Tag: Database

Deleting, Limiting, and Disabling Post Revisions in WordPress

August 20, 2025August 20, 2025 Admin No Comments

Deleting, Limiting, and Disabling Post Revisions in WordPress

WordPress automatically saves post revisions to help you track changes and restore previous versions. However, excessive revisions can bloat your database, slow down your site, and complicate backups. This guide explains how to delete existing revisions, limit the number of revisions saved, or disable them entirely to optimize your WordPress site’s performance.

Quick Fix

Delete all existing post revisions using a simple SQL query or a plugin.
Limit future revisions by adding a line to your wp-config.php file.
Disable post revisions completely by defining a constant in wp-config.php.

Why This Happens

WordPress stores each revision of a post as a separate entry in the database. Over time, especially on sites with frequent edits or multiple authors, these revisions accumulate and increase the size of your wp_posts table. This can lead to slower database queries and larger backups. Limiting or disabling revisions helps maintain a lean database and improves site speed.

Step-by-Step

1. Deleting Existing Post Revisions

You can remove all existing post revisions directly from your database using this SQL command. Run it via phpMyAdmin, Adminer, or any MySQL client connected to your WordPress database.

DELETE FROM wp_posts WHERE post_type = 'revision';

Note: Replace wp_ with your actual database table prefix if different.

2. Limiting Post Revisions

To limit the number of revisions WordPress saves per post, add the following line to your wp-config.php file, ideally just before the line that says /* That's all, stop editing! Happy blogging. */:

define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', 3);

This example limits revisions to the last 3 versions. Adjust the number as needed.

3. Disabling Post Revisions Completely

If you prefer to disable revisions entirely, add this line to your wp-config.php file:

define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', false);

Note that disabling revisions means you lose the ability to revert to earlier versions of your posts.

WP_Config Tweaks

The wp-config.php file controls many core WordPress settings. To manage revisions, use these constants:

Constant	Value	Effect
`WP_POST_REVISIONS`	Integer (e.g., 3)	Limits the number of revisions saved per post
`WP_POST_REVISIONS`	`false`	Disables post revisions completely

Example snippet to limit revisions to 5:

define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', 5);

Code Snippets

Delete Revisions via PHP (Optional)

If you prefer deleting revisions programmatically, add this snippet to your theme’s functions.php or a custom plugin and run it once:

function delete_post_revisions() {
    global $wpdb;
    $wpdb->query("DELETE FROM {$wpdb->posts} WHERE post_type = 'revision'");
}
add_action('init', 'delete_post_revisions');

Important: Remove or comment out this code after running to avoid repeated deletions.

Disable Revisions via Plugin Filter

Alternatively, disable revisions using a filter in your theme or plugin:

add_filter('wp_revisions_to_keep', '__return_zero');

Common Pitfalls

Forgetting to backup: Always backup your database before running deletion queries or editing wp-config.php.
Wrong table prefix: If your WordPress database uses a custom prefix, update the SQL query accordingly.
Plugin conflicts: Some plugins may override revision settings or create their own revisions.
Performance impact: Running large DELETE queries on big databases may temporarily slow down your site.
Disabling revisions risks: You lose the ability to restore previous content versions if revisions are disabled.

Test & Verify

After deleting revisions, check your database wp_posts table for remaining entries with post_type = 'revision'.
Create or edit a post and verify that the number of saved revisions respects your limit.
If disabled, confirm no new revisions appear after editing posts.
Use plugins like WP-Optimize or Query Monitor to monitor database size and queries.

Works on

This guide works on WordPress sites running on:

Web servers: Apache, Nginx, LiteSpeed
Control panels: cPanel, Plesk, DirectAdmin
Database: MySQL, MariaDB
WordPress versions 4.0 and above

FAQ

Q: Will deleting revisions affect my published posts?: A: No. Deleting revisions only removes saved versions, not the current published content.
Q: Can I recover revisions after deleting them?: A: No. Once deleted from the database, revisions cannot be restored unless you have a backup.
Q: Is it safe to disable revisions?: A: It is safe but not recommended if you want to keep track of changes or revert edits.
Q: How do I know how many revisions a post has?: A: In the post editor, WordPress shows the number of revisions in the “Revisions” section or sidebar.
Q: Are there plugins to manage revisions?: A: Yes, plugins like WP-Optimize or Revision Control help manage, limit, or delete revisions.

