WordPress Beta Tester

Description

This plugin provides an easy way to get involved with beta testing WordPress.

Once installed it will enable you to upgrade your website to the latest Nightly, Beta, or Release Candidate at the click of a button using the built in upgrader.

By default once enabled it switches your website onto the point release update channel.

For the more adventurous there is the option to switch to the bleeding edge (trunk) of development.

Don’t forget to backup before you start!

Please enable auto-updates for this plugin to ensure future changes are properly handled with core updates.

Extra Settings

There is a setting to Skip successful autoupdate emails. It functions to disable sending emails to the admin user for successful autoupdates. Only emails indicating failures of the autoupdate process are sent.

PRs are welcome on GitHub.

Screenshots

Installation

1. Upload to your plugins folder, usually wp-content/plugins/
2. Activate the plugin on the plugin screen.
3. Navigate to Tools … Beta Testing to configure the plugin.
4. Under Mulitsite, navigate to Settings … Beta Testing to configure the plugin.
5. Visit Dashboard … Upgrade (Or Tools … Upgrade in versions before 3.0) and update to the latest Beta Release.

Reviews

What a fantastic facility!

Andrew Palmer October 8, 2024

This is just brilliant. It allows anyone to test out the beta and see if everything works – Nice work here! I only found out about this from the WPBUILDS podcast – needs more promotion – its fantastic!

DIEGO HJ JACOBO

JUAN DIEGO JACOBO HERNANDEZ October 26, 2023

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Effortlessly Test and Review WordPress Updates with the Beta Tester Plugin

Mir Monoarul Alam August 7, 2023

I have been using the WordPress Beta Tester plugin for a few months now, and I am blown away by its performance. This plugin has revolutionized the way I test and review WordPress updates, making it easy and hassle-free. One of the best things about this plugin is its simplicity. The interface is straightforward and easy to navigate, making it simple to install and configure. I love how I can easily manage which updates I want to test and review, and how the plugin keeps me informed of the status of each update. Another great feature of the plugin is its reliability. I have yet to experience any issues or bugs with the plugin, and I know that it is constantly being updated and improved by the WordPress team. Overall, I highly recommend the WordPress Beta Tester plugin to any WordPress user who wants to stay ahead of the game and test the latest updates before they are released to the public. It is a must-have plugin for anyone who values the security and stability of their plugin/theme/website.

Easy plug-in to install and join the WP betas!

Toine Rademacher (toineenzo) March 19, 2023

Great and easy plug-in!

Great for testing

Josh Journey August 4, 2020

Always make a backup when testing development releases. Worked great on my end allowing me to see WP 5.5 RC1 and RC2 with improved performance. Thank you for giving us a plugin that allows us to see the future of WordPress!

My site crashed because of the plugin.

kvkkvk July 9, 2020 5 replies

Don’t know why, but the moment I installed the Wordpress Beta Tester plugin, my site went dead. I have never had such experience.

Contributors & Developers

Changelog

3.6.0 / 2024-10-09

• remove Report a Bug in favor of using the standalone Test Reports plugin

3.5.6 / 2024-07-06

• string update
• no need to skip debug email

3.5.5 / 2023-10-19

• add Settings to action links, thanks @0aveRyan

3.5.4 / 2023-09-09

• use automatic_updates_send_debug_email filter to turn off sending debug email
• mysql_get_client_info() no longer in PHP 7.0, switch to mysqli_get_client_info()
• make anonymous functions static

3.5.3 / 2023-08-10

• update for changed standalone afragen/test-reports plugin
• set actual next beta/RC in messaging

3.5.2 / 2023-07-12

• fix dev-notes URL

3.5.1 / 2023-07-06

• add setting in Extra Settings to hide Report a Bug
• add filter wpbt_hide_report_a_bug
• update if Report a Bug plugin active
• link to settings if Report a Bug is hidden
• update for latest WP API responses, thanks @dd32

3.5.0 / 2023-06-30

• update dashboard widget for MarComm publishing of posts
• update to correctly identify Opera browser in Report a Bug
• update API query when channel set to beta or RC and version is non-current
• fix WP_Beta_Tester::switch_update_offer() to correctly display ‘Update’ or ‘Re-install’ buttons on update-core.php
• remove unused item from Extra Settings tab

3.4.1 / 2023-05-26

• Report a Bug only for logged in users

3.4.0 / 2023-05-21

• update to point release if set for development beta/rc and new point release occurs

