Ability of users to read more

Related files:
unknown

Steps to replicate:
Go to http://ckmsfm.ca and try any of the Read More links.

Analysis:


Proposed fix(es):


Topic / Artifact ID:
Enter the crosss reference for topic or artifact id/url when submitted?

System info:
Mac OSX 10.4.6, Camino 1.0.1

  -- Bill

After exploring a bit I've found that this error is inconsistent.

The Newsflash module is displayed on three pages on our site: Home, CKMS Events, and Webcast. When you're on the CKMS Events page the Read More links work - elsewhere they don't.

I've checked that the access for all the affected content and menu items is "Public". I've emptied Joomla's trash and cleared my browser's cache. Caching is off in Global Configuration. SEF is on - if I turn it off other things break.

I have a local copy of the site running on my laptop and it displaye identical behaviour.

  -- Bill

All my "What's New" links are broken in this same way! Yoiks!
-forcing ALL users to create a userid to login -- geepers.

Colin
http://www.coffeecrew.com

What version did you upgrade from.



The problem is caused by the fact that your links may not have an Itemid value, e.g:
http://www.coffeecrew.com/content/view/358/
it should be something like:
http://www.coffeecrew.com/content/view/358/1/



An item may not have an itemid if the section or category that the content belongs to does not have a menu item in any of your emnus.
One way to resolve this is to create a `hidden` menu (one you dont publiish the mod_mainmenu module) and create a menu item links for all your sections

Yup - that is it! Thanks.
All 8 of my sites have been updated from 1.08, which used to be the previous version and the one before that!
Call me diligent!
Thanks!

Now if I can just figure out this "create and edit or save content from the front end issue"...

Cheers,

Colin
coffeecrew.com | bobharris.com | dxer.ca | wisdomee.com | elizabethwegerif.com | everydaycoffee.com | etc

Thanks to stingrey, I checked where the Read More links were pointing to.

For the ones that work, the url is , e.g. "http://ckmsfm.ca/content/view/173/126/"  << only on our "CKMS Events" page

for the ones that do not work, the url is "http://ckmsfm.ca/content/view/173/"  << on all other pages that display newsflashes.

However, I have no control over the url pointed to by the Read More links so I don't see how I can fix this with phantom menu items.

Meanwhile I've posted a message on the frontpage directing visitors to the page where they can actually read the newsflashes. Hopefully I won't have to revert to 1.0.8!

  -- Bill

Actually -- you do have control. I had the same issue with 20+ articles. It seems that there was no "linked menu item" as described above.
I did what the developer did (as outlined above) and bingo, it worked!

If you need me to e-mail you more detailed instructions or post screen shots, just say the word.
Initially, it did fry a few of my brain cells wrapping my mind around what he was describing.

One of my oldest sites has been diligently updated since the earliest versions of Mambo -- so you
can imagine that a couple of legacy issues still exist in the Db.

Colin

Well, I tried linking one of my newsflashes to a menu item with no improvement. Note that this link is to the newsflash content item, not specifically to the "main text" that is pointed to by the 'read more' link.

Does anyone know where the behaviour of the read more link is defined? I'd like to compare the 108 vs 109 files to see if there are any changes there. I've got my site mirrored on my laptop, so I may try replacing the 109 patch files one by one with the 108 files until the bug goes away - a tedious process at best.

The fact that the behaviour changes depending on what page the newsflash is displayed on might provide some clue as to why this is happening.

  -- Bill

Please pass along a URL -- I would love to take a closer look.

Colin
http://www.coffeecrew.com | http://www.bobharris.com | http://www.wisdomee.com | http://www.dxer.ca | http://www.everydaycoffee.com | http://www.elizabethwegerif.com

The ReadMore function has changed from 108 to 109

from components/com_content/content.html.php

108 version:
function ReadMore ( $params, $link_on, $link_text ) {
if ( $params->get( 'readmore' ) ) {
if ( $params->get( 'intro_only' ) && $link_text ) {
?>

I've been receiving the no-id error for SEF since I upgraded to 1.0.9 - going to try and apply the fix now

Hey!

