WP Manifestindependent plugin directory
manifest / multisite / siteunfold

Siteunfold – Convert Your Site to Multisite

WordPress plugin that converts a single site into a multisite network with one click — auto-configures `wp-config.php` and `.htaccess`.

by Narek Zakarian · github.com/narek13/siteunfold

★ 0stars

Install

Download source zip No release zip yet

This is the repository archive. It installs, but the folder name will carry the branch suffix and updates will not flow.

Install straight from GitHub with WP-CLI:

wp plugin install https://github.com/narek13/siteunfold/archive/refs/heads/main.zip
No built-in updater. New versions won't appear under Dashboard → Updates. Install new releases yourself, or let Git Updater track the repository.
Readme github.com/narek13/siteunfold ↗

Convert a single-site WordPress installation into a multisite network from Tools → Convert to Multisite, and back again from Network Admin → Settings → Revert to Single Site, without hand-editing wp-config.php or .htaccess.

Status: 1.1.0, awaiting WordPress.org approval. Releases: RELEASING.md.

How it works

The plugin runs WordPress core's own network installer, the same code behind Tools → Network Setup. It then applies the two snippets that screen normally asks you to paste:

  1. Prerequisites. The site must be a single site, wp-config.php must be writable with direct file system access, and the site address must not use a non-standard port. Network types WordPress disallows on this install are disabled. Servers that ignore .htaccess (nginx) get a warning instead of a block.
  2. Network tables. install_network() and populate_network(), exactly as wp-admin/network.php calls them.
  3. .htaccess. The multisite rules core prints, written with insert_with_markers().
  4. wp-config.php. The multisite constants, inserted above the "stop editing" line. Values are escaped with var_export(), existing constants are skipped, and the file keeps its permissions.
  5. Permalinks. populate_network() resets the main site's permalink structure; the site's own structure is put back, so no URL changes.
  6. Network Admin. The admin lands there, with a notice listing any follow-up (wildcard DNS, nginx rules).

Reverting

While the network holds only its main site, Network Admin → Settings → Revert to Single Site undoes the conversion: the multisite constants leave wp-config.php, the single-site .htaccess rules come back, network-activated plugins stay active, and the network tables are dropped. It refuses to run when other sites exist or when the current user has no Administrator role on the main site (they would be locked out). See adr/0004.

Design notes: docs/architecture.md and adr/.

Requirements

  • WordPress 6.4+
  • PHP 8.1+
  • Direct file system access (no FTP/SSH credential prompt)
  • Apache with mod_rewrite for automatic rewrite rules; on nginx, add them to the server config by hand

Development

composer install
ddev start          # WordPress on Apache, plugin activated (see SETUP.md)
composer test       # PHPCS + PHPStan + PHPUnit
bash bin/build-zip.sh

License

GPL-2.0-or-later