Wrap-up

Managing post revisions in…

Database & Revisions

Schedule database cleanup tasks with WP‑CLI

August 19, 2025 Admin No Comments

Schedule Database Cleanup Tasks with WP-CLI

Keeping your WordPress database clean is essential for optimal site performance and stability. Over time, databases accumulate overhead from post revisions, transients, spam comments, and other unnecessary data. Manually cleaning the database can be tedious, but with WP-CLI, you can automate and schedule these cleanup tasks efficiently.

This tutorial explains how to schedule WordPress database cleanup tasks using WP-CLI, ensuring your database stays optimized without manual intervention.

Quick Fix: Schedule WordPress Database Cleanup with WP-CLI

Ensure WP-CLI is installed and accessible on your server.
Create a shell script that runs WP-CLI database cleanup commands.
Schedule the script to run automatically using cron jobs (Linux) or Task Scheduler (Windows).
Verify the scheduled task runs correctly and cleans the database.

Why This Happens

WordPress databases accumulate unnecessary data such as:

Post revisions and auto-drafts
Expired transients
Spam and trashed comments
Orphaned metadata

This buildup slows down queries, increases backup sizes, and can cause site instability. While plugins offer cleanup options, they add overhead and require manual triggers. WP-CLI provides a lightweight, scriptable interface to run cleanup commands quickly and schedule them via cron, automating maintenance without extra plugins.

Requirements

SSH access to your WordPress server
WP-CLI installed and configured
Basic knowledge of cron jobs or task schedulers
WordPress site with database access

Step-by-Step: Schedule WordPress Database Cleanup with WP-CLI

1. Verify WP-CLI Installation

Connect to your server via SSH and run:

wp --info

This confirms WP-CLI is installed and working. If not installed, follow the official WP-CLI installation guide.

2. Test Database Cleanup Commands

WP-CLI offers commands to clean up your database. Test them manually first:

wp post delete $(wp post list --post_type='revision' --format=ids) --force
wp transient delete --expired
wp comment delete $(wp comment list --status=spam --format=ids) --force
wp comment delete $(wp comment list --status=trash --format=ids) --force

These commands delete post revisions, expired transients, spam comments, and trashed comments respectively.

3. Create a Shell Script for Cleanup

Create a file named wp-db-cleanup.sh in your home directory or a preferred location:

#!/bin/bash
# Navigate to WordPress root directory
cd /path/to/your/wordpress

# Delete post revisions
wp post delete $(wp post list --post_type='revision' --format=ids) --force

# Delete expired transients
wp transient delete --expired

# Delete spam comments
wp comment delete $(wp comment list --status=spam --format=ids) --force

# Delete trashed comments
wp comment delete $(wp comment list --status=trash --format=ids) --force

# Optimize database tables
wp db optimize

Replace /path/to/your/wordpress with the actual path to your WordPress installation.

Make the script executable:

chmod +x wp-db-cleanup.sh

4. Schedule the Script with Cron

Edit your crontab to schedule the cleanup script. For example, to run it weekly at 3 AM on Sundays:

crontab -e

Add the following line:

0 3 * * 0 /bin/bash /path/to/wp-db-cleanup.sh /path/to/wp-db-cleanup.log 2&1

This runs the script and logs output to wp-db-cleanup.log.

5. Verify Scheduled Task

Check the log file after the scheduled time to confirm the cleanup ran successfully:

cat /path/to/wp-db-cleanup.log

You can also manually run the script to test:

/bin/bash /path/to/wp-db-cleanup.sh

Common Pitfalls

Incorrect WordPress path: Ensure the script’s cd command points to the correct WordPress root directory.
Permission issues: The user running the cron job must have permission to execute WP-CLI and access the WordPress files.
Empty command arguments: If no revisions or spam comments exist, WP-CLI commands with empty ID lists may throw errors. You can add conditional checks in the script to avoid this.
WP-CLI environment: Cron jobs may run with a limited environment. Use absolute paths for WP-CLI if necessary (e.g., /usr/local/bin/wp).

Works On

Server Environment	Notes
Linux (Ubuntu, CentOS, Debian)	Supports cron jobs, WP-CLI installation straightforward
cPanel Hosting	Use cPanel’s cron job interface; ensure WP-CLI path is correct
Plesk Hosting	Supports scheduled tasks; configure WP-CLI path accordingly
LiteSpeed Servers	Compatible with WP-CLI and cron jobs
Windows Servers	Use Task Scheduler; WP-CLI requires PHP CLI and proper environment setup

FAQ

Q: Can I schedule database cleanup without WP-CLI?: A: Yes, plugins like WP-Optimize can automate cleanup, but WP-CLI is faster, lighter, and does not add plugin overhead.
Q: What if my site has a large number of revisions or comments?: A: WP-CLI handles large datasets efficiently. However, you

…

Admin & Blocks