Dev Chat summary: September 9, 2026

Start of the meeting in SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/, facilitated by @amykamala 🔗 See the agenda post.

Announcements 📢

7.1

7.1.1

  • WordPress 7.1.1 RC1 is planned on September 10.

7.2

General

Discussion 💬

@drivingralle is asking for feedback on GutenbergGutenberg The Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc. https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/ issue 79082 / PR 79146.


@n8finch is requesting feedback on two Gutenberg PRs: 82367 and 81944.

Background (apart from what’s in the Issue and PRs): these are two features that are available in 7.1, but are incomplete:

  • Icons: being able to use keywords in the search is invaluable
  • Placeholder: would be great for this to work outside the Site Editor, in the BlockBlock Block is the abstract term used to describe units of markup that, composed together, form the content or layout of a webpage using the WordPress editor. The idea combines concepts of what in the past may have achieved with shortcodes, custom HTML, and embed discovery into a single consistent API and user experience. Editor

@n8finch‘s team is pretty jazzed about these features, and would like to be able to use them. These PRs push the features over the finish line.


@oglekler proposed to move the new contributor meeting a bit earlier at 1 pm UTC so that it will be more convenient for people from Asia, but of course another shift in timing is something that people will need to get used to. She added that people from Asia are mostly who are attending, even if time isn’t ideal for them. Ideally we need to 2 meeting to cover all the globe.


@joefusco shared that tracking RTC’s polling cost and the Gutenberg & Presence APIAPI An API or Application Programming Interface is a software intermediary that allows programs to interact with each other and share data in limited, clearly defined ways. overlap in presence-api#444, for anyone following that space. Originating from this thread.


@ericmann shared that for those who didn’t see the comments on his make/core post about the Secrets API proposal, he have an initial working draft of a feature pluginFeature Plugin A plugin that was created with the intention of eventually being proposed for inclusion in WordPress Core. See Features as Plugins live at https://github.com/ericmann/secrets-api and would love feedback on this. His hope is this also addresses some of the feedback we’ve gotten from hosts/providers about how they can integrate with their own platforms as well.

More chances to come as it develops and we work on interop with other systems, but feedback is absolutely welcome and encouraged

#7-1-1, #7-2, #core, #dev-chat

WordPress 7.1.1 RC1 is now available

WordPress 7.1.1 Release Candidaterelease candidate One of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta). 1 (RC1) is available for testing! Some ways you can help test this minor releaseMinor Release A set of releases or versions having the same minor version number may be collectively referred to as .x , for example version 5.2.x to refer to versions 5.2, 5.2.1, 5.2.3, and all other versions in the 5.2 (five dot two) branch of that software. Minor Releases often make improvements to existing features and functionality.:

  • Use the WordPress Beta Tester pluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party.
    • As this is a minor RCrelease candidate One of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta). release, select the Point ReleaseMinor Release A set of releases or versions having the same minor version number may be collectively referred to as .x , for example version 5.2.x to refer to versions 5.2, 5.2.1, 5.2.3, and all other versions in the 5.2 (five dot two) branch of that software. Minor Releases often make improvements to existing features and functionality. channel and the Nightlies stream. This is the latest build including the RC and potentially any subsequent commits in trunktrunk A directory in Subversion containing the latest development code in preparation for the next major release cycle. If you are running "trunk", then you are on the latest revision..
  • Use WP-CLI to test: wp core update https://wordpress.org/wordpress-7.1.1-RC1.zip
  • Directly download the Beta/RC version.

What’s in this release candidate?

WordPress 7.1.1 is intended as a bugbug A bug is an error or unexpected result. Performance improvements, code optimization, and are considered enhancements, not defects. After feature freeze, only bugs are dealt with, with regressions (adverse changes from the previous version) being the highest priority.-fix only maintenance release. Tickets will be included provided they are issues introduced during the 7.1 cycle or intentionally deferred at the end of the 7.1 cycle. You can follow trac report 4 or the 7.1.x editor tasks board for proposed fixes.

WordPress 7.1.1 is led by @adamsilverstein, @adrianduffell, and @andraganescu.

