How to install a Joomla 2.5 Plugin

In our previous tutorial, we explained the difference between plugins, modules, and components in Joomla 2.5. In this tutorial, we'll begin learning to use extensions by showing you how to install a Joomla 2.5 plugin. The plugin we are testing, Facebook - Twitter - Google+1, will automatically add the social media share buttons to our articles.

To install a Joomla 2.5 Plugin:

1. Download the plugin to your desktop.
2. Log into your Joomla Dashboard
3. In the top menu, hover over Extensions and click Extension Manager
   
4. Under Upload Package Manager, click Browse and find the plugin you downloaded to your computer. After clicking on the plugin name, click Open, and then click Upload & Install.
   
   
   When the plugin has been uploaded and installed successfully, you will see a confirmation message:
   
5. At this point you have successfully uploaded and installed a plugin!
   
   Plugins are not enabled by default, so our next step is to configure and enabled our plugin.
   
   In the top menu, hover over Extensions and click Plug-In Manager
6. Use the Filter feature to find your plugin, and then click on the plugin in the list below
   
7. On the Plug-in Manager page, set Status to Enabled, configure any of the other settings available with the plugin, and then click Save & Close
   
   
   Congratulations, you have just downloaded, installed, configured, and enabled a Joomla 2.5 Plugin!
   
   Here's our plugin in action:
   
   

   Before plugin installation	After plugin installation

In our next Joomla 2.5 tutorial, we will show you how to install a module.