Unlock the power of

WordPress

Using mu-plugins

By Mikel King

Mu-plugins

● Require manual installation

● Activate automatically

● Are persistent

● Do not work in subdirectories like regular plugins*

● Should not alter the DB schema**

Mu-plugins

● Require manual installation

● Activate automatically

● Are persistent

● Do not work in subdirectories like regular plugins*

● Generally should not alter the DB schema**

* There are methods and mu-plugin managers to help use regular plugins as mu’s

Mu-plugins

● Require manual installation

● Activate automatically

● Are persistent

● Do not work in subdirectories like regular plugins*

● Generally should not alter the DB schema**

* There are methods and mu-plugin managers to help use regular plugins as mu’s

** This is a use at your own risk kind of situation

Goals...

● Familiarize you with mu-plugins

● Expose you to a new tool

● Expand your horizons

Why use mu-plugins?

Why use mu-plugins?

● They grant you abilities that other systems of

modification do not (dropins, themes, plugins)

● They grant you abilities that other do not (dropins, themes, plugins)

● The persistence model can be used to your

advantage (library code, api’s etc...)

Why use mu-plugins?

Let’s look at an example

Theme augmentation

News Magazine Theme

Theme augmentation

News Magazine Theme

Side by side comparison

Let’s look at some code!!!

https://github.com/mikelking/singleton_base

000-singleton-base.php

010-base-plugin.php

tabular-css/plugin.php

Tabular-css tree

tabular-data.css

Let’s take a deeper look at some code!!!

https://github.com/mikelking/singleton_base

000-singleton-base.php

010-base-plugin.php

So what’s the point?

● Can’t I just add the css to the main style sheet?

So what’s the point?

● Can’t I just add the css to the main style sheet?

● Or put it in it’s own file and @import it?

So what’s the point?

● Can’t I just add the css to the main style sheet?

● Or put it in it’s own file and @import it?

● Or enqueue it through function.php?

So what’s the point?

● Can’t I just add the css to the main style sheet?

● Or put it in it’s own file and @import it?

● Or enqueue it through function.php?

● Really I’m having trouble connecting the dots, man.

Well the point is that:

None of those methods are future proof.

You are responsible for reimplemention after EVERY

update.

None of those methods are easy to troubleshoot.

A plugin built like this can be turned off

Hey man this is just a high level example.

Actually this is a real world example.

Unlock the power of

WordPress

Using mu-plugins

By Mikel King

This has been:

Contact info:

https://twitter.com/mikelking

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikelking

https://github.com/mikelking