I have upgraded to 1.0.9 and since then im having issues with permissions on read more on "news items"

I have set the news items to public so you don't need to be registered to view... yet it says

"Your Not authorized to view"

Is this a bug??? As i have had no issues with guests viewing news items before....

http://www.knightrideruk.co.uk , if you view the top news item then click read more... it wont let you.

Really hope someone can help me fix this.

Nick

first thing you should fix is the extra trailing slash in your site url
http://www.knightrideruk.co.uk/site//index.php

you most likely need to remove the trailing slash from you mosconfiglivesite url in your configuration.php

problems with readmore links are probably because you do not seem to have any menu link that covers the item in question

when making links such as the readmore link, jooml tries to work out an Itemid  (this is actually the id of a menu item) for the article so that it can get module assignments, template assignments etc.

As you do not have a menu covering the latest news category or news section, joomla cannot work out the Itemid

This may not always have caused an error before.

If you do not want to show a menu link to e.g. the latest news category, you can create a "hidden" menu link in an unused menu and simply do not publish the associated module for that menu.

It has been suggested several times in several threads that the way to resolve this issue is to create a fake-menu and then fake-menu-items so that Joomla can assign an itemID to the Read more link. At first I though that I had to create a new menu item for each Newsflash, but have since realized that is not the case - you just need to create a fake-menu (unpublished) then a fake-menu-item (published) that is a "Table - Content Category - Newsflash".

My apologies if this has been explained elsewhere in better detail, but since I just finally figured it out using this logic I thought others might find it helpful.

Step by step:
This example assumes that you have Section:Newflashes / Category: Newsflash

1) Create a new menu (mod_mainmenu) with any name - "fakemenu" would at least remind you what this menu is there for. Set it to unpublished.
2) Create a menu item in the fake menu with the name "Newsflashes" and make it of type "Table - Content Category" - "Newflashes/Newsflash". Make it published. The name is important because it will be displayed in the pathway text. Set "Other Catefories" to "Hide" and "Empty Categories" to "Hide"

Now when you click on the Read more link in a Newsflash you will be taken to the Main Text of that Newsflash. Success!

Why I say "semi-resolved".
This method (which apparently is required for Joomla to work - the fact that the Read mores worked in 1.0.8 was apparently a bug) creates some (possibly) unwanted side effects:
1) When you click the Read more link in a newsflash the pathway text says (something like) "Home - Newsflashes - (item title).
2) At the bottom of the Main text you have the Prev and Next buttons for paging through active newsflashes
3) The user can click "Newsflashes" in the pathway text to get to the Content Category Table for newsflashes.

Also, this works only for newsflashes. If you have any other content items with Read More links you need to go through the same process - with the same side effects - for each of those content categories. This means that it is even more important to think about what content category something should belong to, since the user will be able to get to a Content Category Table containing that content item and what is displayed in the pathway text should at least make some sense. if one could turn off the pathway text display for any given Content Category Table most of the ickiness would go away.

Hope this is of help to someone....

Have a look at http://ckmsfm.ca/

  -- Bill

It has been suggested several times in several threads that the way to resolve this issue is to create a fake-menu and then fake-menu-items so that Joomla can assign an itemID to the Read more link. At first I though that I had to create a new menu item for each Newsflash, but have since realized that is not the case - you just need to create a fake-menu (unpublished) then a fake-menu-item (published) that is a "Table - Content Category - Newsflash".

My apologies if this has been explained elsewhere in better detail, but since I just finally figured it out using this logic I thought others might find it helpful.

Step by step:
This example assumes that you have Section:Newflashes / Category: Newsflash - substitute whatever Section and Category you are dealing with.

1) Create a new menu (mod_mainmenu) with any name - "fakemenu" would at least remind you what this menu is there for. Set it to unpublished.
2) Create a menu item in the fake menu with the name "Newsflashes" and make it of type "Table - Content Category" - "Newflashes/Newsflash". Make it published. The name is important because it will be displayed in the pathway text. Set "Other Categories" to "Hide" and "Empty Categories" to "Hide"

Now when you click on the Read more link in a Newsflash you will be taken to the Main Text of that Newsflash. Success!

