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Custom Post Status Manager

A powerful WordPress plugin that allows you to create and manage custom post statuses with color-coded visual indicators in the admin interface.

Single File v1.0.1 Updated 3 days ago
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YT Custom Post Status Manager

A powerful WordPress plugin that allows you to create and manage custom post statuses with color-coded visual indicators in the admin interface.

Features

  • Custom Post Statuses - Create unlimited custom statuses like "In Review," "Needs Edits," "Approved"
  • Color-Coded Interface - Each status displays with a unique color in the post list
  • Quick Edit Integration - Custom statuses available in quick edit
  • Bulk Edit Support - Apply custom statuses to multiple posts at once
  • Post Edit Integration - Custom statuses in post editor status dropdown
  • Admin Filters - Filter posts by custom status in admin list
  • Easy Management - Add, edit, and delete statuses via admin interface
  • Default Statuses - Includes 3 pre-configured statuses on activation
  • WPCS Compliant - Follows WordPress Coding Standards
  • Secure - Nonce verification, sanitization, and capability checks

Installation

  1. Upload the plugin folder to /wp-content/plugins/
  2. Activate the plugin through the 'Plugins' menu in WordPress
  3. Go to Settings → Post Status to manage custom statuses
  4. Start using custom statuses when editing posts and pages

File Structure

yt-custom-post-status-manager/
├── class-yt-custom-post-status-manager.php  # Main plugin file (494 lines)
├── assets/
│   ├── css/
│   │   └── admin.css                         # Admin styles & row colors
│   └── js/
│       └── admin.js                          # Quick edit & color coding
└── README.md                                 # Documentation

Usage

Managing Statuses

Add New Status

  1. Go to Settings → Post Status
  2. Fill in the form:
    • Status Slug: Unique identifier (e.g., in-review)
    • Status Label: Display name (e.g., "In Review")
    • Status Color: Color code for visual identification
  3. Click Add Status

Edit Status

  1. Go to Settings → Post Status
  2. Click Edit next to the status you want to modify
  3. Update the label or color
  4. Click Update Status

Note: Status slugs cannot be changed after creation to prevent breaking existing posts.

Delete Status

  1. Go to Settings → Post Status
  2. Click Delete next to the status
  3. Confirm deletion

Warning: Deleting a status will not automatically change posts using that status. Posts will retain the status slug, but it won't be registered anymore.

Using Custom Statuses

In Post Editor

  1. Edit any post or page
  2. In the Publish metabox, click Edit next to Status
  3. Select your custom status from the dropdown
  4. Update or publish the post

In Quick Edit

  1. Go to Posts or Pages list
  2. Hover over a post and click Quick Edit
  3. Select a custom status from the Status dropdown
  4. Click Update

In Bulk Edit

  1. Go to Posts or Pages list
  2. Select multiple posts using checkboxes
  3. Choose Edit from Bulk Actions and click Apply
  4. Select a custom status from the Status dropdown
  5. Click Update

Filtering Posts

  1. Go to Posts or Pages list
  2. Use the All Statuses dropdown at the top
  3. Select a custom status to filter
  4. Posts with that status will be displayed

Default Statuses

The plugin includes 3 default statuses on activation:

Slug Label Color Use Case
in-review In Review Blue (#3498db) Content awaiting review
needs-edits Needs Edits Red (#e74c3c) Content requiring revisions
approved Approved Green (#2ecc71) Content approved for publication

You can edit or delete these default statuses as needed.

Visual Features

Color-Coded Rows

Each post in the admin list displays a colored left border matching its status color. This provides instant visual identification of post status.

┌────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ┃ Post Title - In Review          │  Blue border
├────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┃ Another Post - Needs Edits      │  Red border
├────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┃ Final Post - Approved           │  Green border
└────────────────────────────────────┘

Color Box Preview

In the settings page, each status displays a color box preview next to the hex code for easy identification.