3.3.8 / 2023-05-18

• update composer.json
• update GitHub Actions
• update to correctly return ‘upgrade’ or ‘latest’ offer when set to ‘beta’ or ‘rc’ stream

3.3.7 / 2023-03-28

• better fix for spacing of bug report copy
• Report a Bug: update database data for SQLite

3.3.6 / 2023-02-25

• fix spacing of bug report copy

3.3.5 / 2023-02-22

• updated dashboard widget with some better dynamic information
• Report a Bug: introduce search button
• updated strings
• Report a Bug: Truncate the value of mysqli::$client_info

3.3.4 / 2023-03-20

• PHP 5.6 and EOD, why we can’t have nice looking code in the editor

3.3.3 / 2023-03-20

• add an icon ??
• improved environment data and display
• improve clipboard text for insertion
• lots of other stuff for Colin to do

3.3.2 / 2023-03-17 ??????

• more fixes for ‘Report a Bug’
• updated/added strings
• some developery stuff

3.3.1 / 2023-03-17 ??

• update readme
• sort listed plugins in ‘Report a Bug’
• add mu-plugins in ‘Report a Bug’
• fix for multisite
• initiate plugin in plugins_loaded

3.3.0 / 2023-03-16

• added Report a Bug feature, thanks @costdev, @ironprogrammer

3.2.9 / 2023-02-27

• mitigate some issues/possible issues with PHP 8.1/8.2

3.2.8 / 2023-02-07

• Composer 2.5.2 is fixed.

3.2.7 / 2023-02-07

• revert to Composer v2.2.x locally for autoloader compatibility

3.2.6 / 2023-01-30

• revert to Composer v2.5.0 as v2.5.1 has bug causing fatal, fixed in next version of Composer

3.2.5 / 2023-01-29

• added auto display relative fields immediately bleeding edge option is selected, thanks @Preciousomonze
• fixes for PHP8.1

3.2.4 / 2022-11-07

• return empty array for 8.1 compatibility

3.2.3 / 2022-09-29

• update for PHP 8.1 compatibility

3.2.2 / 2022-06-23

• correctly use sanitize_url() and esc_url()
• fix WP_Config_Transformer to get anchor if wp-config.php has been modified

3.2.1 / 2022-04-13

• update composer to work with PHP 5.6

3.2.0 / 2022-04-12

• use sanitize_key() for nonces
• fix for transition from WP x.9 to WP x.0 to display correct next versions

3.1.5 / 2022-01-28

• use sanitize_title_with_dashes() as sanitize_file_name() maybe have attached filter that changes output
• fix variable docblocks
• update nonce checks

3.1.4 / 2021-09-24 Hotfix

• don’t load pluggable.php for wp_create_nonce(), load in plugins_loaded hook

3.1.3 / 2021-09-23

• nonce, escape, and sanitize all the things

3.1.2 / 2021-09-04

• only use esc_attr_e for translating strings

3.1.1 / 2021-07-11

• add @10up GitHub Actions WordPress SVN integration
• update Codex links for HelpHub links @audrasjb

3.1.0 / 2021-02-08

• update for working correctly if new WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE constant is used.
• update WP_Beta_Tester::channel_switching_modification() to update past current release if appropriate
• tweak next versions when coming from point release to bleeding edge

3.0.10 / 2021-01-11

• re-write WP_Beta_Tester::get_current_wp_release() to check https://api.www.ads-software.com/core/stable-check/1.0/
• fix WPBT_Core::get_next_versions() if user on current release
• tweak WP_Beta_Tester::channel_switching_modification() to work correctly with $wp_version <= $current_release and if on current release

3.0.9 / 2020-12-01

• add conditional for filter to fix core_update_footer(), fixed in r49708
• simplify some preg_match() calls
• fix PHP warning

3.0.8 / 2020-11-28

• fix some PHP errors when using older versions of WP, for testing updates directly from these older versions like when using Core Rollback plugin

3.0.7 / 2020-11-24

• tweak to channel_switching_modification()

3.0.6 / 2020-11-21

• improved flow between Bleeding edge and Point release

3.0.5 / 2020-11-18

• don’t show beta as a next version when on RC

3.0.4 / 2020-11-17

• fix to correctly downgrade from Bleeding edge to Point release nightlies.
• hide stream options other than Nightlies for Point release channel until new Updates API changes
• add settings for future Updates API above
• added channel_settings_migrator() for switching between Bleeding edge and Point release channels