The following coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. tickets are included:

  • #66001 – Accessing /wp-adminadmin (and super admin)/admin-post.php?page=font-library while logged loads Site Editor
  • #65929BlockBlock Block is the abstract term used to describe units of markup that, composed together, form the content or layout of a webpage using the WordPress editor. The idea combines concepts of what in the past may have achieved with shortcodes, custom HTML, and embed discovery into a single consistent API and user experience. Supports: Bail early in wp_render_block_states_support() when a block has no style attribute
  • #65674 – Tooltip Delay Timer Race Condition (wp-includes/js/wp-tooltip.js)
  • #65943 – wp-tooltip 7.1 bug
  • #65914 – wp_get_tooltip() treats custom button markup as a sprintf() format string
  • #65918 –  Tooltip icon is not aligned with “Remember Me” text in login box
  • #66056 – Media: prepare the attachment finalize response from the current post row
  • #65922regressionregression A software bug that breaks or degrades something that previously worked. Regressions are often treated as critical bugs or blockers. Recent regressions may be given higher priorities. A "3.6 regression" would be a bug in 3.6 that worked as intended in 3.5.: client-side processing creates thumbnails larger than original for indexed PNG images
  • #66012Multisitemultisite Used to describe a WordPress installation with a network of multiple blogs, grouped by sites. This installation type has shared users tables, and creates separate database tables for each blog (wp_posts becomes wp_0_posts). See also network, blog, site: reassign dropdown missing when deleting a user, silently destroying content (7.1 regression)
  • #65919 – Array keys in WP_Hook::$callbacks may now be integers instead of strings in 7.1 causing fatal errors with string functions
  • #65985 – Plugins: In < 782px screens paused plugins has two left borders
  • #65956 – Mobile layout breaks on post list table during plugin update
  • #65945 – Native sitemap is served with a 404 status on sites with no published posts
  • #66044 – spacing.blockGap in a block style variation stops emitting any gap
  • #66064 – Site icon in the Admin Bar (Toolbar) sits atop the site title when using a tablet in portrait orientation
  • #65924 – Set Site Icon background color to transparent

The following GutenbergGutenberg The Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc. https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/ PRs are included:

  • #81770 – Block Editor: Add translator context to pseudo-state labels
  • #81813 – Fix: Post Editor: 403 on /wp/v2/settings at boot for users without manage_options cap
  • #82046 – Media: Refuse a multi-file drop on a placeholder that takes one file
  • #82011 – List: outdent an empty middle item without adding an item
  • #81782 – Accordion Panel: Reset padding-block when panel is hidden
  • #81964 – List View: Don’t focus the last Table cell on keyboard activation
  • #81397 – Media: Stop claiming “Upload complete” when every upload failed
  • #81884 – Media: keep indexed PNG sub-sizes indexed
  • #82316 – Image block cropping: Sync image size and link destination settings
  • #82318 – Gallery block: Fix ‘Crop images to fit’ broken in editor
  • #82254 – Pages: require authentication and a capabilitycapability capability is permission to perform one or more types of task. Checking if a user has a capability is performed by the current_user_can function. Each user of a WordPress site might have some permissions but not others, depending on their role. For example, users who have the Author role usually have permission to edit their own posts (the “edit_posts” capability), but not permission to edit other users’ posts (the “edit_others_posts” capability). to render generated standalone pages
  • #82353 – Media Utils: Preserve arrays in multipart form data
  • #82478 – wp-env: Fix Docker build errors with Debian Bullseye repositories
  • #82465 – Query LoopLoop The Loop is PHP code used by WordPress to display posts. Using The Loop, WordPress processes each post to be displayed on the current page, and formats it according to how it matches specified criteria within The Loop tags. Any HTML or PHP code in the Loop will be processed on each post. https://codex.wordpress.org/The_Loop: Fall back to post when the query has no postType
  • #81908 – Block Supports: Bail early in state styles when a block has no style attribute
  • #82335 – Fix: Restore layout styles for block style variations
  • #81947 – Editor: Store the finalize response as the attachment record
  • #82265 – Media: Only blame the browser’s codecs when HEIC really cannot be decoded
  • #82249 – CI: Unify the automation comments into a single PR comment
  • #82183 – useViewConfig: don’t request the view config twice
  • #82635 – Framework: Update Node.js to v24 LTS and npm to v11

What’s next?

Reminder: the dev-reviewed workflow (double committer sign-off) is required when making changes to the 7.1 branchbranch A directory in Subversion. WordPress uses branches to store the latest development code for each major release (3.9, 4.0, etc.). Branches are then updated with code for any minor releases of that branch. Sometimes, a major version of WordPress and its minor versions are collectively referred to as a "branch", such as "the 4.0 branch"..

