Transient Cleaner
Clean expired transients from your options table. The original and best! Transient housekeeping was added to the core of WordPress after version 5.8. However, I have decided to open up this plugin to all versions to allow for manual transient cleaning. Longer term I am working on a new version of the plugin, designed specifically for all WordPress releases. Tested up to PHP 8.2 Fully complies with WordPress coding standards Compliant with the stronger WordPress VIP coding standards, as well as compatibility with their platform Community plugin – visit the Github page to get involved with the latest code development, request enhancements and report issues “Transients are a simple and standardized way of storing cached data in the WordPress database temporarily by giving it a custom name and a timeframe after which it will expire and be deleted.” Unfortunately, expired transients only get deleted when you attempt to access them. If you don’t access the transient then, even though it’s expired, WordPress will not remove it. This is a known “issue” but due to reasons, which are explained in the FAQ, this has not been adequately resolved. Why is this a problem? Transients are often used by plugins to “cache” data (my own plugins included). Because of this it means that expired data can be left and build up, resulting in a bloated database table. Meantime, this plugin is the hero that you’ve been waiting for. Simply activate the plugin, sit back and enjoy a much cleaner, smaller options table. It also adds the additional recommendation that after a database upgrade all transients will be cleared down. The Settings Screen Within Administration -> Tools -> Transients an options screen exists allowing you to tweak when you’d like cleaning to happen, including the ability to perform an ad-hoc run, and when you’d like the to be automatically scheduled. You can even request an optimization of the options table to give your system a real “pep”! Running in Lite mode A “lite” mode is available. By activating this the options screen will no longer appear and default settings will be used. The advantage? Improved performance to Admin and, especially if you’re running multi-site, no chance of anybody “tinkering” with the settings. To activate, use the following… define( 'TC_LITE', true ); This should be added to your wp-config.php file. Using hooks If you’re the type of odd person who likes to code for WordPress (really?) then I’ve added a couple of hooks so you can call our rather neat cleaning functions… housekeep_transients – this will clear down any expired transients clear_all_transients – this will remove any and all transients, expired or otherwise Acknowledgements I’d like to thank WordPress Developer Andrew Nacin for his early discussion on this. Also, I’d like to acknowledge the useful article at Everybody Staze for ensuring the proposed solution made sense, and W-Shadow.com for the cleaning code. Iconography is courtesy of the very talented Janki Rathod.
The Cache Purger
The Cache Purger takes the headache out of cache management. Instead of juggling a dozen different cache-clearing buttons across your stack, this plugin hooks into WordPress actions and fires them all at once — automatically, on a schedule, or with a single click from the admin bar. It covers the full spectrum: popular caching plugins, managed hosting environments, PHP-level caches (OPcache, APC, WinCache), server-level caches (Nginx, Varnish, PageSpeed), in-memory stores (Redis, Memcache, Memcached), and external CDN/WAF APIs (Cloudflare, Sucuri, Fastly). Every purge is configurable. Choose which cache types to include, which WordPress events should trigger a purge, and which specific posts, pages, CPTs, or field groups to exclude. You can also run purges on a WP Cron schedule, or kick one off manually via WP-CLI. What Gets Purged Caching Plugins Flying Press, SiteGround Optimizer, Nginx Helper, LiteSpeed Cache, Cachify, Autoptimize, Fast Velocity Minify, WP Rocket, Swift Performance, Comet Cache, Hummingbird, WP Fastest Cache, WP Super Cache, W3 Total Cache, Hyper Cache, WP-Optimize, Cache Enabler, NitroPack, Divi, Elementor, WP REST Cache, and more. Hosting Environments WP Engine, Kinsta, GoDaddy Managed WordPress, Pantheon, Bluehost, Cloudways (Breeze), SiteGround, RunCloud, SpinupWP. Some of these rely on the host’s companion plugin being installed. Check with your provider if you’re unsure. Server & PHP Caches Zend OPcache, APC/APCu, WinCache, XCache, Nginx (fastcgi/proxy cache), PageSpeed Module, Varnish, static file caches. Memory Stores Redis, Memcache, Memcached — with support for remote servers, authentication, per-database flushing, and prefix/key-scoped clearing. CDN & WAF APIs Cloudflare (full cache purge via API token), Sucuri WAF, Fastly CDN. WordPress Built-In Object cache, options cache, transients, persistent object cache. Purge Triggers Configure purges to fire automatically on any combination of the following WordPress events: Post save / update / trash Page save / update / trash Custom Post Type save / update / trash Taxonomy / term save / delete Category save / delete Menu save / delete Widget save / delete Customizer save GravityForms form save / trash (requires GravityForms) Advanced Custom Fields field group save / trash (requires ACF) WooCommerce settings save (requires WooCommerce) Plugin activation / deactivation Core / plugin / theme updates Plugin settings save (this plugin’s own settings page) Exclusion lists are available for posts, pages, CPTs, GravityForms forms, and ACF field groups — so you can carve out anything that shouldn’t trigger a purge. Additional Features Admin bar button — Master Cache Purge available on every admin page, one click from anywhere. Purge log — Optional logging of every purge action to wp-content/purge.log, viewable directly in the settings UI with a one-click clear. Scheduled purges — WP Cron / Action Scheduler integration with any built-in schedule. Scheduled log clearing — Keep your log file tidy on its own schedule. Export / Import settings — Move your configuration between sites in seconds. Multisite aware — Cannot be network-activated by design; activate per-subsite for granular control.
