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Create role- and user-specific README documents visible in the WordPress admin menu.

What Is ReadMeWP?

ReadMeWP lets WordPress admins create internal README documents (guides, SOPs, onboarding docs, etc.) that appear directly in the admin sidebar. Each README is assigned to specific roles and/or users, so the right people see the right documents — and nothing else.

Key Features

• Custom post type — READMEs are a native WP post type, edited in the block editor
• Role-based access — assign a README to one or more roles (Editor, Author, Subscriber, etc.)
• Per-user access — grant access to individual users regardless of role
• Owner lock — optionally restrict editing to the README's creator (even from admins)
• Creator permissions — control which roles/users can create new READMEs via the Settings page
• Admin menu integration — READMEs appear as submenu items; non-permissioned users see nothing
• Read-only viewer — clean admin-page viewer for non-editor users; no front-end exposure

Requirements

Installation

1. Download the latest release ZIP from the Releases page.
2. In your WordPress admin, go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin.
3. Upload the ZIP and click Install Now, then Activate.

Or via WP-CLI:

wp plugin install https://github.com/welbinator/readmewp/releases/latest/download/readmewp.zip --activate

Usage

Creating a README

1. Go to ReadMeWP in the admin sidebar and click Add New README.
2. Write your content in the block editor.
3. In the Who Can Read? meta box, check the roles and/or add specific users who should see this README.
4. In the Edit Access meta box, optionally enable Owner Only to lock editing to yourself.
5. Publish.

The README will appear as a submenu item under ReadMeWP for every permitted user.

Controlling Who Can Create READMEs

Go to Settings → ReadMeWP to grant create access to specific roles or individual users. By default, only Administrators can create READMEs.

Administrator Access

Administrators see a README only if the Administrator role checkbox is checked in that README's "Who Can Read?" panel. This checkbox is on by default for new READMEs but can be unchecked by the owner.

Architecture

readmewp.php                  Bootstrap — constants, autoloader, Plugin class
includes/
  class-post-type.php         Registers readmewp CPT (admin-only, block editor)
  class-permissions.php       Read-access meta box, user_can_read(), get_readable_posts()
  class-ownership.php         Edit-access meta box; owner ID + owner-only flag
  class-settings.php          Settings page; creator role/user grants; AJAX user search
  class-access.php            user_has_cap filter — enforces caps and owner lock
  class-menu.php              Admin menu; CPT list + per-README submenus
  class-viewer.php            Read-only viewer page; access guard; asset enqueue
admin/
  css/admin.css               Meta box and viewer styles
  js/admin.js                 User-search autocomplete, chip UI
uninstall.php                 Removes all plugin data on deletion

Development

Local Setup (DDEV)

# Clone into your DDEV WordPress site's plugins directory
git clone https://github.com/welbinator/readmewp.git wp-content/plugins/readmewp
cd wp-content/plugins/readmewp

# Install PHP deps
composer install

# Install JS deps (for Playwright E2E tests)
npm install

# Start DDEV
export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH
ddev start
ddev wp plugin activate readmewp

Running PHPUnit Tests

# First-time setup (run once per container session)
ddev setup-tests

# Run all tests
ddev test

# Run a specific test class
ddev test -- --filter TestPermissions

Running Playwright E2E Tests

npm run test:e2e          # headless
npm run test:e2e:ui       # headed with Playwright UI
npm run test:e2e:debug    # interactive debug mode

Code Quality

# PHP CodeSniffer (WordPress Coding Standards)
./vendor/bin/phpcs

# PHPStan static analysis
./vendor/bin/phpstan analyse

License

GPLv2 or later