The final release is expected on Thursday, September 17, 2026. This date is subject to change if any issues with RC1 are discovered. Coordination will happen in the WordPress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ #7-1-release-leads channel, and releases are always packaged and tested in #core.

A special thanks to everyone who reported issues, helped test, and helped create patches. The success of 7.1.1 depends on proper testing, so please lend a helping hand.

Thanks to @andraganescu and @adamsilverstein for pre-publication review.

#7-1, #7-1-1, #minor-releases, #release

Updating WordPress to use Node.js 24 and npm 11

As of September 8th, the versions of Node.js and npm required for WordPress development are now 24.x (minimum 24.18.0) and 11.x (minimum 11.16.0).

This applies to trunk in both repositories, the wp/7.1 branchbranch A directory in Subversion. WordPress uses branches to store the latest development code for each major release (3.9, 4.0, etc.). Branches are then updated with code for any minor releases of that branch. Sometimes, a major version of WordPress and its minor versions are collectively referred to as a "branch", such as "the 4.0 branch". in gutenberg, and the 7.1 branch in wordpress-develop. Older branches remain unchanged (requiring >=20.10.0 and >=10.2.3 of Node.js and npm, respectively). See “What’s next” below for details on the long-term plan.

Required action by contributors

Here is a list of steps that you may need to take to continue contributing to WordPress:

  1. Update your local environment to a version of Node.js >=24.18.0.
    • With nvm, run nvm install && nvm use inside your wordpress-develop or gutenberg checkout to pick up the version from .nvmrc, then reinstall dependencies with npm ci.
    • Similar commands exist if you use fnm (Fast Node Manager): fnm install && fnm use.
  2. If you have an open pull request, merge or rebase the latest trunk into it. In GutenbergGutenberg The Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc. https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/, the required CI checks now run on Node.js 24, so PRs based on an older trunktrunk A directory in Subversion containing the latest development code in preparation for the next major release cycle. If you are running "trunk", then you are on the latest revision. will not contain the required checks until updated merging will be blocked by the repository’s configured rulesets.

The .nvmrc files temporarily pin 24.18 (major.minor) to make it easier for contributors to have the required version when they use nvm use. It will be relaxed to the major version later, per the upgrade handbook page.

Timing Node.js Upgrades

While running the most recent version of any software is highly desirable, sometimes it’s perfectly fine to remain on a stable, supported version. While 20.x has not been Active LTS since October 2024, it has remained a Maintenance LTS release until reaching end-of-life in April 2026. As a result, packages and ecosystems have begun to drop support (GitHubGitHub GitHub is a website that offers online implementation of git repositories that can easily be shared, copied and modified by other developers. Public repositories are free to host, private repositories require a paid subscription. GitHub introduced the concept of the ‘pull request’ where code changes done in branches by contributors can be reviewed and discussed before being merged by the repository owner. https://github.com/ announced the removal of 20.x from Actions runner images), and a growing queue of tooling and security work has combined to make running more modern versions a necessity.

What this unblocks

Over the past year, PR-72973 accumulated a long list of work blocked on these versions. Highlights:

  1. Isolated dependencies (PR-76195): switching Gutenberg to npm’s linked install-strategy so packages can only import what they declare. This closes a six-year class of “works in the monorepo, breaks for consumers” bugs in the published @wordpress/* packages. The implementation (PR-75814) has been ready since February and kept rebased against trunk the whole time. That continuous testing surfaced bugs in npm’s isolated mode and led to three major features contributed upstream to npm 12, so the tooling is ready the moment we flip the switch.
  2. OIDC trusted publishing (PR-77227): publishing the @wordpress/* packages from CI without a long-lived npm token, eliminating a whole categoryCategory The 'category' taxonomy lets you group posts / content together that share a common bond. Categories are pre-defined and broad ranging. of supply-chain risk. Requires npm 11.5.1+.
  3. Supply-chain hardening for every contributor: the minimumReleaseAge protection already configured in Gutenberg only takes effect on npm 11, so it now applies to every local installLocal Install A local install of WordPress is a way to create a staging environment by installing a LAMP or LEMP stack on your local computer., not just CI.
  4. TypeScript without a build step: Node.js 24 runs TypeScript natively via type stripping. With the coding guidelines recommending TypeScript for new code, scripts and tools can be written in TS and executed directly.
  5. Queued dependency updates that require Node.js 22+: Lerna 10, Lighthouse 13, webpack-dev-server 6, markdownlint-cli, and others.
  6. Platform improvements: full ES module/CommonJS interop, and native glob, fetch, and crypto APIs that let us drop packages like rimraf, fast-glob, uuid, and node-fetch, shrinking the dependency tree that supply-chain attacks target.
  7. npm 12 locally: npm 12’s Node.js requirement (^22.22.2 || ^24.15.0 || >=26.0.0) is now satisfied, so contributors can adopt its install-time security improvements today.

