Scott Reilly

This plugin prevents WordPress from allowing and handling any search requests from the front-end of the site. Specifically, this plugin:
<ul>
<li>Prevents the search form from appearing if the theme uses the standard <code>get_search_form()</code> function to display the search form.</li>
<li>Prevents the search form from appearing if the theme uses a <code>searchform.php</code> template</li>
<li>Prevents the search item from appearing in the admin tool bar when shown on the front-end.</li>
<li>Disables the search widget.
<ul>
<li>Removes the Search widget from the list of available widgets</li>
<li>Deactivates any search widgets currently in use in any sidebars (they are hidden, not deleted; they’ll reappear in their original locations if this plugin gets deactivated)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Disables the search block.
<ul>
<li>Removes the Search block from the list of available blocks</li>
<li>Deactivates any search blocks currently in use, such as in posts or as a widget (they are disabled, not deleted; they’ll reappear if this plugin gets deactivated and the associated placeholder block doesn’t get deleted)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>With or without a search form, the plugin prevents any direct or manual requests by visitors, via either GET or POST requests, from actually returning any search results.</li>
<li>Submitted attempts at a search will be given a 404 File Not Found response, rendered by your site’s 404.php template, if present.</li>
<li>Disables output of <code>SearchAction</code> in SEO schema by the <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-seo/" rel="ugc">Yoast SEO</a> plugin.</li>
</ul>
The plugin only affects search on the front-end of the site. It does not disable searching in the admin section of the site.
Links: <a href="https://coffee2code.com/wp-plugins/disable-search/" rel="nofollow ugc">Plugin Homepage</a> | <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/disable-search/" rel="ugc">Plugin Directory Page</a> | <a href="https://github.com/coffee2code/disable-search/" rel="nofollow ugc">GitHub</a> | <a href="https://coffee2code.com" rel="nofollow ugc">Author Homepage</a>

Disable Search


In 2024, numerous bots are crawling sites, generating significant search spam. Generally, site search incurs high costs, primarily because we end up paying for CPU resources consumed by spam.



If site search is not crucial for your website, I recommend activating this plugin.



Thank you, Scott, for maintaining this simple yet effective plugin!


The most effective way to avoid search spam

Disable the built-in front-end search capabilities of WordPress.

NOTE: This plugin is deprecated as of WordPress 4.3, which now includes a display of the count of pending comments alongside the regular count of comments. And it does so in a more aesthetically pleasing fashion than this plugin ever did, so if you are using WP 4.3 or later, there’s no need to use this plugin. In fact, it won’t do anything for you if you try to use it. The plugin is still fully functional for WP 4.2 and earlier.
By default, in the admin listing of posts, each post has its count of approved comments displayed within a word bubble. If you hover over a comment count, the tooltip hover text indicates the number of pending comments. This plugin utilizes JavaScript to change the post listings so that the pending comments count is displayed next to the approved comments count inside the same word bubble (though with a separator).
The pending comments count will appear next to post comment counts in:
<ul>
<li>The “Posts” listing of posts (formerly called “Edit Posts”)</li>
<li>The “Pages” listing of pages (formerly called “Edit Pages”)</li>
<li>The “Comments” listing of comments (formerly called “Edit Comments”)</li>
</ul>
This plugin will only function for users in the admin who have JavaScript enabled.
Links: <a href="http://coffee2code.com/wp-plugins/show-pending-comments-count/" rel="nofollow ugc">Plugin Homepage</a> | <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/show-pending-comments-count/" rel="ugc">Plugin Directory Page</a> | <a href="http://coffee2code.com" rel="nofollow ugc">Author Homepage</a>
<h3>Filters</h3>
The plugin is further customizable via two filters. Typically, these customizations would be put into your active theme’s functions.php file, or used by another plugin.
<h4>c2c_show_pending_comments_count_column_width</h4>
The ‘c2c_show_pending_comments_count_column_width’ filter allows you to customize the column width used for the comment column when pending comments are also being displayed. The WP default is “4em”, which is not sufficient to display a possible 3 digits for approved comments in addition to a possible 2 digits in pending comments. The default defined by the plugin is “5em” which should handle most cases sufficiently. Use the filter if you want to change the width.
Arguments:
<ul>
<li>$comment_column_width (string): The width of the comment column. Default is “5em”. Express as a width measurement recognized by CSS.</li>
</ul>
Example:
<pre><code><?php
// Make it even wider
function my_c2c_show_pending_comments_count_column_width( $comment_column_width ) {
 return '6em';
}
add_filter( 'c2c_show_pending_comments_count_column_width', 'my_c2c_show_pending_comments_count_column_width' );
?>
</code></pre>
<h4>c2c_show_pending_comments_count_separator</h4>
The ‘c2c_show_pending_comments_count_separator’ filter allows you to specify the character used as the separator between the count of approved comments and the count of pending comments. By default this is ‘ • ‘ (a bullet, with space on either side).
Arguments:
<ul>
<li>
$separator (string): The character or string to be used as the separator. By default this is ‘ • ‘ (note space of either side).
</li>
</ul>

Show Pending Comments Count

Display the pending comments count next to the approved comments count in the admin listing of posts.

Disable Search vs Show Pending Comments Count