Opening the Laboratory Frontend and Administrator Area

The Active Laboratory area provides protected links for reviewing both the copied frontend and Joomla administrator; all management actions remain on the live production QCUL installation.

Location: Joomla Administrator → Components → QC Update Laboratory → Laboratory.

Step-by-step procedure

  1. Open QC Update Laboratory → Laboratory on production.
  2. Use the Active Laboratory links to open the private frontend and administrator area in separate tabs.
  3. Pass the access gate using the laboratory code when prompted.
  4. Confirm the persistent laboratory identity/banner and the [LAB] page-title prefix.
  5. Return to production QCUL for management actions such as test, push, undo, refresh, or remove.

Use separate browser tabs

Keeping production QCUL open while the lab frontend/admin are open makes it easier to compare versions and return to Test Updates/report/push controls. The laboratory QCUL component itself intentionally renders a read-only Current Laboratory screen instead of production controls.

Review both surfaces

An extension can leave the public site healthy while breaking administrator edit/list views, or vice versa. Always open both surfaces for meaningful rehearsal.

Safety check before update testing

Before relying on Opening the Laboratory Frontend and Administrator Area, confirm the private copy still shows laboratory identity, its access gate works, and ordinary browsing stays inside the lab rather than silently using production. The cloned site contains production-derived data, so a laboratory that is not demonstrably isolated should be repaired or refreshed before any update rehearsal.

Community Discussion

Want to compare update-testing workflows, share practical tips, or discuss how you use this QCUL feature? Visit the QC Update Laboratory Community. For private support, bug reports, account-specific issues, or feature requests, use the QuantaCade support system.