What’s next?

This is just the first step in this plan to upgrade the WordPress codebase to use the latest versions of Node.js. Here is an outline of the tasks that are targeted next.

Upgrading to Node.js 26.x

When choosing which version to target, the guidance is to only choose versions with Active LTS status (currently 24.x). 26.x will be given this status later this year, in October. The goal is to ride the momentum from this change and upgrade to 26.x at that time.

The relevant workflows in both repositories will be updated to run the relevant tests against Node.js 26 to get a head start on this effort.

What does this mean for older branches?

In general, the goal is for the underlying tools to be as consistent as possible across all versions of WordPress that are eligible to receive security patches. This includes the versions of Node.js and npm whenever possible, provided upgrading does not result in changes to the user-facing software.

Contributors have begun exploring the feasibility of updating Node.js to 24.x in the 6.4-7.0 branches of WordPress (and wp/X.Y branches in gutenberg), all of which currently use 20.x. The hope is that all of these branches can also be updated to 26.x in October along with trunk

The 6.3-4.7 branches will remain on Node.js 14.x and there are currently no plans to upgrade them.

Increase the minimum required version of npm

As detailed above, the jump to 11.16.0 unlocks several security features. Security-focused work has continued into npm 12.x with install-time improvements.

The Node.js team recently announced that npm 12 will not be bundled with Node.js 26. Historically, the minimum version of npm required to contribute to WordPress has been set to the version bundled with the respective Node.js version. This avoids making the requirement more complicated than it needs to be, and contributors are always free to run any version that satisfies the minimum.

Because these security features are significant, the goal is to raise the minimum required version of npm to 12.x to ensure that everyone contributing to WordPress benefits from these security features.

Because this deviates from the historical practice, it requires some exploration to ensure that the w.org build server and explicit pins in each relevant repository all work as intended. That roadblock is already been cleared in the gutenberg repository when PR-82235 made devEngines.packageManager in package.json the single source of truth for the npm version that CI and the release tooling install. Moving Gutenberg to npm 12 now becomes a one-line change.

Because this upgrade may involve more changes due to enhanced security measures, upgrading this independent of Node.js will likely make this more manageable.

Changes to the Node.js project’s release strategy

Starting with version 27.x, Node.js will move from two major releases per year to one major release per year and the odd/even distinction is eliminated. Future upgrades will be planned around that cadence.

Notes

  1. The update initially landed in the Gutenberg repository through PR-80395 but was reverted due to some unanticipated Actions workflow failures in older numbered branches of wordpress-develop. These were addressed in #66040, and the changes were merged again in gutenberg through PR-82370. In wordpress-develop, the upgrade landed in r63539/#65451.

Preparing for this update took a considerable amount of time and effort. Thank you to everyone involved for helping to make WordPress better and easier to maintain. There are awesome things ahead.

Questions or problems after updating? Comment here or ask in #core-editor.

Props to @aduth, @desrosj, @jsnajdr, @jonsurrell, @mciampini, @tyxla, @mamaduka for driving and reviewing this work, @aduth and @desrosj for reviewing this post, and to the WordPress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ Systems team for preparing the build servers for the new version of Node.js.

#build-test-tools, #gutenberg, #node-js, #npm

Bug Scrub Schedule for WordPress 7.2

It’s time to get WordPress 7.2 ready for release, and help is needed to ensure it’s smooth and bugbug A bug is an error or unexpected result. Performance improvements, code optimization, and are considered enhancements, not defects. After feature freeze, only bugs are dealt with, with regressions (adverse changes from the previous version) being the highest priority.-free. Whether you’re an experienced contributor or joining in for the first time, everyone is welcome! 🎉

Schedule Overview

Regular bug scrubs are being held twice a week with @audrasjb and @im3dabasia1 leading them. As the release date approaches and activity ramps up, the number of scrubs may be increased. These efforts will help ensure everything is on track for a smooth launch. Participation is welcome at any of these sessions, so feel free to join. Bring questions, ideas, and let’s scrub some bugs together!

