How to include a mu-plugin as a theme dependency?

Question

How to include a mu-plugin as a theme dependency?

exxodus7

2020年4月30日 17:21

I'm going through a tutorial which says that creating new post_types is best handled by creating a new mu-plugin (as opposed to adding it to the functions.php). I understand why, but what I don't understand is how to include this mu-plugin as a dependency of my theme.

I want to be able to have my friend upload my theme and have it work right away, without having to tell them to copy the mu-plugin file into their WordPress mu-plugins folder.

Topic wp-dependencies mu-plugins theme-development Wordpress

Category Web

Tom J Nowell · Accepted Answer · 2020年4月30日 17:21

1

Tom J Nowell answered at 2020年4月30日 17:21

Don't

Just register your post types in a normal plugin in the plugin folder. You don't need an mu-plugin to use CPT's.

cjbj · Accepted Answer · 2020年4月30日 16:37

The reason you are advised to put a custom post type in a plugin rather than your theme is that in this way the user can keep the cpt even if he decides to switch to another theme. In five years or so, design trends may change significantly and you don't want to be stuck with a theme, just because it also holds your custom post definition.

Now, if you look at the hook order, you see that mu-plugins are loaded before everything else. This means that the main function of the plugin is registered by the time you initialize your theme at the after_setup_theme hook. At that point you can use function_exists to check if the plugin has been loaded. If not your can notify the user or do something more drastic, like stop loading the theme.

By the way, it is not necessary to make your plugin a must use. The plugins_loaded hook is also executed before after_setup_theme, so any plugin function is known to WP before you start initializing the theme.

Also, it is possible to make the dependency a two way affair. If your plugin initializes (as it should do) at the init hook, the theme has been loaded by that time, so you can check for the existence of the theme's main function and issue a warning to the user that he is not using the theme that is optimal for this custom post type.

How to include a mu-plugin as a theme dependency?

About