Ideal Age Gate – Documentation
Ideal Age Gate shows a full-screen window asking visitors to confirm their age before entering the site. This guide covers installation, the Joomla module, the YOOtheme Pro element and the settings.
Requirements
- Joomla 4.4, 5 or 6 and PHP 8.1 or later
- YOOtheme Pro 4 or 5 for the builder element (the module works with any template)
- No licence key: the extension is free
Installation
- On the Ideal Age Gate page, click « Free download » and confirm the 0.– order.
- Download the ZIP from « My orders ».
- In Joomla: System › Install › Extensions, upload the ZIP. The module, the plugin and the YOOtheme Pro element are installed and enabled.
Updates then show up in System › Update › Extensions, no key needed.
Former « Age Gate » module (mod_agegate): install Ideal Age Gate over it. Every module is converted automatically (same position, pages and settings), then the old module is removed. Visitors who already confirmed are not asked again.
With the Joomla module
- Content › Site Modules › New › Ideal Age Gate.
- Choose any template position (the window always covers the whole screen) and hide the module title.
- Menu Assignment tab: « On all pages except those selected », then select your legal pages (legal notice, privacy policy) so they stay readable.
- Choose the type of site and the minimum age, save.
To test, enable Behaviour › Test mode: always show; switch it off before going live.
With YOOtheme Pro
In the page builder, add the Ideal Age Gate element (IdealPC group). The window protects the page where the element is placed; in the builder it is shown as a preview inside the page so you can set it up. To protect the whole site, place the element in the Footer builder or use the Joomla module.
The « YOOtheme Pro » style uses the cards, headings and buttons of your theme.
Settings
- Type of site
- Generic, alcohol, tobacco and vape, CBD, adult content, gambling: sets the default texts, in the language of each page (EN, FR, DE, IT).
- Minimum age
- Used in the texts ({age}), on the « 18+ » icon and to check the date of birth. In Switzerland for example: 16 for beer and wine, 18 for spirits and tobacco.
- Question
- Yes / No buttons, or date of birth (the age is calculated in the browser, nothing is sent).
- Texts
- Title, text and buttons: leave empty for the ready-made text, or write your own ({age} is replaced by the minimum age).
- Refusal
- Message with « Back » and « Leave the site » (previous site or Google, an address or a menu item), or direct redirection. Choose a page that is not protected by the window.
- Style
- Light, dark, YOOtheme Pro or custom colours; width, rounded corners, shadow, overlay colour and opacity, blur, « Hide the page behind » option.
- Icon, logo, image
- « 18+ » age badge, prohibition sign or your own image; logo with link; image at the top, bottom or side.
- Ask again
- When the browser is closed, the next day (midnight), after a number of hours or days.
- Logged-in users
- Option to never show the window to logged-in users.
Cookie and privacy
Ideal Age Gate only stores a technical cookie idealagegate=1 in the visitor’s browser; no personal data is sent, the date of birth stays in the browser. Mention this cookie in your privacy policy.
This is a declaration of age, not an identity check. For online sales of alcohol or tobacco, add the check required by law at checkout or delivery.
Frequently asked questions
- The window does not appear.
- Check that the module is published and assigned to the page, that you have not already confirmed (cookie: test in a private window or enable test mode) and that « Not for logged-in users » is not enabled.
- My legal pages are blocked.
- Exclude them from the module assignment (« On all pages except those selected »).
- Does it work with page caching?
- Yes: the decision to show the window is made in the browser.
- Does Google see my content?
- Yes: the content stays in the page, the window is shown on top of it.
Support
A question, a bug, an idea? Write to