I have some code that have a button in the backend page.

I want to click on the button and have it activate a plugin that's already in the plugin's directory.

Here's the code:

<?php


add_action('admin_menu', 'addons_plugin_setup_menu');

function addons_plugin_setup_menu(){
        add_menu_page( 'Addons', 'Addons', 'manage_options', 'addons-plugin', 'addons_init' );
}

function addons_init(){
        ?>


        <div class="container-fluid" style="margin-top: 30px">
                <div class="row">
                        <div class="col-md-12">
                                <nav class="navbar navbar-default">
                                        <div class="container-fluid">
                                                <div class="navbar-header">
                                                        <h4>Addons</h4>
                                                        <br><br>
                                                        <button class="btn btn-success" onclick="testme()">Activate</button>
                                                </div>
                                        </div>
                                </nav>
                        </div>
                </div>
        </div>

        <?php
}

function testme() {
    activate_plugin( 'plugin-dir/plugin-file.php' );
    if ( is_wp_error( $result ) ) {
        // Process Error
    }
}


?>

When I click the button I get "testme" is not defined

How can I get this to work?

Updated to this:

<?php

add_action('admin_menu', 'addons_plugin_setup_menu');

function addons_plugin_setup_menu(){
        add_menu_page( 'Addons', 'Addons', 'manage_options', 'addons', 'addons_init' );
}

function addons_init(){
        ?>

        <link rel="stylesheet" href=".4.1/css/bootstrap.min.css">
        <script src=".12.4.min.js"></script>


        <script type="text/javascript">
          jQuery( document ).ready( function($) {
              $( '#activate_plugin' ).on( 'click', function(e) {
                  e.preventDefault();
                  var ajaxurl     = '<?php echo admin_url( "admin-ajax.php" ); ?>';
                  var security    = '<?php echo wp_create_nonce( "activate_plugin" ); ?>';
                  $.ajax( {
                      url: ajaxurl,
                      dataType: 'json',
                      type: 'POST',
                      delay: 150,
                      data :'action=activate_plugin&security='+security,
                      success: function( data ) {
                          console.log( data + ', Plugin Activated!' );
                      },
                  } );
              } );
          } );
        </script>


        <div class="container-fluid" style="margin-top: 30px">
                <div class="row">
                        <div class="col-md-12">
                                <nav class="navbar navbar-default">
                                        <div class="container-fluid">
                                                <div class="navbar-header">
                                                        <h4>Addons</h4>
                                                        <br><br>
                                                        <button id="activate_plugin" class="btn btn-success">Activate</button>
                                                </div>
                                        </div>
                                </nav>
                        </div>
                </div>
        </div>

        <?php
    function activate_plugin_ajax_callback() {
        check_ajax_referer( 'activate_plugin', 'security' );
        activate_plugin( 'ttt/index.php' );
        if( is_wp_error( $result ) ) {
            // Process Error
        }
    }
    add_action( 'wp_ajax_activate_plugin', 'activate_plugin_ajax_callback' );
?>

        <?php
}

?>

I have some code that have a button in the backend page.

I want to click on the button and have it activate a plugin that's already in the plugin's directory.

Here's the code:

<?php


add_action('admin_menu', 'addons_plugin_setup_menu');

function addons_plugin_setup_menu(){
        add_menu_page( 'Addons', 'Addons', 'manage_options', 'addons-plugin', 'addons_init' );
}

function addons_init(){
        ?>


        <div class="container-fluid" style="margin-top: 30px">
                <div class="row">
                        <div class="col-md-12">
                                <nav class="navbar navbar-default">
                                        <div class="container-fluid">
                                                <div class="navbar-header">
                                                        <h4>Addons</h4>
                                                        <br><br>
                                                        <button class="btn btn-success" onclick="testme()">Activate</button>
                                                </div>
                                        </div>
                                </nav>
                        </div>
                </div>
        </div>

        <?php
}

function testme() {
    activate_plugin( 'plugin-dir/plugin-file.php' );
    if ( is_wp_error( $result ) ) {
        // Process Error
    }
}


?>

When I click the button I get "testme" is not defined

How can I get this to work?

