Joost de Valk 5:54 pm on October 16, 2023
Tags: 6-4 ( 78 ), dev-notes ( 540 ), dev-notes-6.4 ( 17 )

Changes to attachment pages

As of WordPress 6.4, attachment pages for new WordPress installations are fully disabled.

Until WordPress 6.4 was released, WordPress created attachment pages by default for every attachment uploaded. On the vast majority of sites, these attachment pages don’t add any meaningful information. They do, however, exist, get indexed by search engines, and sometimes even rank in search results, leading to bad results for users and site owners.

This change introduces a wp_attachment_pages_enabled database option to control the attachment pages’ behavior:

On existing sites, the option is set to 1 on upgrade, so that attachment pages continue to work as is.
For new sites, the option is set to 0 by default, which means attachment pages are redirected to the attachment URLURL A specific web address of a website or web page on the Internet, such as a website’s URL www.wordpress.org.
Sites administrators who want to enable or disable the attachment pages can set the option to 1 or 0, respectively.

When attachment pages are disabled, the adminadmin (and super admin) link “View attachment page” changes to “View Media File”.

Setting the option

Via WP CLICLI Command Line Interface. Terminal (Bash) in Mac, Command Prompt in Windows, or WP-CLI for WordPress.

To test this change or if you just want to change it on a live site, you can use WP CLI. You would do so like this:

wp option set wp_attachment_pages_enabled 0|1

Via a 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

Another option is to use this small plugin built by @costdev during the development process that allows enabling the attachment pages through an admin bar item.

Via the admin options page

While this is not usually recommended, you can visit wp-admin/options.php on your site, search for wp_attachment_pages_enabled and change the option right there.

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. #57913

Props to @joostdevalk for writing the dev notedev note Each important change in WordPress Core is documented in a developers note, (usually called dev note). Good dev notes generally include a description of the change, the decision that led to this change, and a description of how developers are supposed to work with that change. Dev notes are published on Make/Core blog during the beta phase of WordPress release cycle. Publishing dev notes is particularly important when plugin/theme authors and WordPress developers need to be aware of those changes.In general, all dev notes are compiled into a Field Guide at the beginning of the release candidate phase..

Props to @sabernhardt @bph and @webcommsat for peer review.

#6-4, #dev-notes, #dev-notes-6-4

Robbert Tigchelaar 6:19 pm on October 16, 2023

Thanks for sharing Joost.
Scott Buscemi 6:25 pm on October 16, 2023

Could this setting be available through the Settings>Media dashboard page?
- Joost de Valk 6:26 pm on October 16, 2023
  
  In light of the WordPress mantra “decisions, not options”, we’ve decided against making a setting for this.
  - Scott Buscemi 6:31 pm on October 16, 2023
    
    Can I chime into that decision somewhere?
    
    This is still an option (it’s in the options table). The method of changing this for existing site owners isn’t beginner-friendly. Squarespace/Wix would never hide an option behind CLICLI Command Line Interface. Terminal (Bash) in Mac, Command Prompt in Windows, or WP-CLI for WordPress. or a hidden settings page.
    - Daniele Scasciafratte 9:16 am on October 17, 2023
      
      Yes I don’t understand too why if there is an option to get something in the UIUI User interface to configure it I need a 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 for that.
      I can understand for filters but for options doesn’t make sense just to have a plugin for a checkbox.
      In this way I have to install it in all my websites just to flag that checkbox and remove it…
jtyner 6:27 pm on October 16, 2023

Does the setting affect the visibility of the Description field for assets in the Media Library? (My understanding is that the Description was, by default, only visible on attachment pages)
- Joost de Valk 6:29 pm on October 16, 2023
  
  Where a theme chooses to use which image metadata is up to the theme. If it’s not shown anywhere but on the attachment pages and the site no longer has those, then yes, it affects the visibility of those descriptions.
  - James Tyner 6:31 pm on October 16, 2023
    