Weekly Bug Scrub Schedule 🗓️

Alpha Bug Scrubs

BetaBeta A pre-release of software that is given out to a large group of users to trial under real conditions. Beta versions have gone through alpha testing in-house and are generally fairly close in look, feel and function to the final product; however, design changes often occur as part of the process. Bug Scrubs

Focus: issues reported from the previous beta.

Release Candidaterelease candidate One of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta). Bug Scrubs

Focus: issues reported from the previous RCrelease candidate One of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta)..

Where?

All scrubs happen in the #core channel on Make WordPress SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/. Just hop in at the scheduled time to get started! If you haven’t joined Slack yet, now’s the perfect time.

Want to Lead a Bug Scrub? 

Reach out in Slack, and assistance will be provided to get everything set up. Everyone is welcome—whether you’re a developer, designer, tester, or work on documentation, you can help! Just hop into the #core channel on Slack during any of the scheduled times. No experience? No problem—feel free to ask for help anytime! It’s a great way to contribute, learn new things, and connect with the community.

Check this schedule often, as it will change to reflect the latest information.

What about recurring component scrubs and triagetriage The act of evaluating and sorting bug reports, in order to decide priority, severity, and other factors. sessions?

For your reference, here are some of the recurring sessions:

Have a recurring component scrub or triage session?

PingPing The act of sending a very small amount of data to an end point. Ping is used in computer science to illicit a response from a target server to test it’s connection. Ping is also a term used by Slack users to @ someone or send them a direct message (DM). Users might say something along the lines of “Ping me when the meeting starts.” @audrasjb or @im3dabasia1 on Slack to have it added to this page.

Want to lead a bug scrub?

Did you know that anyone can lead a bug scrub at any time? Yes, you can!

How? Ping @audrasjb or @im3dabasia1 on Slack with the day and time you’re considering as well as the report or tickets you want to scrub.

Planning one that’s 7.2-focused? Awesome! It can be added to the schedule here. You’ll get well deserved props in Dev Chat, as well as in the #props Slack channel!

Where can you find tickets to scrub?

Need a refresher on bug scrubs? Checkout Leading Bug Scrubs in the coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. handbook.

Props @im3dabasia1 for proofreading and review.

#7-2, #bug-scrub, #core

Announcing the WordPress 7.2 Release Squad

This post is announcing the formation of the 7.2 release squad after a call for volunteers.

Exciting News: The WordPress 7.2 Release Squad is assembled!

As with the 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 7.0, and 7.1 release cycles, WordPress 7.2 will continue the approach of forming a smaller, focused Release Squad. This streamlined structure places more emphasis on collaboration with the various Make Team Reps, who are encouraged to help coordinate efforts from within their respective teams. The goals are to reduce the overhead on the Release Squad while still ensuring each Make Team’s contributions and priorities are represented throughout the cycle, and to reduce overlap between a Make Team RepTeam Rep A Team Rep is a person who represents the Make WordPress team to the rest of the project, make sure issues are raised and addressed as needed, and coordinates cross-team efforts. and that team’s Release Squad Leads. Noteworthy Contributors will be captured from Team Reps towards the end of the release cycle.

The number of volunteers far exceeded the available squad roles, so we selected folks whose experience and focus best aligned with the needs of the 7.2 release. If you weren’t selected this time, your contributions are still incredibly valuable, and there are plenty of ways to stay involved throughout the release cycle, including testing, bugbug A bug is an error or unexpected result. Performance improvements, code optimization, and are considered enhancements, not defects. After feature freeze, only bugs are dealt with, with regressions (adverse changes from the previous version) being the highest priority. scrubs, triage, documentation, and more. Every contribution helps move WordPress forward, and we’re grateful for your continued participation.

While the Default Theme (aka Twenty Twenty-Seven) leads are included in the squad above, it’s worth resurfacing the Twenty Twenty-Seven: Team Announcement post from earlier this year. In addition to the design and development leads, the team includes a dedicated lead mentor role (Juanfra Aldasoro) and an intentional focus on creating structured, supported opportunities for new contributors to get involved in the default theme effort.