3.0.1 – 3.0.3 / 2020-10-27

• fixed regex to get next versions
• really didn’t need to use ReflectionClass ???♂?, thanks @pbiron
• use ReflectionClass to get static variable $core_update_constant from class WP_Beta_Tester into class WPBT_Core

3.0.0 / 2020-10-23

• major refactor for new core update API, thanks @dd32!
• now requires PHP >5.6
• allows for overrides when using the WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE constant
• update on-screen help

2.2.13 / 2020-09-05

• enclose WPConfigTransformer in try/catch

2.2.12 / 2020-08-10

• fix intermittent PHP warning #21
• deactivate and die if user attempting to run with wordpress-develop

2.2.11 / 2020-08-01

• minor cleanup

2.2.10 / 2020-05-01

• sanitize, escape & ignore
• move multiline boolean operator to front of line, new guidelines in WPCS
• fix correct_versions_for_downgrade() for being on current release version

2.2.9 / 2020-03-24

• delete development RSS feed transient after core upgrade

2.2.8 / 2020-03-17 ??

• add Dev Notes and Field Guide links to dashboard
• add text/link for bug reporting to trac
• add help tabs to screen
• arbitrarily changed settings page id from wp_beta_tester to wp-beta-tester ??

2.2.7 / 2020-03-02

• update trac link in callout for closed or reopened tickets on the milestone
• only show Beta Tester Settings page link in callout with appropriate privileges, using manage_network_options and manage_options
• menu to Settings page also checks privileges as above

2.2.6 / 2020-02-25

• removed extra </li> in dashboard callout, 4th time’s the charm ??

2.2.5 / 2020-02-25

• less greedy regex for matching release posts in RSS for dashboard callout

2.2.4 / 2020-02-25 ???♂?

• added dashboard widget for network dashboard

2.2.3 / 2020-02-25

• add dashboard widget callout for testing

2.2.2 / 2020-02-22

• fix for strange Core API response where preferred version response contained the word ‘version’. We now grab the last word of that response

2.2.1 / 2020-02-20

• fix some i18n strings, thanks @pedro-mendonca

2.2.0 / 2020-02-19

• added support for updating to the beta/RC offer. Based on and with tons of help from @pbrion, thanks Paul ????
• fixed so a downgrade from ‘unstable’ to ‘point’ serves the correct download
• test and exit from Extra Settings if wp-config.php is not writeable

2.1.0 / 2019-09-17

• add extra setting to skip successful autoupdate emails
• add description to checkbox settings
• composer update

2.0.4

• add update version information to settings page text

2.0.3

• a11y fixes for settings tabs
• update wp-cli/wp-config-transformer

2.0.2

• a11y fixes for checkbox, thanks @audrasjb

2.0.1

• fix for incorrect last updated message

2.0.0

• near complete re-write to use more OOPy practices
• put distinct process into separate classes
• allows for multiple settings tabs for addtional settings

1.2.6

• remove extraneous code
• add GitHub Plugin URI header

1.2.5

• fixed error message for downgrading version, thanks @andreas-andersson

1.2.4

• don’t use $GLOBALS

1.2.3

• updated a few strings and correct typos
• run through WPCS linter
• fixed translation strings to include HTML in context and properly escape with wp_kses_post()
• fixed link to settings page under Multisite

1.2.2

• change wording from blog to website

1.2.0

• Escape output
• Indicate that Bleeding edge nightlies are trunk
• new screenshot
• code improvements from linter

1.1.2

• Remove anonymous function for PHP 5.2 compatibility.

1.1.1

• fixed PHP notice for PHP 7.1
• made URL scheme agnostic

1.1.0

• Fixed to work properly under Multisite.

1.0.2

• Update tested up to version to 4.7.
• Fix the location of the settings screen in Multisite (moved under Settings in Network Admin).
• Minor text fixes.

1.0.1

• Update tested up to version to 4.5.
• Fix PHP7 deprecated constructor notice.
• Change text domain to match the plugin slug.
• Update www.ads-software.com links to use HTTPS.
• Remove outdated bundled translations in favor of language packs.

1.0

• Update tested up to version to 4.2.
• Update screenshot.
• Fix a couple typos.

See old-changelog.txt for previous changelog items