    To be clear, I meant: does turning off attachment pages mean the field is no longer visible in the WordPress adminadmin (and super admin)? I imagine for a new WordPress user it might be confusing to have a field that doesn’t appear anywhere, after this change
  - bahia0019 7:01 pm on October 16, 2023
    
    I agree with James here.
    The distinction between Caption and Description has always been a very confusing one for users.
    Having Attachment Pages disabled should also remove the Description field associated with them to remove that confusion altogether.
    - Joost de Valk 7:04 pm on October 16, 2023
      
      I think that’s a great followup ticketticket Created for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. to file actually!
      - David Anderson 9:11 pm on October 16, 2023
        
        Here’s a related ticketticket Created for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. opened 9 years ago: https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/28321
YoWangdu 6:30 pm on October 16, 2023

Do we have to do anything as sites owner after update the WP 6.4?
- Joost de Valk 6:46 pm on October 16, 2023
  
  No, you don’t have to do anything. The site keeps on working as it did before. If you want to disable attachment pages, you can follow the steps in the article.
cjhaas 7:28 pm on October 16, 2023

In the dozens upon dozens of sites that I’ve built, including pure blogblog (versus network, site)-only sites, I’ve personally never had a reason for the attachment page and I’m happy to have an option to get rid of it! Great work!
Kemory Grubb 7:44 pm on October 16, 2023

It really and truly amazing that such a major change from the way WP has been doing things is being hidden (for the average user) behind a database field.

Would adding it to media settings page be really going against “decisions, not options”?
Brian Coords 7:56 pm on October 16, 2023

For new sites, the option is set to 0 by default, which means attachment pages are redirected to the attachment URLURL A specific web address of a website or web page on the Internet, such as a website’s URL www.wordpress.org.

This is great. Can you explain the reasoning for adding the redirect vs just allowing the URLs to 404?
- Sybre Waaijer 8:47 pm on October 16, 2023
  
  I am also for setting `publicly_queryable` to `false`, at least for new sites.
  
  However, WordPress has (had?) a tendency to add links to attachments, which would lead to many links directing to a 404 page for old sites.
  - Sybre Waaijer 9:17 pm on October 16, 2023
    
    Additionally, I think it shouldn’t be an option but a filterFilter Filters are one of the two types of Hooks https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Hooks. They provide a way for functions to modify data of other functions. They are the counterpart to Actions. Unlike Actions, filters are meant to work in an isolated manner, and should never have side effects such as affecting global variables and output.. If users cannot adjust it anyway, why add this inconsistent inconvenience for developers, where we now have to juggle with settings?
    - David Anderson 9:28 pm on October 16, 2023
      
      Though, option values can be filtered.
      - Joost de Valk 9:28 pm on October 16, 2023
        
        Came here to say exactly that.
      - Sybre Waaijer 11:00 pm on October 16, 2023
        
        The problem with filtering options is that when another 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 provides the option toggle, the option filterFilter Filters are one of the two types of Hooks https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Hooks. They provide a way for functions to modify data of other functions. They are the counterpart to Actions. Unlike Actions, filters are meant to work in an isolated manner, and should never have side effects such as affecting global variables and output. will go against user expectations.
        
        This is where “decisions, not options” becomes paradoxical because we’re now deciding to set an option while also not giving the option.
        
        So, as plugins fill in this gap, then A) where will plugins put the option (likely on their custom page instead of options-media.php), and B) of the dozens of types of plugins that are in the market to juggle this, who will ultimately be in control of the option?
        
        If it’s a filter, each plugin promises to set a toggle via a simple condition. But since it’s an option, plugins can add an option to filter an option and add an option to toggle the option. It’ll become a source of bugs because of the logical biconditionals (XNOR).
        
        I feel there was too little forethought that went into this.
        