Technical Details

Constants Defined

YT_CPSM_VERSION  // Plugin version: 1.0.0
YT_CPSM_BASENAME // Plugin basename
YT_CPSM_PATH     // Plugin directory path
YT_CPSM_URL      // Plugin directory URL

Data Storage

Custom statuses are stored in the WordPress options table:

Option Name: yt_cpsm_statuses

Data Structure:

array(
    array(
        'slug'  => 'in-review',
        'label' => 'In Review',
        'color' => '#3498db'
    ),
    // ... more statuses
)

Post Status Registration

Each custom status is registered using WordPress's register_post_status() function with these parameters:

register_post_status( 'in-review', array(
    'label'                     => 'In Review',
    'public'                    => true,
    'exclude_from_search'       => false,
    'show_in_admin_all_list'    => true,
    'show_in_admin_status_list' => true,
    'label_count'               => _n_noop(
        'In Review <span class="count">(%s)</span>',
        'In Review <span class="count">(%s)</span>'
    )
));

Main Class Methods

Method Description
get_instance() Get singleton instance
init_hooks() Register WordPress hooks
load_textdomain() Load translations
register_custom_statuses() Register all custom statuses with WordPress
enqueue_admin_scripts() Load admin CSS and JS
get_statuses_for_js() Format statuses for JavaScript
add_quick_edit_script() Add quick edit JavaScript
add_post_status_script() Add post editor JavaScript
get_status_label() Get label by slug
add_admin_menu() Add settings page
handle_status_actions() Process add/edit/delete actions
add_status() Add new status
edit_status() Update existing status
delete_status() Remove status
render_admin_page() Display settings page
display_custom_state() Show status in post list
add_status_filter() Add filter dropdown
filter_posts_by_status() Filter posts by status
add_action_links() Add settings link
activate() Plugin activation
deactivate() Plugin deactivation

Security Features

✅ Implemented Security Measures:

  • Nonce Verification - All form submissions verified with nonces
  • Capability Checks - Admin functions require manage_options
  • Sanitization - All inputs sanitized:
    • sanitize_title() for slugs
    • sanitize_text_field() for labels
    • sanitize_hex_color() for colors
    • absint() for indices
  • Escaping - All outputs escaped:
    • esc_html() for text
    • esc_attr() for attributes
    • esc_url() for URLs
    • esc_js() for JavaScript
  • Direct Access Prevention - File access protection
  • Safe Redirects - Using wp_safe_redirect()

Hooks & Filters

WordPress Core Hooks Used

The plugin hooks into:

// Admin hooks
add_action( 'init', 'register_custom_statuses' );
add_action( 'admin_enqueue_scripts', 'enqueue_admin_scripts' );
add_action( 'admin_footer-edit.php', 'add_quick_edit_script' );
add_action( 'admin_footer-post.php', 'add_post_status_script' );
add_action( 'restrict_manage_posts', 'add_status_filter' );

// Display hooks
add_filter( 'display_post_states', 'display_custom_state' );
add_filter( 'parse_query', 'filter_posts_by_status' );

Available for Developers

While the plugin doesn't expose custom hooks in this version, you can hook into WordPress core:

// Modify registered status args
add_filter( 'register_post_status_args', 'custom_status_args', 10, 2 );
function custom_status_args( $args, $post_status ) {
    if ( 'in-review' === $post_status ) {
        $args['public'] = false; // Make status private
    }
    return $args;
}

// Run code when status is changed
add_action( 'transition_post_status', 'custom_status_transition', 10, 3 );
function custom_status_transition( $new_status, $old_status, $post ) {
    if ( 'in-review' === $new_status ) {
        // Send notification, log event, etc.
    }
}

Customization

CSS Customization

Override default styles in your theme:

/* Change row border width */
.wp-list-table tbody tr[data-status-color] {
    border-left-width: 6px;
}

/* Add background color tint */
.wp-list-table tbody tr[data-status-color] {
    background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.01);
}

/* Custom color box style */
.yt-cpsm-color-box {
    width: 30px;
    height: 30px;
    border-radius: 50%;
}

/* Custom admin layout */
.yt-cpsm-container {
    flex-direction: column;
}

JavaScript Customization

Extend functionality:

jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
    // Add custom behavior when status changes
    $(document).on('change', 'select[name="_status"]', function() {
        const selectedStatus = $(this).val();
        console.log('Status changed to:', selectedStatus);

        // Add custom validation or notifications
        if (selectedStatus === 'approved') {
            alert('This post is now approved!');
        }
    });

    // Custom color highlighting
    $('#the-list tr[data-status-color]').each(function() {
        const color = $(this).attr('data-status-color');
        $(this).css('background-color', color + '10'); // Add transparency
    });
});

Programmatic Status Management

// Get all custom statuses
$statuses = get_option( 'yt_cpsm_statuses', array() );