Why I say "semi-resolved".
This method (which apparently is required for Joomla to work - the fact that the Read mores worked in 1.0.8 was apparently a bug) creates some (possibly) unwanted side effects:
1) When you click the Read more link in a newsflash the pathway text says (something like) "Home - Newsflashes - (item title).
2) At the bottom of the Main text you have the Prev and Next buttons for paging through active newsflashes
3) The user can click "Newsflashes" in the pathway text to get to the Content Category Table for newsflashes.

Also, this works only for newsflashes. If you have any other content items with Read More links you need to go through the same process - with the same side effects - for each of those content categories. This means that it is even more important to think about what content category something should belong to, since the user will be able to get to a Content Category Table containing that content item and what is displayed in the pathway text should at least make some sense. if one could turn off the pathway text display for any given Content Category Table most of the ickiness would go away.

Hope this is of help to someone....

Have a look at http://ckmsfm.ca/

  -- Bill

cool!!! thanks so much for the reply!!! Once i get to work i will check both ways out. I will let you know how i got on!!

Many thanks

Nick

Your a star!!!! Thanks so much indeed!!!!!

Nick

Hi billw,

I'd like to say thanks too for such a clear explanation of what to do Although I knew I had to create a fake menu (which I called hidden_menu) your instructions were so straightforward that I did it really quickly and it worked! I had been using Content rather than Table.

Kind Regards
Mosey

The text displayed in the pathway text is based on the menu item title, not the section name. So by appropriately naming the menu item you can have the pathway text make sense to the user.

If you set "Show Title" to "Off" for the menu item, the title bar (which, as I recall, will be the section name for a "Blog - Content Section") will be hidden. Thus it shouldn't matter what Section and Category the item belongs to, at least in terms of what the user sees.

  -- Bill

Hi Bill,

Thanks for the added information e.g. step-by-step. Will be marking the topic RESOLVED and moving it to the Resolved forum.

Should this issue really be marked as resolved? Sure, there is a work-around in place - but wouldn't it be better to think about whether Joomla's handling of the current situation is the best way to handle it?

Let's consider something for a moment. There are a lot of people who will be affected by this issue after upgrading. Maybe most of them have a basic idea about Joomla and will make their way to this thread, spend some time implementing the work around and then not think any more about it.

But aren't we trying to get more "simple" users to use Joomla by making it easier to use? How do we explain to such a user (and I have personally recommened Joomla to many such people) that parts of their website now appear to be broken after an upgrade, and it is because they haven't linked their content item to a menu. Many such users might say something like "But why did I have to link it to a menu?" This would indeed be a very good question...

My point is this - we now seem to have some stricter behaviour than in the past, in addition sometimes it seems to be strict, and other times not. Are we talking about a bug or a feature?

Surely there might be a better way to handle such a situation. For example:
1. Give a more meaningful error message
2. Force someone to assosciate content with a menu item when they create it
3. Build in a dummy menu function and apply it automatically to content which is not assosciated with a menu.
4. If a menu item isn't found on the URL then just display the content anyway and display the standard menu, or the last menu which was displayed.

Surely the above suggestions aren't that difficult and would make a lot of sense for all those people who don't appreciate finding that their site is partially broken after an upgrade? Surely this kind of thing will just make users nervous about future upgrades?

Please don't interpret my remarks as a criticism for those involved in the Q&A side of Joomla, but I just feel that too often we jump to the conclusion that a work-around is the same as resolving and issue and quite often it is not...

Hi mfyvie,

You have a very good point here, I'll get some feedback from my fellow J! Dev's about this, if it is a feature or bug.

I agree that we do indeed try to provide an easy to use CMS and we try to keep it that way. So any suggestions like this are appreciated.

Regards Robin

@mfyvie -

Sadly, we are not talking about a bug OR a feature. That's what makes this problem such a challenge -- we are talking about a key piece of the data architecture on which the entire Joomla! application depends.

It might be a good idea to go back and read Toubkal's remarks in Reply #12. Of all the times I have read posts and articles on this Itemid 'issue' (and its been written on a bunch!) his post put it into clearest perspective as to why not having Itemid can cause all kinds of navigational problems. And, the points he raises are irregardless of the "read more" issue.