Big thanks to everyone who volunteered for the release squad, and heartfelt appreciation to everyone helping move WordPress 7.2 forward through testing, triage, documentation, bug scrubs, and more. Your efforts make this release possible, and there’s a lot to be excited about as WordPress 7.2 comes together!

Props to @jorbin for reviewing this post and @jorbin, @desrosj, @annezazu, and @4thhubbard for helping assemble the 7.2 release squad.

#7-2, #planning

Dev Chat Agenda – September 9, 2026

The next WordPress Developers Chat will take place on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, at 15:00 UTC in the core channel on Make WordPress Slack.

The live meeting will focus on the discussion for upcoming releases, and have an open floor section.

The various curated agenda sections below refer to additional items. If you have ticketticket Created for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. requests for help, please continue to post details in the comments section at the end of this agenda or bring them up during the dev chat.

Announcements 📢

7.2

7.1

General

Discussions 💬

The discussion section of the agenda is for discussing important topics affecting the upcoming release or larger initiatives that impact the CoreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. Team. To nominate a topic for discussion, please leave a comment on this agenda with a summary of the topic, any relevant links that will help people get context for the discussion, and what kind of feedback you are looking for from others participating in the discussion.

Open floor  🎙️

Any topic can be raised for discussion in the comments, as well as requests for assistance on tickets. Tickets in the milestone for the next major or maintenance release will be prioritized.

Please include details of tickets / PRs and the links in the comments, and indicate whether you intend to be available during the meeting for discussion or will be async.

#7-1, #7-2, #agenda, #core, #dev-chat

Join the PHPUnit test cleanup for 7.2

WordPress coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. runs about 31,000 PHPUnit tests on every commit. These tests need maintenance just like core code: many leak state into other tests, some assert nothing, and several are coupled to networknetwork (versus site, blog) calls.

A goal for the Build/Test Tools component for the 7.2 release is to reduce build time and load across wordpress-develop and related repos. A healthier test suite will help!

This post is intended to show the pieces any contributor can claim, the same way the JSHint effort did in 2013. Same model is running today for 7.2 in PHPStan (#65817), docblocks (#65860), TypeScript (#65997), and JSDoc (#66033).

We need two kinds of help: 1) fix patches and 2) code reviews.

Why now

  • We can now measure the suite. Pushes to trunk now publish timing metrics to CodeVitals, and we can now flag tests that take too long as candidates to improve (see #65887).
  • Isolation helps find good next fixes. Running the tests in random order exposes tight coupling and shared state. Two batches of fixes are already in from WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. US 2026 contributor dayContributor Day Contributor Days are standalone days, frequently held before or after WordCamps but they can also happen at any time. They are events where people get together to work on various areas of https://make.wordpress.org/ There are many teams that people can participate in, each with a different focus. https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/, and 13 more pull requests are open that need your help (see #65893).
  • We are shaping a queue for you to jump right in: pull requests with no reviewer, and umbrella tickets with no owner yet.

How to claim a new piece

  1. Pick an item from the tracks of work below; leave a comment on the TracTrac An open source project by Edgewall Software that serves as a bug tracker and project management tool for WordPress. ticketticket Created for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. and here on this post.
  2. Open pull requests and help review and finalize existing PRs.

Please follow the handbook pages on running the suite and writing PHP tests.

Reviewers wanted

Test isolation, #65893. Run the touched directory under two random seeds and once in default order, and confirm the patchpatch A special text file that describes changes to code, by identifying the files and lines which are added, removed, and altered. It may also be referred to as a diff. A patch can be applied to a codebase for testing. restores state in tear_down() or the base testcase rather than special-casing one test. Examples: #13181 adminadmin (and super admin), #13186 comment globals, #13187 user fixtures, #13191 Ajax hooksHooks In WordPress theme and development, hooks are functions that can be applied to an action or a Filter in WordPress. Actions are functions performed when a certain event occurs in WordPress. Filters allow you to modify certain functions. Arguments used to hook both filters and actions look the same., #13193 rewrite and query, and #13205 themes.

External HTTPHTTP HTTP is an acronym for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol. HTTP is the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web and this protocol defines how messages are formatted and transmitted, and what actions Web servers and browsers should take in response to various commands. guard, #63083. #13407 makes a test fail if it reaches the network without being in the external-http group. See the description for a 5-step test plan.

