Ghost CMS

Support for Ghost CMS installation, theme development with Handlebars, CLI commands, API integration, theme validation, dynamic routing, deployment, and trou...

Themeix LLC@themeix

Install

openclaw skills install @themeix/openclaw-ghost-cms

Ghost CMS Skill

A comprehensive skill for Ghost CMS development, theme creation, and management.

Description

This skill provides complete Ghost CMS development support including installation, theme development with Handlebars, Ghost CLI commands, API integration (Content and Admin APIs), GScan validation, custom theme settings, dynamic routing, local development workflows, publishing, and deployment best practices.

Usage

Use this skill when you need help with:

Installing and configuring Ghost (local and production)
Using Ghost CLI commands for site management
Creating and customizing Ghost themes with Handlebars
Working with theme helpers (data, functional, utility)
Setting up theme structure and templates
Implementing custom theme settings
Using Content API and Admin API
Validating themes with GScan
Managing assets and images
Implementing dynamic routing with routes.yaml
Setting up local development workflow
Publishing and deploying themes
Troubleshooting Ghost issues
Security and performance optimization

Commands & Tools

Installation & Setup

bash

# Install Ghost CLI globally
npm install -g ghost-cli@latest

# Install Ghost locally for development
ghost install local

# Install Ghost in production
ghost install

Essential Ghost CLI Commands

bash

ghost start      # Start Ghost
ghost stop       # Stop Ghost
ghost restart    # Restart Ghost
ghost update     # Update Ghost to latest version
ghost ls         # List Ghost instances
ghost log        # View logs

Theme Development

Required Theme Structure

text

your-theme/
├── assets/
│   ├── css/
│   ├── fonts/
│   ├── images/
│   └── js/
├── partials/
│   ├── header.hbs
│   └── footer.hbs
├── default.hbs       # Base layout
├── index.hbs        # Required - post list
├── post.hbs         # Required - single post
├── page.hbs         # Static pages
├── tag.hbs          # Tag archive
├── author.hbs        # Author archive
├── error.hbs        # Error pages
└── package.json     # Required - theme metadata

Required Helpers (Must Include)

handlebars

{{ghost_head}}     <!-- In <head> section -->
{{ghost_foot}}     <!-- Before </body> -->
{{body_class}}     <!-- Dynamic body classes -->
{{asset "path"}}   <!-- Link to theme assets -->

Common Data Helpers

handlebars

{{#post}}...{{/post}}              <!-- Post context -->
{{#foreach posts}}...{{/foreach}}  <!-- Loop posts -->
{{title}}                         <!-- Page/post title -->
{{content}}                       <!-- Post content -->
{{excerpt}}                       <!-- Post excerpt -->
{{date format="YYYY-MM-DD"}}       <!-- Format dates -->
{{img_url feature_image}}          <!-- Image URL -->
{{url}}                           <!-- Current page URL -->
{{navigation}}                    <!-- Main navigation -->
{{pagination}}                    <!-- Pagination links -->

Custom Templates

handlebars

<!-- Post-specific: post-my-slug.hbs -->
<!-- Page-specific: page-about.hbs -->
<!-- Tag-specific: tag-javascript.hbs -->
<!-- Author-specific: author-john.hbs -->

package.json Configuration

json

{
  "name": "your-theme-name",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "Brief description",
  "license": "MIT",
  "author": {
    "name": "Your Name",
    "email": "your@email.com"
  },
  "screenshots": {
    "desktop": "assets/screenshot-desktop.jpg",
    "mobile": "assets/screenshot-mobile.jpg"
  },
  "config": {
    "posts_per_page": 10,
    "image_sizes": {
      "xxl": { "width": 2000 },
      "xl": { "width": 1200 },
      "lg": { "width": 1000 },
      "md": { "width": 800 },
      "sm": { "width": 600 },
      "xs": { "width": 300 }
    },
    "card_assets": true,
    "custom": {
      "color_scheme": {
        "type": "select",
        "default": "Light",
        "options": ["Light", "Dark", "Auto"]
      },
      "accent_color": {
        "type": "color",
        "default": "#3eb0ef"
      }
    }
  }
}

Content API Usage

javascript

// Install
npm install @tryghost/content-api

// Initialize
const GhostContentAPI = require('@tryghost/content-api');

const api = new GhostContentAPI({
  url: 'https://your-site.com',
  key: 'content_api_key',
  version: 'v5.0'
});

// Fetch posts
api.posts.browse({limit: 5, include: 'tags,authors'})
  .then((posts) => {
    posts.forEach((post) => console.log(post.title));
  });