The "read more" link problem being stopped, now, is a good thing! As people continue to build Joomla!, they will learn right away to use menu item Itemid values. Why? Because the architecture requires it.

If you walked the many posts in Mambo and Joomla! searching for the literal "not authorized," I would wager the vast majority of time, the underlying cause was found to be a link created inside of Joomla! to a Joomla! content item without using a menu item URL. Can you imagine how many hours of how many people's lives have already been invested in solving the missing Itemid problem?

The interface relies on Itemid, problems come from not having it, so anywhere in the code that holes are found with Itemid logic, these holes must be sewed up. That is how important it is!

Now, lest you think everyone is tickled pink about the Itemid, understand that the developers know that the reliance on the Itemid is a weakness of Joomla! and it is actively discussed as a future improvement needed. But that will not be easily accomplished as the Itemid is the PRIMARY driving force in this environment -- it all starts and ends with the Itemid. The data model is built on this structure. Changing the underlying data model is the BIGGEST change one can make to the application -- the ramifications to the code are horrendous.

I believe plans call for overhauling this data structure with v. 2. And, that's why they call it a road map -- they are getting every thing lined up to help reduce the complexity and impact of this change.

Now, mfyvie, I don't mean to make you feel bad, either. We all got to the same point in realization as you are at now. But, rest assured, the developers understand this completely, agree with your points, and are actively trying to figure out when it will be possible to fix it. But, it is a long-term, not short-term fix. Your specific ideas are really good - but, it's not quite as easy to implement as you are thinking. UNfortuately!

Amy

BTW - Here is an FAQ entry entitled WIP: ItemID problems - Possible solutions/workarounds < http://forum.joomla.org/index.php/topic,4259.0.html > I believe they basically brought it with them from Mambo. Just more evidence of how fundamental this issue is -- and how long its been with us.

And, another, FAQ: "You are not authorized to view this resource. You need to login." < http://forum.joomla.org/index.php/topic,19443.0.html > November 18, 2005

Nothing since then?
I'm glad I just found this, as many of our French users are reporting the same issue with 1.0.10, and I didn't know what was causing this!
Is this expected behaviour or a bug?
You really can't expect users to know they have to set up menus just so the readmore links work!?
And as been pointed out, even if unpublished, this menu title is used in the pathway and makes other content accessible by back-clicking!
If this is declared a feature, then this feature should've been coded differently.

Joe -

Please take a look at the thread in upgrading named ! Known issues/things to look out for in Joomla 1.0.10 < http://forum.joomla.org/index.php/topic ... #msg377206 >. There are also 3PD extensions that must be upgraded (four I believe) related to the ItemID fix. What I am suggesting, Joe, is that if they are encountering the "you need to login" error, it could be related to the "Read more" issue or one of these extensions. They should consider both.



I am not saying I like it. I, frankly, hate the ItemID. It is a mid-level data element that is used as a foundation component. That never works.

However, it has been this way since way before I joined you guys. I looked back at Mambo forum posts on this -- and I went back a couple of years. It was there then, too! I think KenMcD has written enough on this all by himself to fill a small library.

Talk is the data model will change w/ 2.0. This will likely be addressed at that time. Meanwhile, little holes are filled here and there, but it will never be good until the ItemID is gone as a foundation piece.

What can I say, Joe? No one likes it! But, we are talking facts of life at this point! Take care!
Amy

diri's comment has been split into a new topic.
You can find it here: http://forum.joomla.org/index.php/topic,80706.0.html

I put together a proposed FAQ item on this problem entitled 1.0.10 upgrade: Read more returns "you are not authorized" error and is located < http://forum.joomla.org/index.php/topic ... 25461.html >.

@BillW - the last step in the FAQ item addresses the pathway issue if you have not already resolved this yourself.  Those of you who have had and fixed this problem, if you would read the FAQ and provide me feedback (PM me) it would be appreciated. Thanks! Amy

Ok, now We are on 1.0.11 and this problem is resolved.
I've installed this new version and it worked fine, but how could i get it back???
I want my user to only be able to see the intro and register in order to see the full text.

Thanks a lot!