Strict assertions, #64895. #12583, #11707 and #12613. Check each assertSame() against the function’s documented return type.

Class split, #65208. Eighteen pull requests are open; the ticket lists them. Check that the file name matches the class name, that @covers moved with the tests, and that npm run test:php -- tests/phpunit/tests/admin passes.

Here are the tracks of work

First core contribution? Start with #65819, the catch-all for small test fixes. Great spot to jump in.

Continue reading

#build-test-tools, #phpunit

Performance Chat Summary: 8 September 2026

The full chat log is available beginning here on Slack.

WordPress Performance TracTrac An open source project by Edgewall Software that serves as a bug tracker and project management tool for WordPress. tickets

  • @spacedmonkey shared ongoing work to improve query caches and requested more eyes on the work. The idea came from a chat with @peterwilsoncc on the RTC ticketticket Created for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. #65487, and @spacedmonkey said the idea has legs. PR #12220 has some test coverage, and all other query caches introduced already have test coverage. More tests could always be added, but testing remains tricky because the change does not introduce new functionality. @spacedmonkey requested feedback from @westonruter, @mukesh27, and @adamsilverstein.
  • @westonruter said PR #13084 for elimination of script/style concatenation in favor of prefetch remains at the top of performance radar. No chance to pick up the work again since WCUS, but the PR is believed to be almost ready for merge.
  • @b1ink0 is reviewing and testing the view transition PR #11912. @westonruter responded that should make adminadmin (and super admin) navigation feel much better.

Our next chat will be held on Tuesday, September 22, 2026 at 16:00 UTC in the #core-performance channel in Slack.

#core-performance, #hosting, #performance, #performance-chat, #summary

WordPress 7.1 Release Retrospective

A huge congratulations, and a giant thank you to everyone who helped make WordPress 7.1 happen! The release was only made possible by your dedication and hard work. You all are heroes.

Now that the development cycle is over, it’s time for a retro. You’re invited to share your thoughts on the 7.1 cycle, on processes, squad, or anything else about the release cycle. I know you all have a lot to say after that whirlwind, so please do. Feedback loops help uncover what is and is not working so that the release process can be improved. 

Please share your feedback using this form or by dropping a comment below by September 30th. Even contributors who did not contribute directly to the release are welcome.

Someone who was simply watching the release will have thoughts and opinions that vary from someone who was more heavily involved. It’s important for diverse perspectives to be represented in feedback for big picture clarity. So no matter who you are, please speak up.

The survey is not anonymous, but submissions will be anonymized in the follow up summary. Your wordpress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ username is only needed for any additional questions.

The form and comments will be open until September 30, 2026, and a summary of feedback will be published soon after.

Thank you for taking the time to give your valuable feedback, and thank you again for your amazing investments in 7.1 “Mary Lou”. Together, future release cycles will be even better.

Props to @krupajnanda and @annezazu for the pre-publish review.

#7-1, #release, #release-process

Runnable code examples are now live in the Code Reference

WordPress 7.1 shipped the first two runnable code examples in the Code Reference. They are powered by WordPress Playground, and more are coming in 7.2.

On the WP_HTML_Processor::class_list() Code Reference page, select Run button in the code snippet and the code example will run right there, in your browser.

Runnable snippets can be defined in the DocBlock of each method directly in the WordPress codebase. They use a slightly different syntax from the regular code examples:

<?php
/**
 * Generator for a foreach loop to step through each class name for the matched tag.
 *
 * ```php interactive
 * $p = new WP_HTML_Tag_Processor( "<div class='free &lt;egg&gt;\tlang-en'>" );
 * $p->next_tag();
 * foreach ( $p->class_list() as $class_name ) {
 *   echo "{$class_name} ";
 * }
 * // Outputs: "free <egg> lang-en "
 * ```
 */
public function class_list() {}

The part that makes it interactive is the ```php interactive language tagtag A directory in Subversion. WordPress uses tags to store a single snapshot of a version (3.6, 3.6.1, etc.), the common convention of tags in version control systems. (Not to be confused with post tags.) on the code fence. A handbook page with all the details and instructions for authoring interactive code snippets will be published shortly.

Props to @jonsurrell, @dmsnell, @westonruter.

+make.wordpress.org/docs/

+make.wordpress.org/playground/