How to Display Plugin and Theme Information in WordPress

Accessing Plugin Information via REST API

* The endpoint for plugins is: `/wp-json/wp/v2/plugins`
* Retrieve all plugins using a GET request:

You can use `wp_remote_get()` to make the request:
“`php
$response = wp_remote_get( rest_url( ‘wp/v2/plugins’ ) );

if ( is_wp_error( $response ) ) {
echo ‘Error: ‘ . esc_html( $response->get_error_message() );
} else {
$body = wp_remote_retrieve_body( $response );
$plugins = json_decode( $body );

if ( ! empty( $plugins ) ) {
echo ‘

‘;
foreach ( $plugins as $plugin ) {
echo ‘
• ‘;
  echo ‘‘ . esc_html( $plugin->name ) . ‘ – ‘;
  echo ‘Version: ‘ . esc_html( $plugin->version ) . ‘
  ‘;
  echo ‘Description: ‘ . esc_html( $plugin->description );
  echo ‘

‘;
}
echo ‘

‘;
} else {
echo ‘No plugins found.’;
}
}
“`
This code fetches plugin data from the REST API and displays it in a list. Note that authentication might be required depending on your REST API configuration and the specific use case.

Accessing Theme Information via REST API

* The endpoint for themes is: `/wp-json/wp/v2/themes`
* Retrieve all themes using a GET request, similar to plugins.

“`php
$response = wp_remote_get( rest_url( ‘wp/v2/themes’ ) );

if ( is_wp_error( $response ) ) {
echo ‘Error: ‘ . esc_html( $response->get_error_message() );
} else {
$body = wp_remote_retrieve_body( $response );
$themes = json_decode( $body );

if ( ! empty( $themes ) ) {
echo ‘

‘;
foreach ( $themes as $theme ) {
echo ‘
• ‘;
  echo ‘‘ . esc_html( $theme->name ) . ‘ – ‘;
  echo ‘Version: ‘ . esc_html( $theme->version ) . ‘
  ‘;
  echo ‘Description: ‘ . esc_html( $theme->description );
  echo ‘

‘;
}
echo ‘

‘;
} else {
echo ‘No themes found.’;
}
}
“`

Considerations for REST API Usage

* **Authentication:** Depending on your WordPress setup, you might need to authenticate your requests to access the REST API. This can be done using various methods like Basic Authentication, OAuth, or JWT.
* **Permissions:** Ensure the user account making the API request has sufficient permissions to access the plugin or theme data.
* **Performance:** Be mindful of the number of API requests you make, as excessive requests can impact your website’s performance. Implement caching mechanisms where appropriate.

Using Transients to Cache Plugin and Theme Information

Retrieving plugin and theme information can be resource-intensive. Transients offer a way to store the data temporarily, reducing the load on the database.

Caching Plugin Information with Transients

* Set the transient:
“`php
$transient_key = ‘my_plugin_data’;
$plugin_data = get_transient( $transient_key );

if ( false === $plugin_data ) {
if ( ! function_exists( ‘get_plugins’ ) ) {
require_once ABSPATH . ‘wp-admin/includes/plugin.php’;
}
$plugin_data = get_plugins();
set_transient( $transient_key, $plugin_data, 3600 ); // Cache for 1 hour
}

// Use $plugin_data to display information
foreach ( $plugin_data as $plugin_file => $plugin_info ) {
echo esc_html( $plugin_info[‘Name’] ) . ‘
‘;
}
“`

Caching Theme Information with Transients

* Set the transient:
“`php
$transient_key = ‘my_theme_data’;
$theme_data = get_transient( $transient_key );

if ( false === $theme_data ) {
$theme = wp_get_theme();
$theme_data = array(
‘Name’ => $theme->get( ‘Name’ ),
‘Version’ => $theme->get( ‘Version’ ),
‘Author’ => $theme->get( ‘Author’ )
);
set_transient( $transient_key, $theme_data, 3600 ); // Cache for 1 hour
}

// Use $theme_data to display information
echo ‘Theme Name: ‘ . esc_html( $theme_data[‘Name’] ) . ‘
‘;
echo ‘Theme Version: ‘ . esc_html( $theme_data[‘Version’] ) . ‘
‘;
echo ‘Theme Author: ‘ . esc_html( $theme_data[‘Author’] ) . ‘
‘;
“`

Transient Management

* **Expiration:** Set an appropriate expiration time for your transients. This ensures the data is refreshed periodically.
* **Deletion:** Consider deleting the transient when a plugin or theme is activated, deactivated, installed, or uninstalled to ensure the cached data is up-to-date. You can hook into the `activate_plugin`, `deactivate_plugin`, `upgrader_process_complete` (for updates), and `delete_plugin` actions. Similar hooks exist for themes. For example:

“`php
add_action( ‘upgrader_process_complete’, ‘my_clear_plugin_theme_transients’, 10, 2 );

function my_clear_plugin_theme_transients( $upgrader_object, $options ) {
if ( $options[‘type’] == ‘plugin’ || $options[‘type’] == ‘theme’ ) {
delete_transient( ‘my_plugin_data’ );
delete_transient( ‘my_theme_data’ );
}
}
“`

Security Considerations

When displaying plugin and theme information, it is crucial to prioritize security.

* **Escaping:** Always escape output using functions like `esc_html()`, `esc_url()`, and `esc_attr()` to prevent cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities.
* **Permissions:** Ensure that only authorized users can access sensitive plugin and theme information. Implement proper access control mechanisms.
* **Sanitization:** Sanitize any user input before using it to retrieve plugin or theme data.
* **Information Disclosure:** Avoid displaying excessively detailed information about plugins and themes that could be exploited by attackers. Only show the necessary details. For example, you likely shouldn’t display the full path to a plugin directory.
* **API Keys:** If your application uses API keys to access plugin or theme data from external sources, store them securely and avoid hardcoding them directly in your code. Use environment variables or configuration files.

By implementing these methods and security practices, you can effectively display plugin and theme information in WordPress, contributing to better website management, debugging, and overall security.