WordPress MultiManager

The WordPress MultiManager section allows you to connect and manage multiple WordPress sites directly from your Account Panel. Some of the features and management options you get when using the WordPress MultiManager toolkit include: A quick summary of available updates to the WordPress core, themes, and plugins. Bulk core, plugin, and theme updates for your connected WordPress sites. An option to create site groups and arrange your sites for easier management. A user overview with the option to add a new user with the desired role to multiple sites. An overview of all installed plugins with the option to install, activate, and deactivate selected plugins on selected sites. An overview of all installed themes with the option to install, activate, and deactivate selected themes on selected sites. Options to receive email notifications for available updates and disconnected sites.

This section shows you the WordPress sites you have connected via WordPress MultiManager. You can connect a new site using the Connect new site button in the top right. The section displays useful information in separate columns: Site Name - shows the name of the site in this interface. Clicking on the site name or on the Details button next to it takes you to a new page with more information about the site and any pending updates for it. Site Address (URL) - the web address of the site. Clicking it will open the site in a new browser tab/window. Username - shows the name of the administrative user; clicking the button next to the username will automatically log you in to the WordPress Dashboard as that user. Groups - if the site has been added to some groups, they will be displayed in this column. Status - shows whether the site is currently connected or disconnected. Note that sites with status Disconnected cannot be managed. Updates - this column shows the status of updates for the WordPress core, plugins, and themes. Clicking on either option will take you to its update screen. Last Sync - shows the last time the site data was synchronized. Use the Sync button to synchronize the site manually. Actions - contains a Delete button that allows you to delete a site from WordPress MultiManager.

To connect a WordPress site with WordPress MultiManager: Make sure the site runs WordPress version 6.0 or newer and has a valid SSL certificate. Enter the site address (URL) of your WordPress site and click Connect. You will be redirected to your WordPress Dashboard, where you need to log in and authorize the connection from our application. When you get redirected back to the WordPress MultiManager, review the site details, give it a descriptive name (the Site Name reflects the name of the site only in WordPress MultiManager), and click Connect. As part of the process, our MultiManager WP plugin will be automatically installed and activated on your WordPress site. This plugin handles the connection between your site and this interface. If you experience any issues connecting the site this way, please try using the Manual connection option. You need an application password to connect a site manually. You can add an application password via the Dashboard of your WordPress site > Users > Profile > Application Passwords. You can also connect a brand new site when ordering a new hosting account and when creating a new child account on the SmartVPS platform. To do this, select the "Install WordPress" option and then the "Connect to WordPress MultiManager" option on the new account order/creation page. The system will check whether the domain for the new hosting account points to the server, and if it does not, in the next up to 48 hours WordPress MultiManager will not send notifications for a disconnected site. Diring this time, the site's status in WordPress MultiManager will be shown as "Disconnected".

If you experience any issues connecting the site automatically, please try using the Manual connection option. You need an application password in order to connect a site manually. You can add an application password via the dashboard of your WordPress site > Users > Profile > Application Passwords. Here are the most common reasons for connection issues: If your WordPress site doesn't use the default login location, the automatic setup will likely fail. In this case, use the Manual connection option, as described above.   If you are using an additional layer of password protection for the wp-login.php file on a WordPress site, you will not be able to connect the site to WordPress MultiManager by using the manual connection method. You may see the following error in the site's WordPress dashboard:   Your website appears to use Basic Authentication, which is not currently compatible with application passwords. To connect such sites, you will temporarily need to disable the additional layer of password protection for the wp-login.php file. You will then be able to connect the site as described above. Finally, do not forget to re-enable the additional layer of password protection for the wp-login.php file.   Some plugins, especially security plugins, may disable or interfere with the Application Password feature of WordPress, which is required by WordPress MultiManager. For example, the Wordfence plugin by default disables this feature. You need to uncheck the Disable WordPress application passwords option in the plugin options if you wish to use the WordPress MultiManager toolkit along with Wordfence. Other security plugins likely have a similar setting that will allow you to establish the connection. 

The Groups page allows you to group your WordPress websites for easier management. The groups you have created are listed on the left side of the page. To see the websites that belong to a group, click on the group's name. To create a new group, click the + Create new group button in the top-right corner. You can rename or delete a group by selecting its name and using the buttons that appear next to the name.  The websites are listed in a table with the following columns: Site Name - The name of the website in WordPress MultiManager. Clicking on the name will open the website's management page in the WordPress MultiManager. Site Address (URL) - The URL of the website. Clicking on a website's URL will open the website for browsing in a new tab. Actions - Clicking on the Manage button will take you to the website's WordPress management page in the WordPress MultiManager. To add a website to a group, select the group on the left, check the box in front of the website, and click the Save button below. To remove a website from a group, select the group on the left, uncheck the box in front of the website, and click the Save button below.

