AI alt text generator for Magento: installation and configuration

The DockAccess AI Alt Generator module writes alt texts for the product images of Magento Open Source, Adobe Commerce and Mage-OS, in the language of each store view. You can generate one image right in the product gallery, run a selection of images on the Product images screen and synchronize your corrections with DockAccess.

Requirements and scope

The module supports Magento 2.4.4 or later, Adobe Commerce and Mage-OS, with PHP 8.1 to 8.4. You need a DockAccess account and access to the server (SSH) to install modules; if you do not have it, ask whoever looks after your shop. The module covers the images of the product gallery and their Alt Text field. Category images, CMS pages and blocks, Page Builder content and theme graphics need separate handling.

Step 1. Prepare the shop in DockAccess

1. Sign in to DockAccess or create an account, then verify your email address.
2. Open My sites, choose Add site and enter the production domain, without a protocol or path. For an existing site, open its configuration instead of creating a duplicate.
3. Enable ALT Generator for this site and save. A paused service must be resolved within the account’s site allowance before the plugin can generate.
4. Copy the site token from the site configuration. In the CMS connection form, enter that token and the login and password of the DockAccess account that owns it. Select Connect.
5. Check the connected status and site address, then generate one test alt before starting a batch. The plugin must also appear among this site’s connected integrations in DockAccess.

The site token identifies the website. It is different from the account API key and the connection secret. Enter DockAccess credentials, not your CMS administrator credentials. The official plugins use the password for the connection request and do not store it. If you normally use social sign-in and have no password, set one using the password reset flow first.

Step 2. Install the module

Download the Magento module ZIP and unpack it into app/code/DockCodes/DockAccessAltGenerator of your Magento installation. Then, in the Magento directory, run:

bin/magento module:enable DockCodes_DockAccessAltGenerator
bin/magento setup:upgrade
bin/magento cache:flush
Copy text

If the shop runs in production mode, run bin/magento setup:di:compile and bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy before clearing the cache.

Step 3. Connect the shop

1. In the Magento admin, open Catalog → DockAccess AI Alt Generator → Connection and settings.
2. Paste the site token and enter the e-mail address (or user name) and password of your DockAccess account. Choose Connect. The password is used only for this connection and is not stored.
3. With several websites, choose the shop address that is one of the site's domains in DockAccess. One connection serves the whole Magento installation.
4. Check the plan, the usage and the push endpoint. Run Test the endpoint: behind a firewall or a reverse proxy, the shop's public HTTPS address must accept POST requests.

Step 4. Context and tone

On the same screen, in Generation defaults, set a context of up to 500 characters and a tone. Describe the catalogue or how the pictures are used, such as “Handmade oak furniture for the dining room”. Avoid instructions to insert keywords. Save the defaults.

Step 5. Generate in the product gallery

1. Open a product and, at the top of the page, choose the scope: All Store Views or a store view. The alt text is written in the language of that scope.
2. In Images And Videos, click an image. Below the Alt Text field, choose Generate alt text. Options change the context, tone and language for this one image.
3. For an image already saved, the text is saved at once for the chosen scope. For a new upload, it goes into the field and is kept when you save the product.
4. Review the text and correct it if needed, then save the product.

Step 6. Generate many images

1. Open Catalog → DockAccess AI Alt Generator → Product images and choose the store view. All Store Views holds the texts every store view shows unless it has its own; in a store view, texts marked “default” come from All Store Views.
2. Search by product name or SKU, or tick Only images without an alt text.
3. Select the images and choose Generate for the selected images. They are sent one at a time and each text is saved as soon as it is ready. Stop ends the run after the current image.
4. When the plan's limit is used up, the run stops: the texts already generated stay, the rest are marked as not generated. Repeat for the other store views and languages you need.

Synchronization and product page checks

For images generated through the module, alt texts you change on the product page are sent to DockAccess when you save the product, one text per language. The module can also receive signed updates and writes each language into the store views of that language, but editing in the account does not deliver them at the moment: save a correction made in the account in Magento too. Your theme must use the gallery's Alt Text as the alt attribute: after clearing the cache, check the product page, the gallery and the product listing.

Allowances

The standard free allowance is 10 image generations per UTC day and 1 site with ALT Generator enabled. Ready-made CMS integrations are available on the free plan.

Paid ALT generator plans use a calendar-month allowance, available in full without a daily split. The site allowance is separate from the generation allowance. Your current allowance and usage are shown in the account dashboard. Check current plans

The generation allowance is shared across the account: the online tool, connected sites and API use the same pool. Generating again also uses the allowance; editing a saved text by hand does not generate a new description.

Daily usage resets at 00:00 UTC; monthly usage resets at 00:00 UTC on the first day of the next calendar month. This is independent of the subscription payment date. In Poland, 00:00 UTC is 01:00 in winter and 02:00 in summer. The usage service returns the exact renewal time as resets_at.

Bulk generation processes images in sequence. When the account allowance is exhausted, completed descriptions stay saved and the batch stops. Continue with the remaining images after renewal or a plan upgrade. A temporary request-rate limit causes a wait and retry instead. Older plugin versions may label a monthly counter “daily”; use the period and renewal time shown in your DockAccess account.

Diagnosis and maintenance

Connection refused: login or email verification

Use the DockAccess account that owns the site token, verify its email address and check the login and password. Repeated failed attempts can temporarily block further connection attempts.

The site address does not match

Check that the CMS production address is registered among the token’s domains. A staging connection does not confirm the production domain. Check HTTPS, reverse-proxy settings and the canonical site address before reconnecting.

Generator disabled (alt_disabled)

Enable ALT Generator for this exact site in DockAccess and save. Installing a plugin alone does not enable the service.

Generator paused (alt_paused)

The account’s site allowance has been exceeded, for example after a plan change. Free up a site slot or increase the allowance. Paused sites and previously generated texts are not deleted.

The site is already connected

Replace the connection only when you intend to reconnect this installation. Confirming replacement rotates the connection secret, so any other copy using the previous secret must reconnect.

The daily or monthly allowance is exhausted

Check the account dashboard and the renewal time. Completed texts remain saved. Wait for the appropriate UTC window to renew or choose a higher plan; reconnecting does not reset usage.

Too many requests in a short time

Let the batch wait and retry. In a custom integration, respect Retry-After and distinguish X-Alt-Reason: rate_limited from limit_reached. Avoid repeatedly clicking Generate.

An image cannot be generated

Check that the CMS can read the original local image. Use a valid supported raster file, such as JPEG, PNG or WebP. A file extension alone is insufficient; unsupported or damaged files must be converted or replaced. Joomla does not generate descriptions for remotely hosted article images.

Edits do not reach the CMS

Account editing currently does not automatically send changes to the CMS; save the correction there as well. The plugins can receive push updates. When implementing your own sender, test the endpoint and check public HTTPS, routes, firewall rules, signature headers and server clocks. Signed requests allow a five-minute clock difference and require a local image mapping.

The saved alt is not visible on the page

Inspect the rendered img element and clear page, template and CDN caches. A CMS media field does not necessarily update HTML already saved in an article or page builder. Correct that image instance or the template. Never fill a deliberately empty decorative alt in bulk.

Magento shows a system message when the generator is switched off or paused for the shop, or when an edited alt text could not be sent. To remove the module, first choose Disconnect on the Connection and settings screen (it asks for your DockAccess login), then run bin/magento module:uninstall --non-composer DockCodes_DockAccessAltGenerator. The alt texts stay on your images. See the generator user guide for the wider workflow.