Automattic

Thorsten Ott

<p>This plugins adds more features to the debug-bar and is mainly aimed at developers who like to debug their code or want to measure runtimes to find glitches in their code.<br />
It also allows lookup of variables by adding simple code snippets in your source.</p>
<p>Please note that this plugin should be used solely for debugging or on a development environment and is not intended for use in a production site.</p>
<h3>Requirements</h3>
<p>This plugin requires <a href="https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/debug-bar" rel="ugc">the debug-bar plugin >0.5</a> and a developers’ brain to work correctly.</p>
<h3>Usage</h3>
<h4>Usage example to debug the loop of a theme</h4>
<p>Add your checkpoints in the index.php or any other template file as shown below.</p>
<pre><code><?php if (have_posts()) : ?>

<?php Debug_Bar_Extender::instance()->checkpoint('loop start'); ?>

<?php while (have_posts()) : the_post(); ?>

<?php Debug_Bar_Extender::instance()->trace_var( $post ); ?>

<?php Debug_Bar_Extender::instance()->checkpoint('loop1'); ?>

<div <?php post_class() ?> id="post-<?php the_ID(); ?>">
<?php //before_post(); ?>
<h2><a href="<?php the_permalink() ?>" rel="bookmark" title="<?php printf(__('Permanent Link to %s', 'kubrick'), the_title_attribute('echo=0')); ?>"><?php the_title(); ?></a></h2>
<small><?php the_time(get_option('date_format')) ?> by <?php the_author() ?></small>
<div class="entry">
<?php the_content(__('Read the rest of this entry &raquo;', 'kubrick')); ?>
</div>
<p class="postmetadata"><?php the_tags(__('Tags:', 'kubrick') . ' ', ', ', '<br />'); ?> <?php printf(__('Posted in %s', 'kubrick'), get_the_category_list(', ')); ?> | <?php edit_post_link(__('Edit', 'kubrick'), '', ' | '); ?> <?php comments_popup_link(__('No Comments »', 'kubrick'), __('1 Comment »', 'kubrick'), __('% Comments »', 'kubrick')); ?></p>
<?php after_post(); ?>
</div>

<?php Debug_Bar_Extender::instance()->checkpoint('loop2'); ?>

<?php endwhile; ?>

<?php Debug_Bar_Extender::instance()->checkpoint('loop end'); ?>

<div class="navigation">
<div class="alignleft"><?php next_posts_link(__('&laquo; Older Entries', 'kubrick')) ?></div>
<div class="alignright"><?php previous_posts_link(__('Newer Entries &raquo;', 'kubrick')) ?></div>
</div>
<?php else : ?>
</code></pre>
<h3>Advanced usage</h3>
<p>Looking at the source of the debug-bar-extender.php you will notice that there are various filters to control the default settings. This is useful when you are working on a multisite install and want to use the debug bar without having to adjust the settings every time. Here’s an example of how settings enforced by a php file in mu-plugins/ could look like</p>
<pre><code>add_filter( 'debugbarextender_default_settings', 'my_debug_bar_extender_settings' );
// enforce debug bar settings
function my_debug_bar_extender_settings( $default_settings ) {
    $default_settings = array(
            'enable_profiler'               => 1,
            'enable_variable_lookup'        => 1,
            'track_default_vars'            => 0,
            'add_default_checkpoints'       => 1,
            'savequeries_debugmode_enable'  => 1,
            'use_error_log'                 => 0,
            'allow_url_settings'            => 1,
            'enable_admin_bar_menu'         => 1,
    );
    return $default_settings;
}

add_filter( 'debugbarextender_default_checkpoint_actions', 'my_debug_bar_extender_checkpoints' );
// initiate some default checkpoints
function my_debug_bar_extender_checkpoints( $default_checkpoints ) {
    $default_checkpoints = array(
                    'muplugins_loaded',
                    'wp_head',
                    'wp_footer',
                    'loop_start',
                    'loop_end',
                    'shutdown',
    );
    return $default_checkpoints;
}
</code></pre>
<h3>Wishlist</h3>
<p>This is a work in progress, so feel free to pass by on <a href="http://hitchhackerguide.com/wordpress-plugins/debug-bar-extender/" rel="nofollow ugc">our plugin page</a> and leave us<br />
your suggestions in the comments.</p>


Debug-Bar-Extender

Extends the debug-bar plugin with additional tabs to measure runtimes between checkpoints and lookup variable content.