// Filter posts
api.posts.browse({
  filter: 'tag:javascript+featured:true',
  limit: 10
});

// Fetch single post
api.posts.read({slug: 'post-slug'});

Admin API - Complete Reference

The Admin API provides comprehensive content management capabilities with three authentication methods:

Authentication Methods

1. Integration Token Authentication (Recommended for server-side apps)

Create Custom Integration in Ghost Admin
Get Admin API key (id:secret format)
Tokens last 5 minutes
Generate JWT tokens server-side only

2. Staff Access Token Authentication (For specific users)

Each user creates their own token in settings
Authenticates with role-based permissions
Tokens are short-lived JWTs
Suitable for user-specific applications

3. User Authentication (For browser apps with login)

Email + password → session cookie
Requires 2FA support
Must include Origin header (CSRF protection)
Safe for browser environments

Available Endpoints (All stable)

Resource	Methods	Description
`/posts/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add, Copy, Delete	Full post management
`/pages/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add, Copy, Delete	Static page management
`/tags/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add, Delete	Tag management
`/tiers/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add	Membership tier management
`/newsletters/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add	Newsletter management
`/offers/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add	Discount offers for members
`/members/`	Browse, Read, Edit, Add	Member management with subscriptions
`/users/`	Browse, Read	User management
`/images/`	Upload	Image upload and storage
`/themes/`	Upload, Activate	Theme management
`/site/`	Read	Site configuration
`/webhooks/`	Edit, Add, Delete	Webhook configuration

Token Generation Examples

Bash with OpenSSL:

bash

#!/usr/bin/env bash

KEY="YOUR_ADMIN_API_KEY"
IFS=':' read ID SECRET <<< "$KEY"

NOW=$(date +'%s')
FIVE_MINS=$(($NOW + 300))
HEADER="{\"alg\": \"HS256\",\"typ\": \"JWT\", \"kid\": \"$ID\"}"
PAYLOAD="{\"iat\":$NOW,\"exp\":$FIVE_MINS,\"aud\": \"/admin/\"}"

base64_url_encode() {
  printf '%s' "${1}" | base64 | tr -d '=' | tr '+' '-' | tr '/' '_'
}

header_base64=$(base64_url_encode "$HEADER")
payload_base64=$(base64_url_encode "$PAYLOAD")

header_payload="${header_base64}.${payload_base64}"
signature=$(printf '%s' "${header_payload}" | openssl dgst -binary -sha256 -mac HMAC -macopt hexkey:$SECRET | base64_url_encode)

TOKEN="${header_payload}.${signature}"
curl -H "Authorization: Ghost $TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"posts":[{"title":"Hello world"}]}' \
  "http://localhost:2368/ghost/api/admin/posts/"

JavaScript (without client library):

javascript

const jwt = require('jsonwebtoken');
const axios = require('axios');

const key = 'YOUR_ADMIN_API_KEY';
const [id, secret] = key.split(':');

const token = jwt.sign({}, Buffer.from(secret, 'hex'), {
  keyid: id,
  algorithm: 'HS256',
  expiresIn: '5m',
  audience: `/admin/`
});

const url = 'http://localhost:2368/ghost/api/admin/posts/';
const headers = { Authorization: `Ghost ${token}` };
const payload = { posts: [{ title: 'Hello World' }] };
axios.post(url, payload, { headers })
  .then(response => console.log(response))
  .catch(error => console.error(error));

Python:

python

import requests
import jwt
from datetime import datetime

key = 'YOUR_ADMIN_API_KEY'
id, secret = key.split(':')

iat = int(datetime.now().timestamp())
header = {'alg': 'HS256', 'typ': 'JWT', 'kid': id}
payload = {
  'iat': iat,
  'exp': iat + 5 * 60,
  'aud': '/admin/'
}

token = jwt.encode(payload, bytes.fromhex(secret), algorithm='HS256', headers=header)

url = 'http://localhost:2368/ghost/api/admin/posts/'
headers = {'Authorization': 'Ghost {}'.format(token)}
body = {'posts': [{'title': 'Hello World'}]}
r = requests.post(url, json=body, headers=headers)
print(r)

Members API

Create Member:

javascript

api.members.add({
  email: 'user@example.com',
  name: 'Jamie',
  labels: [{ name: 'VIP', slug: 'vip' }],
  newsletters: [{ id: 'newsletter_id' }]
});