        David Anderson 6:31 pm on October 27, 2023
        
        I think you’re over-complicating things there. If a 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 decides to present a UIUI User interface option, it would likely just use the database option for all its dealings.
        It’s a fairly well understood convention that if someone writes a PHPPHP The web scripting language in which WordPress is primarily architected. WordPress requires PHP 5.6.20 or higher filterFilter Filters are one of the two types of Hooks https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Hooks. They provide a way for functions to modify data of other functions. They are the counterpart to Actions. Unlike Actions, filters are meant to work in an isolated manner, and should never have side effects such as affecting global variables and output., it’s because they wanted the “last word”, and that the user interface won’t necessarily represent that last word – that’s already the case across WordPress’s existing database-stored options that are presented in the UI.
- timbr 10:02 pm on October 16, 2023
  
  If we’re removing attachment pages I would like to see them truly removed. A post that doesn’t exist 404s, so an attachment page that doesn’t exist should do the same.
  
  It’s good practice to reuse an image in many places, but it can only be attached to one post (with one attachment URLURL A specific web address of a website or web page on the Internet, such as a website’s URL www.wordpress.org). The whole attachment URL idea implementation is flawed.
Malae 4:15 am on October 17, 2023

I reading this, I thought tha my brain had been offline for a while.
Tom J Nowell 10:23 am on October 17, 2023
If you don’t want a 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, and want a 1 liner to enable the attachment pages, this might do the trick:
```
add_action( 'pre_option_wp_attachment_pages_enabled', '__return_true' );
```
And to disable them:
```
add_action( 'pre_option_wp_attachment_pages_enabled', '__return_false' );
```
- Giorgio25b 3:55 pm on October 30, 2023
  
  I’d go for this option based on each case/site I need to handle.
  It’s not a toggle option, but seems to be flexible and maintainable enough.
  Thanks for the hint!
Justin Tadlock 1:43 pm on October 25, 2023

Should we not have a coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. 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 for re-enabling attachment pages on new sites? If there’s not going to be a UIUI User interface for this, then a plugin that’s not buried in a 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. would be ideal.
- Joost de Valk 1:45 pm on October 25, 2023
  
  Might be a good idea; could just have it add a setting to the Options -> Media page.
jakeparis 2:56 pm on October 25, 2023

How does this affect existing multisitemultisite 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 installations? Will the new wp_attachment_pages_enabled option be stored at the individual site level?

After 6.4, when a new site is created on an old multisite installation, will it get wp_attachment_pages_enabled set at 1?
- padams 12:25 am on October 29, 2023
  
  You make it sound like no one uses attachment pages. That’s not true.
  
  The use case for using attachment pages is to make the media library publicly accessible. I know _lots_ of photographers use WordPress for doing just that.
  
  So then Is the justification for this that it doesn’t jive with your view of SEO? That argument feels like it stay in plug-in land.
  
  Also why turn this off and then throw away the key for regular users? I’m totally against not making this a toggle setting on the coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. media options page.
  
  By not having a simple settings toggle for this we are resigning a core part of WordPress architecture to the myriad of custom 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 and theme settings pages.
  
  Feels like a giant step backwards just to save a toggle.
Marian Kadanka 11:09 am on October 30, 2023

Will the new option control removal of attachment permalink structures from the rewrite rules as well?
- Marian Kadanka 11:28 am on October 30, 2023
  
  Ah, I’ve just reviewed 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., and attachment rewrite rules will stay in the place. That’s not enough, they should be removed as well, because attachment slugs collide with page namespace.
Steve Struemph 3:42 pm on November 8, 2023

This is an awesome update! Thank you!

P.S. Yoast bloat and marketing messages are invasive and frustrating. So no thanks for that.
- Joost de Valk 2:50 pm on November 9, 2023
  
  Yoast paid for a ton of the work involved in WordPress coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. over the years, because it had a business model 🙂
  - Steve Struemph 6:30 am on November 11, 2023
    
    You are out of touch if you think that actually excuses how invasive the marketing is. You’re response shows exactly the attitude I unfortunately expected you would have.
goninski 6:19 pm on November 12, 2023

I’m sure it’s a silly question: is this topic only for redirection purposes or has disabling the attachment pages effects on the number of records in the database? I guess for every image there is still an internal media post needed? I thought this internal media post is the attachment page…!? Hope someone can clear up my mind 🙂 thx