Lukman Nakib

<p>Debug Log Manager Tool is a debug log viewer and WP_DEBUG manager for WordPress. Read, search, group, and clear <code>wp-content/debug.log</code> from inside wp-admin; toggle WP_DEBUG, WP_DEBUG_LOG, WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY, SCRIPT_DEBUG, and SAVEQUERIES from explicit UI controls instead of editing <code>wp-config.php</code>; capture the last fatal error during shutdown; and review slow database queries with their stack trace. Useful as a lightweight alternative to Query Monitor or Debug Bar when you mainly need a clean debug.log reader and explicit debug-constant control.</p>
<p>The plugin focuses on safe first-run behavior: activation does not automatically turn debug mode on, deactivation does not automatically turn it off, and existing debug constants or custom log paths are preserved until you choose to change them.</p>
<p>Use it to inspect the current debug log, search and group log entries, copy useful error details, and make explicit debug configuration changes from the WordPress admin when needed. Advanced tools such as terminal commands, database inspection, Safe Mode, and notifications are available as optional helpers.</p>
<h4>Quick Demo</h4>
<span class="embed-youtube" style="text-align:center; display: block;"><iframe loading="lazy" class="youtube-player" width="750" height="422" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D4K5zsLnILw?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent" allowfullscreen="true" style="border:0;" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox"></iframe></span>
<h4>Key Features</h4>
<ul>
<li><strong>Safe First Run</strong>: Activating the plugin does not automatically change WP_DEBUG, WP_DEBUG_LOG, WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY, SCRIPT_DEBUG, SAVEQUERIES, or existing log paths.</li>
<li><strong>Explicit Debug Controls</strong>: Review current debug constant values and update them only through intentional UI actions.</li>
<li><strong>Modern Debug Log Viewer</strong>: View, search, filter, group, copy, and clear debug log entries from a compact WordPress admin interface.</li>
<li><strong>Readable Timeline Rows</strong>: Scan log entries with severity labels, occurrence counts, plugin/source hints, exact timestamps, and copy-as-JSON actions.</li>
<li><strong>Stack Trace Analysis</strong>: Format PHP stack traces and database call chains so long fatal errors are easier to read.</li>
<li><strong>Last Fatal Snapshot</strong>: Capture the latest fatal error during shutdown and show it in the log screen when wp-admin is available again.</li>
<li><strong>Large Log File Preview</strong>: Open the current debug log file inside a modal and safely read the latest 1 MB of large files.</li>
<li><strong>Smooth Upgrade Behavior</strong>: Upgrades preserve existing constants and custom debug log locations instead of replacing your current configuration.</li>
<li><strong>Query Inspector</strong>: Optionally examine database queries when SAVEQUERIES is enabled, including SQL, caller, execution time, and stack trace details.</li>
<li><strong>WP-CLI Style Terminal</strong>: Optionally run guarded WordPress-style commands directly from the browser with command history and auto-completion.</li>
<li><strong>Terminal Settings</strong>: Enable or disable terminal access and database commands from a dedicated settings screen.</li>
<li><strong>Safe Mode</strong>: Optionally isolate plugin conflicts by keeping selected plugins active and restoring the previous state when Safe Mode is turned off.</li>
<li><strong>Email Notifications</strong>: Optionally configure notification email settings, daily summaries, and test email delivery for debug activity.</li>
<li><strong>Admin Bar Debug Toggle</strong>: Quickly review and change WP_DEBUG from the WordPress admin bar when you explicitly choose to.</li>
<li><strong>Dashboard Widget</strong>: See recent debug log activity from the WordPress dashboard.</li>
<li><strong>Custom Log Path Support</strong>: Keep existing custom log paths and use filters to customize the debug log location.</li>
<li><strong>Hardened Admin Routes</strong>: AJAX actions use nonce and capability checks, with guarded file path handling for debug log access.</li>
</ul>
<h4>Debug Constants Available</h4>
<p>These constants can be reviewed and changed from the plugin UI. The plugin does not change them on activation or deactivation.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>WP_DEBUG</strong> – Enables WordPress debug mode</li>
<li><strong>WP_DEBUG_LOG</strong> – Saves errors to the configured debug log destination</li>
<li><strong>SCRIPT_DEBUG</strong> – Uses development versions of core JS and CSS files</li>
<li><strong>WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY</strong> – Controls whether debug messages display on screen</li>
<li><strong>SAVEQUERIES</strong> – Saves database queries for analysis</li>
</ul>
<h4>Developer Tools</h4>
<ul>
<li><strong>Terminal Commands</strong>: Optionally use WP-CLI style commands like <code>wp core version</code> or <code>wp plugin list</code></li>
<li><strong>Database Explorer</strong>: Optionally run SELECT queries and view results in a formatted table</li>
<li><strong>Stack Trace Analysis</strong>: Visualize error stack traces for easier debugging</li>
<li><strong>Hook Inspector</strong>: View all registered hooks and their callbacks</li>
<li><strong>Environment Detection</strong>: Development features are automatically hidden in production</li>
<li><strong>Copy JSON</strong>: Copy structured log entries for support tickets or developer handoff</li>
<li><strong>File Viewer</strong>: Inspect the debug log file without leaving the WordPress admin screen</li>
</ul>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Developer API</strong>: Use filters like <code>wp_dlct_log_file_path</code> and <code>dlct_debug_file_path</code> to customize log path behavior.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Please note: Configuration changes are made only by explicit UI actions. Deactivating the plugin does not automatically restore, remove, enable, or disable WordPress debug constants.</p>


Debug Log Manager Tool

Awesome!

Helps us a lot with development :)

it's exactly what i am after for. instead of connecting to ftp, opening wp-config.php, editing the constants, saving, uploading, reloading site, opening debug.log and deleting it and so on … you simple enable the toggle and look into the logs right in wordpress with nice styling so you can easily distinguish between warning and errors. 
in the future i would like to see more toggles for instance for WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY. for some reason this is missing?! 

simple but good


My go-to debugging plugin for 500 internal server errors and anything that's trickier to track. Good job.


Super useful


Fantastic plugin with an easy interface for browsing. Thank you so much for making it available for free!


Fantastic & easy to use.


The plugin used to work very well, but with the latest update the debug log cannot be cleaned. This has been reported as a bug 2 months ago with no response and no other update. This is why I'm giving the plugin 2 stars. There are other plugins that work better.



--- EDIT ---



Recently I tested the plugin again and it has improved by a lot. I see new functions and - so far - zero bugs. Well done. I improve my rating. Keep up the good work.


Much improved over time


Using this plugin for more than 3 years, and its my favourite one to debug!


Great plugin

Read, search, and clear WordPress debug logs from wp-admin. Toggle WP_DEBUG and inspect errors without FTP.

Debug-Bar-Extender vs Debug Log Manager Tool