Update Member:

javascript

api.members.edit({
  id: 'member_id',
  name: 'Updated Name',
  note: 'VIP customer'
});

Member Fields:

email (required)
name
note
labels (array with name and slug)
newsletters (array of IDs)
status (free, paid, comped)

Newsletters API

Create Newsletter:

javascript

api.newsletters.add({
  name: 'My Newsletter',
  description: 'Description',
  sender_reply_to: 'newsletter', // or 'support'
  status: 'active',
  subscribe_on_signup: true,
  show_header_icon: true,
  show_header_title: true,
  title_font_category: 'sans_serif',
  title_alignment: 'center',
  show_feature_image: true,
  body_font_category: 'sans_serif',
  show_badge: true
});

Newsletter Fields:

name (required)
description
status (active, archived)
sender_name
sender_email (requires verification)
sender_reply_to (newsletter, support)
subscribe_on_signup
header_image (1200x600 recommended)
show_header_icon
show_header_title
show_header_name
title_font_category (serif, sans_serif)
title_alignment
show_feature_image
body_font_category (serif, sans_serif)
footer_content
show_badge

Offers API

Create Offer:

javascript

api.offers.add({
  name: 'Black Friday',
  code: 'black-friday',
  display_title: 'Black Friday Sale!',
  display_description: '10% off on yearly plan',
  type: 'percent', // or 'fixed'
  cadence: 'year', // or 'month'
  amount: 12, // percentage or cents
  duration: 'once', // 'once', 'forever', 'repeating'
  tier: { id: 'tier_id' },
  status: 'active'
});

Offer Fields:

name (required, unique)
code (required, short code)
display_title
display_description
type (percent, fixed)
cadence (year, month)
amount (in smallest currency unit)
duration (once, forever, repeating)
duration_in_months (for repeating)
currency (required for fixed type)
status (active, archived)
redemption_count
tier (tier object with id and name)

Posts API - Card Visibility

Control who sees specific cards in posts:

javascript

// Card with visibility controls
const postWithVisibility = {
  title: 'Premium Content',
  lexical: {
    root: {
      type: 'root',
      children: [
        {
          type: 'html',
          html: '<div>Premium analysis...</div>',
          visibility: {
            web: {
              nonMember: false,
              memberSegment: 'status:free,status:-free'
            },
            email: {
              memberSegment: 'status:free'
            }
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  }
};

Visibility Options:

web.nonMember: true/false (visible to non-members)
web.memberSegment: NQL filter (e.g., "status:free" for all members, "status:-free" for paid only)
email.memberSegment: NQL filter for email delivery

Common Configurations:

Visible to all members (free and paid), hidden from non-members:

json

{
  "visibility": {
    "web": { "nonMember": false, "memberSegment": "status:free,status:-free" },
    "email": { "memberSegment": "status:free,status:-free" }
  }
}

Visible to paid members only:

json

{
  "visibility": {
    "web": { "nonMember": false, "memberSegment": "status:-free" },
    "email": { "memberSegment": "status:-free" }
  }
}

Images API

Upload Image:

javascript

const FormData = require('form-data');
const fs = require('fs');

const form = new FormData();
form.append('file', fs.createReadStream('/path/to/image.jpg'));
form.append('ref', 'path/to/image.jpg');
form.append('purpose', 'image'); // 'image', 'profile_image', or 'icon'

fetch('http://localhost:2368/ghost/api/admin/images/upload/', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Ghost ${token}`,
    'Accept-Version': 'v5.0'
  },
  body: form
})
  .then(res => res.json())
  .then(data => console.log(data));

Image Upload Fields:

file (required) - Blob or File object
purpose - 'image' (default), 'profile_image', or 'icon'
ref (optional) - Reference identifier

Supported Formats:

image, icon: WEBP, JPEG, GIF, PNG, SVG
profile_image: Must be square, WEBP, JPEG, GIF, PNG, SVG

Admin API JavaScript Client

Installation:

bash

npm install @tryghost/admin-api
# or
yarn add @tryghost/admin-api

Usage:

javascript

const GhostAdminAPI = require('@tryghost/admin-api');

const api = new GhostAdminAPI({
  url: 'http://localhost:2368/',
  key: 'YOUR_ADMIN_API_KEY',
  version: "v6.0"
});

// Browse posts
api.posts.browse();

// Read post
api.posts.read({id: 'abcd1234'});

// Add post
api.posts.add({
  title: 'My first draft API post',
  lexical: '{"root":{"children":[...]}}' // Lexical JSON structure
});