The Plugins section allows you to list, manage, and install plugins for the WordPress websites connected to the WordPress MultiManager. You can list and manage the plugins that have been installed in the Installed plugins tab. To see a list of plugins for a website or a group of websites, select the desired option from the Select site drop-down box, and press the Show plugins button. Once the plugins are listed, you can see the current status of the plugins for the selected websites. Each column represents the plugin status for the website whose name is listed in the heading of the column. Active plugins are marked with a (green power plug) icon, inactive plugins are marked with a (gray power plug) icon, and plugins that are not installed are marked with a (gray X) icon. You can also activate or deactivate a plugin or a group of plugins for a given website or a group of websites. To activate or deactivate a plugin - Check the box next to the plugin in question under the website you wish to activate it for. Then, select the Activate or Deactivate action in the top-right or bottom-right corner, and press the Apply button. To activate or deactivate a single plugin for all listed websites - Check the box in front of the plugin in question. Then, select the Activate or Deactivate action in the top-right or bottom-right corner, and press the Apply button. To activate or deactivate all plugins for a listed website - Check the box under the websites in question. Then, select the Activate or Deactivate action in the top-right or bottom-right corner, and press the Apply button. You can install plugins through the Install tab of the section. To install a plugin, open the Install tab, and browse or search for the plugin you wish to install, just like you would do in your WordPress dashboard. You will first need to click on the plugin thumbnail, and then, select the website or a group of websites you wish to install the plugin for in the top-right corner. Finally, press the Install button.

On the Users page, you can list and manage the users for the WordPress websites connected to the WordPress MultiManager. To see a list of users for a website or a group of websites, select the desired option from the Select a site drop-down box. Useful information is displayed in separate columns: Username - The username of the user for the respective website. Display name - The display name (nickname) of the user for the respective website. Email - The email address of the user. Clicking on the email address will open your default email client. Role - The role of the user. You can read more about WordPress user roles in the WordPress documentation. Posts - The number of posts this user has on the respective website. Website - The website this user is created for. Actions - Clicking on the gear wheel will present you with three options: Edit - This option will open the user management page in the WordPress MultiManager. This page allows you to modify the user's information and role. Log in - This option will log you in to the website's WordPress Dashboard as the respective user. Delete - This option will delete the user from the website. To create a new user, press the + Add new user button in the top-right corner of the page. Clicking on any of the column titles will sort the information in the table based on the value of the title that was clicked.

The Themes section allows you to list, manage, and install themes for the WordPress websites connected to the WordPress MultiManager. You can list and manage the themes that have been installed in the Installed themes tab. To see a list of the themes for a website or a group of websites, select the desired option from the Select a site drop-down box, and press the Show themes button. Once the themes are listed, you can see the current status of each theme for the selected websites. You can also activate a theme for a given website or a group of websites. Activate a theme - Check the box next to the theme in question under the website you wish to activate it for. Then, select the Activate action in the top-right or bottom-right corner, and press the Apply button. Activate a theme for all listed websites - Check the box in front of the theme in question. Then, select the Activate action in the top-right or bottom-right corner, and press the Apply button. You can install themes through the Install tab. To install a theme, open the Install tab, and browse or search for the theme you wish to install, just like you would do in your WordPress dashboard. You will first need to click on the theme thumbnail, and then, select the website or a group of websites you wish to install the theme for in the top-right corner. Finally, press the Install button.

The Updates section allows you to list and install updates for the cores, plugins, and themes of the WordPress websites connected via the WordPress MultiManager. The Core tab allows you to list and install updates for the cores of your websites. This tab will list all websites whose WordPress cores can be updated. To update the core of a website or multiple websites, check the box in front of each website, and press the Update selected button. To update the cores of all websites, use  the Update all button. The Plugins tab allows you to list and install updates for the plugins installed on your websites. This tab has two view modes: Group by site and Group by plugin. Group by site - This mode will list all websites whose plugins can be updated. To update all installed plugins of a website or multiple websites, check the box in front each website, and press the Update selected button. To update all installed plugins on all websites, use the Update all button. Group by plugin - This mode will list all plugins that can be updated. To update a plugin or a group of plugins on all connected websites, check the box in front each plugin, and press the Update selected button. To update all installed plugins on all websites, use the Update all button. The Themes tab allows you to list and install updates for the themes installed on your websites. This tab has two view modes: Group by site and Group by theme. Group by site - This mode will list all websites whose themes can be updated. To update all installed themes of a website or multiple websites, check the box in front each website, and press the Update selected button. To update all installed themes on all websites, use the Update all button. Group by theme - This mode will list all themes that can be updated. To update a theme or a group of themes on all connected websites, check the box in front each theme, and press the Update selected button. To update all installed themes on all websites, use the Update all button.

There are two options for email notifications that WordPress MultiManager can send: Email notifications for a disconnected site - This option allows you to choose if the system should send you emails if the site gets disconnected. Email notifications for available updates - This option allows you to choose if the system should send you emails if there are available updates for the WordPress core or any of the plugins or themes of the site. The notifications are sent to the contact addresses for your account defined in the My Account section. Each option can be defined globally for all sites via the WordPress MultiManager > Email Notifications section, as well as on a per-site basis via the WordPress MultiManager > WordPress Sites section > Manage button for each site.