Built-in Features
StaticForge comes with several powerful features that add functionality to your site. Each feature is documented in detail on its own page.
What Are Features?
Features are plugins that extend StaticForge's capabilities. They listen to events during site generation and perform specific tasks like converting Markdown to HTML, building menus, or organizing content by category.
Good to know:
- All features are optional - you can disable any feature by deleting its directory
- Features are loaded automatically from
src/Features/ - You can create your own custom features (see Feature Development)
Content Processing Features
These features handle converting your content files into HTML.
Markdown Renderer
Converts .md files to HTML using Markdown syntax. Perfect for writing blog posts, articles, and documentation in a simple, readable format.
Read more about Markdown Renderer →
HTML Renderer
Processes .html files and wraps them in templates. Ideal for custom layouts, landing pages, or when you need precise HTML control.
Read more about HTML Renderer →
Interactive Features
These features add interactivity to your static pages.
Forms
Embed contact forms and other input forms using simple shortcodes. Supports configuration via siteconfig.yaml, AJAX submission, and Altcha spam protection.
Search
Adds full-text search capability to your site using MiniSearch. Generates a client-side index and provides a fast, static search experience.
Organization Features
These features help you organize and structure your content.
Menu Builder
Automatically creates navigation menus from your content using a simple dot-notation system. Supports multiple menus, dropdowns, and flexible positioning.
Read more about Menu Builder →
Chapter Navigation
Generates sequential prev/next navigation links for documentation pages. Perfect for tutorials, guides, and any content that follows a specific order.
Read more about Chapter Navigation →
Categories
Organizes content into subdirectories based on category metadata. The only way to create subdirectories in your output.
Category Index Pages
Creates index pages that list all files in each category. Automatically generates organized directory listings with pagination support.
Read more about Category Index Pages →
Tags
Extracts tags from frontmatter and makes them available site-wide. Great for SEO, tag clouds, and content filtering.
SEO & Search Engine Features
These features help optimize your site for search engines.
Robots.txt Generator
Automatically generates a robots.txt file to control search engine crawling. Keep private pages out of search results effortlessly.
Read more about Robots.txt Generator →
RSS Feed
Automatically generates RSS feeds for each category. Enable readers to subscribe to your content updates.
Sitemap Generator
Automatically generates a sitemap.xml file for search engines. Critical for SEO to help search engines index your site correctly.
Read more about Sitemap Generator →
Managing Features
Disabling Features
Don't need a feature? Just delete or rename its directory:
# Disable categories completely
rm -rf src/Features/Categories
# Temporarily disable (can re-enable by renaming back)
mv src/Features/Categories src/Features/Categories.disabled
StaticForge will continue working without that feature.
Which Features Can I Disable?
You can safely disable:
- RssFeed - if you don't need RSS/Atom syndication
- Categories - if you don't need subdirectories
- CategoryIndex - if you don't want category listing pages
- Tags - if you don't use tags
- MenuBuilder - if you build menus manually
- ChapterNav - if you don't need sequential navigation
Don't disable these (unless you know what you're doing):
- MarkdownRenderer - needed to process
.mdfiles - HtmlRenderer - needed to process
.htmlfiles
Creating Custom Features
Want to add your own functionality? See the Feature Development Guide for step-by-step instructions on creating custom features.
Feature Comparison Table
| Feature | Input Required | Output Created | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Markdown Renderer | .md files |
HTML files | Writing content in Markdown |
| HTML Renderer | .html files |
HTML files | Custom layouts, precise HTML control |
| Menu Builder | menu in frontmatter |
Navigation HTML | Automatic menu generation |
| Chapter Navigation | menu in frontmatter |
Prev/Next links | Sequential page navigation |
| Categories | category in frontmatter |
Subdirectories | Organizing content into sections |
| Category Index | Category .md file |
Index page | Listing all category files |
| Tags | tags in frontmatter |
Meta tags, tag data | SEO, tag clouds, related content |
| Robots.txt Generator | robots in frontmatter |
robots.txt file | SEO, search engine control |
| RSS Feed | category in frontmatter |
rss.xml per category |
Syndication, feed readers, notifications |
| Sitemap Generator | sitemap in frontmatter |
sitemap.xml file |
SEO, search engine indexing |
| Search | Content files | search.json & assets |
Client-side full-text search |
External Features
Looking for more? Check out our External Features page for a list of community-maintained packages that extend StaticForge with specialized functionality like Podcasting and Media Inspection.