// Edit post
api.posts.edit({
  id: 'abcd1234',
  title: 'Renamed my post',
  updated_at: post.updated_at
});

// Delete post
api.posts.delete({id: 'abcd1234'});

// Upload image
api.images.upload({
  file: '/path/to/local/file'
});

Complete Publishing Example with Image Processing:

javascript

const GhostAdminAPI = require('@tryghost/admin-api');
const path = require('path');
const fs = require('fs');

const api = new GhostAdminAPI({
  url: 'http://localhost:2368/',
  version: "v6.0",
  key: 'YOUR_ADMIN_API_KEY'
});

function processImagesInHTML(html) {
  const imageRegex = /="([^"]*?(?:\.jpg|\.jpeg|\.gif|\.png|\.svg|\.webp))"/gmi;
  const imagePromises = [];

  let result;
  while((result = imageRegex.exec(html)) !== null) {
    const file = result[1];
    imagePromises.push(api.images.upload({
      ref: file,
      file: path.resolve(file)
    }));
  }

  return Promise.all(imagePromises)
    .then(images => {
      images.forEach(image => {
        html = html.replace(image.ref, image.url);
      });
      return html;
    });
}

let html = '<p>My test post content.</p><figure><img src="/path/to/my/image.jpg" /><figcaption>My awesome photo</figcaption></figure>';

processImagesInHTML(html)
  .then(html => {
    return api.posts.add(
      {title: 'My Test Post', html},
      {source: 'html'}
    );
  })
  .then(res => console.log(JSON.stringify(res)))
  .catch(err => console.log(err));

API Best Practices

Authentication
- Use Integration tokens for server-side apps
- Use Staff tokens for user-specific operations
- Use User authentication only for browser apps
- Never expose Admin API keys in client-side code
- Regenerate tokens periodically (5-minute lifetime)
Pagination
- Default limit: 15 records
- Use page and limit parameters
- Check meta.pagination for navigation
- Implement pagination UI based on total/pages
Error Handling
- Handle HTTP status codes appropriately
- Check meta for validation errors
- Implement retry logic for rate limiting
- Log errors with context
Rate Limiting
- Be mindful of API rate limits
- Implement exponential backoff for retries
- Cache responses when appropriate
Versioning
- Always include Accept-Version header
- Specify minimum API version your code works with
- Test against different Ghost versions

Admin API Usage (Server-side)

javascript

const GhostAdminAPI = require('@tryghost/admin-api');

const api = new GhostAdminAPI({
  url: 'https://your-site.com',
  key: 'admin_api_key',
  version: 'v5.0'
});

// Create post
const post = await api.posts.add({
  title: 'My New Post',
  html: '<p>Content</p>',
  status: 'published'
});

// Update post
await api.posts.edit({
  id: post.id,
  title: 'Updated Title'
});

Custom Theme Settings

Define in package.json:

json

{
  "config": {
    "custom": {
      "show_featured_posts": {
        "type": "boolean",
        "default": true
      },
      "posts_per_page": {
        "type": "select",
        "default": "6",
        "options": ["3", "6", "9", "12"]
      }
    }
  }
}

Use in templates:

handlebars

{{#if @custom.show_featured_posts}}
  <section class="featured">
    {{#get "posts" filter="featured:true" limit="3"}}
      {{#foreach posts}}
        <article>{{title}}</article>
      {{/foreach}}
    {{/get}}
  </section>
{{/if}}

Theme Validation with GScan

bash

# Install GScan
npm install -g gscan

# Validate theme
gscan your-theme-directory

# Validate with specific Ghost version
gscan your-theme-directory --version 5.0

# Output as JSON
gscan your-theme-directory --format json

# Online validation
# Visit https://gscan.ghost.org and upload theme zip

Common validation checks:

Missing required templates (index.hbs, post.hbs)
Missing required helpers (ghost_head, ghost_foot, body_class)
Invalid package.json structure
Deprecated helper usage
Missing screenshot images
Incorrect image references

Dynamic Routing (routes.yaml)

yaml

routes:
  /about/:
    template: about
  /blog/:
    template: blog

collections:
  /blog/:
    permalink: /blog/{slug}/
    template: blog-post
    filter: tag:blog

taxonomies:
  tag: /tag/{slug}/
  author: /author/{slug}/

Local Development Workflow

bash

# Start Ghost locally
ghost start

# Access admin at http://localhost:2368/ghost
# Site at http://localhost:2368/

# Development cycle:
# 1. Edit templates in content/themes/your-theme/
# 2. Edit CSS/JS in assets/
# 3. Restart for HBS changes: ghost restart
# 4. CSS/JS changes: instant refresh
# 5. Test at http://localhost:2368/
# 6. Validate with GScan

