What is template overriding and why is it important?
Template overriding is a technique used to customize a template file without modifying the core file of a plugin. This is important because modifying the core file directly can cause issues when the plugin is updated. When you make changes to the core file, a new update can override all of your changes, resulting in lost customization work. By using template overriding, you can customize the template file while maintaining the integrity of the core file, ensuring your customizations persist even after updates.
For example, Team Members Plugin offers a robust templating system that enables you to override all the default template files without making any changes to the plugin code. This means you can easily customize the Team Members Plugin template files without worrying about updates overwriting your changes.
All templates are available inside gs-team-members/templates
To override templates, create a folder named gs-team in your current themes folder, and you can override the files from the templates of the plugin.
For example, to overwrite a single team template copy gs-team-single-default.php from /gs-team-members/templates/singles/gs-team-single-default.php to /yourtheme/gs-team/singles/gs-team-single.php and make the required changes. You’ll see the changes in the front end.
By doing this, you can customize the plugin’s templates without modifying its core code, which will prevent the changes from being overwritten during future updates.
The default path for template override is: gs-team
Copy any file from the plugin templates folder to /themes/theme-name/gs-team folder and override them accordingly.
However, if the user wants to set up his folder something like this: themes/theme-name/templates/gs-team
This is also possible, just need to add a filter in this theme to change the default path.
Here’s it:
add_filter( 'gsteam_templates_folder', function() {
return 'templates/gs-team';
});
The partial templates can be found in gs-team-members/templates/partials. You can override these templates in a similar manner, by copying them to yourtheme/gs-team/partials.
NOTE: When customizing a Team plugin file, it’s best to use a child theme instead of the main theme. This preserves your customizations through theme updates without affecting the parent theme.