[wp-hackers] A third action for plugins

[Jacob]

Paul Menard wrote:
> Something similar to an earlier post  on removing extra columns. I've 
> noticed the wp_options table  has become quite bloated over the years. 
> My site was originally setup on WP 1.5.1 and upgraded ever since. I've 
> installed many plugins and also uninstalled many plugins over time.
>
> I've noticed that old plugins leave trails in the wp_options table. At 
> one time many plugins would automatically remove any entries in 
> wp_option (as well as any specific new tables) upon deactivation. For 
> some reason plugin developers have stopped this removal. This was 
> great for tossing the plugin but if I just needed to deactivate the 
> plugin to perform an upgrade then I would not really want to loose all 
> my plugin settings.
>
> So my though was to add a third action (1-Activate, 2-Deactivate) to 
> actually remove the plugin's data. This action would be tied to a 
> plugin function similar to the deactivate or install action.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Paul
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I think that is a good idea. It would provide a mechanism for auto 
plugin uninstall. Any plugin that adds its option would be able to be 
removed.

There are several methods that could be done to achieve this, but the 
best one? That is to be decided. Also the be decided are the patches and 
whether or not the core developers would accept such a patch.

I would err on the side that doesn't allow plugin developers the choice, 
since you should expect them to not take the time to clean up their mess.


-- 

Jacob Santos

http://www.santosj.name - blog
http://wordpress.svn.dragonu.net/unittest/ - unofficial WP unit test suite.

Also known as darkdragon and santosj on WP trac.