Publishing Theme

bash

# Create theme zip (exclude unnecessary files)
cd content/themes/your-theme
zip -r ../your-theme.zip . -x "node_modules/*" ".git/*"

# Upload via Ghost Admin
# Settings > Design > Upload theme

Configuration

Ghost CLI Configuration

bash

# Edit Ghost config
ghost config

# Set URL
ghost config url https://your-site.com

# Set mail configuration
ghost config mail {transport, options}

# Restart after config changes
ghost restart

Production Setup (Ubuntu)

bash

# Full production stack (Nginx, SSL, Systemd)
ghost install

# With custom database
ghost install --db=mysql --dbhost=localhost --dbuser=ghost --dbpass=password --dbname=ghost_prod

Best Practices

Theme Development

Scope CSS classes to avoid conflicts with post content
Use semantic HTML structure throughout templates
Include required helpers in all templates
Test responsive design across devices
Optimize images using Ghost's automatic resizing
Validate frequently with GScan during development
Keep package.json updated with correct version and metadata

Security

Never expose Admin API keys in client-side code
Use environment variables for sensitive data
Implement proper authentication for custom integrations
Keep Ghost updated with ghost update
Validate all inputs in custom scripts
Use HTTPS in production

Performance

Enable image optimization in theme config
Use appropriate image sizes for different contexts
Minify CSS/JS assets
Implement lazy loading for images
Use CDN for static assets
Enable Ghost caching
Optimize database queries

API Usage

Use pagination for large datasets
Filter data server-side when possible
Include related resources in single queries when needed
Cache responses when appropriate
Handle errors gracefully with try/catch
Use the latest API version

Troubleshooting

Theme Not Loading

bash

# Check Ghost status
ghost ls

# Restart Ghost
ghost restart

# View logs
ghost log

CSS/JS Not Updating

Clear browser cache
Verify file paths in templates
Check assets are in correct directory
Restart Ghost if needed

Template Errors

Check syntax with GScan
Verify all required helpers present
Check for unclosed blocks {{#if}}...{{/if}}
Review Ghost logs for specific errors

Permission Issues

Ensure correct file permissions
Check Ghost is running as correct user
Verify directory ownership

Resources

Comprehensive API Documentation

Complete Ghost API Reference: https://docs.ghost.org/llms-full.txt
- Full Admin API documentation with all endpoints
- Authentication methods (Integration tokens, Staff access tokens, User authentication)
- Token generation examples in multiple languages (Bash, JavaScript, Ruby, Python)
- Members API (create, update, browse)
- Newsletters API (create, update, sender email validation)
- Offers API (create, update, pricing tiers)
- Pages API management
- Posts API with card visibility controls
- Image upload API
- Admin API JavaScript client usage
- Complete request/response examples
- Pagination and filtering guidelines
- Error handling patterns

Official Documentation

Ghost Docs: https://ghost.org/docs/
Theme Development: https://ghost.org/docs/themes/
Ghost CLI: https://ghost.org/docs/ghost-cli/
Content API: https://ghost.org/docs/content-api/
Admin API: https://ghost.org/docs/admin-api/
GScan: https://gscan.ghost.org/
Community Forum: https://forum.ghost.org/
Ghost GitHub: https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost

Author

Published by Themeix

License

MIT

Version

1.0.0

Ghost CMS

Install

Ghost CMS Skill

Description

Usage

Commands & Tools

Installation & Setup

Essential Ghost CLI Commands

Theme Development

Required Theme Structure

Required Helpers (Must Include)

Common Data Helpers

Custom Templates

package.json Configuration

Content API Usage

Admin API - Complete Reference

Authentication Methods

Available Endpoints (All stable)

Token Generation Examples

Members API

Newsletters API

Offers API

Posts API - Card Visibility

Images API

Admin API JavaScript Client

API Best Practices

Admin API Usage (Server-side)

Custom Theme Settings

Theme Validation with GScan

Dynamic Routing (routes.yaml)

Local Development Workflow

Publishing Theme

Configuration

Ghost CLI Configuration

Production Setup (Ubuntu)

Best Practices

Theme Development

Security

Performance

API Usage

Troubleshooting

Theme Not Loading

CSS/JS Not Updating

Template Errors

Permission Issues

Resources

Comprehensive API Documentation

Official Documentation

Categories

Author

License

Version