// Add a status programmatically
$statuses[] = array(
    'slug'  => 'archived',
    'label' => 'Archived',
    'color' => '#95a5a6'
);
update_option( 'yt_cpsm_statuses', $statuses );

// Change a post's status
wp_update_post( array(
    'ID'          => 123,
    'post_status' => 'in-review'
) );

// Query posts by custom status
$args = array(
    'post_status' => 'in-review',
    'post_type'   => 'post'
);
$query = new WP_Query( $args );

Workflow Examples

Editorial Workflow

  1. Draft (WordPress default) - Author writes content
  2. In Review (Custom) - Editor reviews content
  3. Needs Edits (Custom) - Editor requests changes
  4. Approved (Custom) - Editor approves content
  5. Publish (WordPress default) - Content goes live

Development Workflow

  1. Draft - Initial content creation
  2. In Development - Technical implementation
  3. Testing - QA phase
  4. Approved - Ready for deployment
  5. Publish - Live on site

Custom Workflow Example

Create statuses for your needs:

Status Slug        | Label              | Color
-------------------|--------------------|--------
client-review      | Client Review      | #f39c12
legal-review       | Legal Review       | #9b59b6
ready-translation  | Ready Translation  | #1abc9c
translated         | Translated         | #16a085
scheduled          | Scheduled          | #34495e

Troubleshooting

Status Not Showing in Dropdown

Cause: JavaScript not loaded or conflict Solution:

  1. Clear browser cache
  2. Check JavaScript console for errors
  3. Deactivate other plugins to check for conflicts
  4. Ensure jQuery is loaded

Row Colors Not Displaying

Cause: CSS not loaded or theme conflict Solution:

  1. Check if admin.css is enqueued
  2. Inspect element to verify data-status-color attribute
  3. Check for theme CSS overrides
  4. Clear WordPress cache

Posts Not Filtering

Cause: Query not modified or permalink flush needed Solution:

  1. Re-save permalink settings
  2. Deactivate and reactivate plugin
  3. Check if yt_post_status parameter is in URL

Deleted Status Still Visible

Cause: WordPress caches registered statuses Solution:

  1. Clear object cache if using caching plugin
  2. Posts retain deleted status slugs but won't display properly
  3. Manually change affected posts to different status

Quick Edit Not Working

Cause: JavaScript timing or version conflict Solution:

  1. Check WordPress version (requires 5.8+)
  2. Try refreshing the page
  3. Inspect quick edit form for custom status options

Compatibility

WordPress Core

  • Post Types: Works with Posts and Pages by default
  • Gutenberg: Fully compatible
  • Classic Editor: Fully compatible
  • Quick Edit: Fully supported
  • Bulk Edit: Fully supported

Custom Post Types

To enable for custom post types, modify the filter checks in:

  • add_status_filter() method (line ~452)
  • add_quick_edit_script() method (line ~171)
if ( ! in_array( $post_type, array( 'post', 'page', 'your_cpt' ), true ) ) {
    return;
}

Plugins

Compatible with:

  • Yoast SEO
  • Advanced Custom Fields
  • WooCommerce (for products)
  • Custom Post Type UI
  • Most page builders

Performance

  • Database Queries: Minimal impact (stores in options table)
  • Admin Load: CSS/JS only on edit screens
  • Frontend: No frontend impact
  • Caching: Compatible with object caching

Browser Support

  • Chrome 90+
  • Firefox 88+
  • Safari 14+
  • Edge 90+
  • Opera 76+

Requirements

  • WordPress: 5.8 or higher
  • PHP: 7.4 or higher
  • jQuery: Included with WordPress
  • Permissions: manage_options capability

Uninstall

The plugin provides clean uninstall:

  1. Deactivate the plugin
  2. Delete the plugin files
  3. Option data is automatically removed

What Gets Deleted

  • Plugin option: yt_cpsm_statuses
  • All settings and custom statuses

What Remains

  • Posts keep their custom status slugs (but statuses won't be registered)
  • You can change post statuses before uninstalling if needed

Changelog

1.0.0 (2025-01-18)

  • Initial release
  • Add/edit/delete custom statuses
  • Color-coded post list rows
  • Quick edit integration
  • Bulk edit support
  • Post editor integration
  • Admin filter dropdown
  • WPCS compliant code

License

GPL v2 or later

Credits

Built following WordPress Plugin Handbook and WPCS guidelines.

Author

Krasen Slavov

Support

For issues and questions:

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