Updated to this:

<?php

add_action('admin_menu', 'addons_plugin_setup_menu');

function addons_plugin_setup_menu(){
        add_menu_page( 'Addons', 'Addons', 'manage_options', 'addons', 'addons_init' );
}

function addons_init(){
        ?>

        <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://stackpath.bootstrapcdn/bootstrap/3.4.1/css/bootstrap.min.css">
        <script src="https://code.jquery/jquery-1.12.4.min.js"></script>


        <script type="text/javascript">
          jQuery( document ).ready( function($) {
              $( '#activate_plugin' ).on( 'click', function(e) {
                  e.preventDefault();
                  var ajaxurl     = '<?php echo admin_url( "admin-ajax.php" ); ?>';
                  var security    = '<?php echo wp_create_nonce( "activate_plugin" ); ?>';
                  $.ajax( {
                      url: ajaxurl,
                      dataType: 'json',
                      type: 'POST',
                      delay: 150,
                      data :'action=activate_plugin&security='+security,
                      success: function( data ) {
                          console.log( data + ', Plugin Activated!' );
                      },
                  } );
              } );
          } );
        </script>


        <div class="container-fluid" style="margin-top: 30px">
                <div class="row">
                        <div class="col-md-12">
                                <nav class="navbar navbar-default">
                                        <div class="container-fluid">
                                                <div class="navbar-header">
                                                        <h4>Addons</h4>
                                                        <br><br>
                                                        <button id="activate_plugin" class="btn btn-success">Activate</button>
                                                </div>
                                        </div>
                                </nav>
                        </div>
                </div>
        </div>

        <?php
    function activate_plugin_ajax_callback() {
        check_ajax_referer( 'activate_plugin', 'security' );
        activate_plugin( 'ttt/index.php' );
        if( is_wp_error( $result ) ) {
            // Process Error
        }
    }
    add_action( 'wp_ajax_activate_plugin', 'activate_plugin_ajax_callback' );
?>

        <?php
}

?>

• plugins
• php
• plugin-development
• functions

• As far as I know, you can't execute a PHP function using onclick. I think what you'd need to do is use AJAX to call the testme() function. I've never even attempted it before but if you do want to try it this way try onclick="<?php testme(); ?>" but I'm like 99.99% certain the won't work either. – Tony Djukic Commented Apr 19, 2020 at 19:53

1 Answer 1

So I did a couple of things. First I added an ID to the HTML button just to make life a bit easier in case there end up being multiple buttons with the same classes doing different things.

Then I wrote a quick and simple little AJAX function - doesn't really need to pass much data, it just needs to verify itself to WP so that WP knows it's allowed to execute the function.

Then I wrote another function in php that basically activates the plugin.

<!-- //ADDED AN ID TO THE BUTTON -->
<button id="activate_plugin" class="btn btn-success">Activate</button>

<!-- //THE AJAX -->
<script type="text/javascript">
jQuery( document ).ready( function($) {
    $( '#activate_plugin' ).on( 'click', function(e) {
        e.preventDefault();
        var ajaxurl     = '<?php echo admin_url( "admin-ajax.php" ); ?>';
        var security    = '<?php echo wp_create_nonce( "activate_plugin" ); ?>';
        $.ajax( {
            url: ajaxurl,
            dataType: 'json',
            type: 'POST',
            delay: 150,
            data :'action=activate_plugin&security='+security,
            success: function( data ) {
                console.log( data + ', Plugin Activated!' );
            },
        } );
    } );
} );
</script>

<!-- //THE AJAX CALLBACK -->
<?php
    function activate_plugin_ajax_callback() {
        check_ajax_referer( 'activate_plugin', 'security' );
        activate_plugin( 'plugin-dir/plugin-file.php' );
        if( is_wp_error( $result ) ) {
            // Process Error
        }
    }
    add_action( 'wp_ajax_activate_plugin', 'activate_plugin_ajax_callback' );
    add_action( 'wp_ajax_nopriv_activate_plugin', 'activate_plugin_ajax_callback' );
?>

There's a lot of other neat little things you can do, like IF the plugin is already active, then don't even display the button.

<?php if( is_plugin_inactive( 'plugin-dir/plugin-file.php' ) ) : ?>
<button id="activate_plugin" class="btn btn-success" onclick="testme()">Activate</button>
<?php else : ?>
<span class="activated-note">The XXX Plugin is installed and activated.</span>
<?php endif; ?>

You could also set your AJAX success to remove the button and add the note by replacing the success portion of your AJAX with:

success: function( data ) {
    console.log( data );
    alert( 'Plugin Activated!' );
    $( '#activate_plugin' ).toggle();
    $( '.navbar-header' ).append( '<span class="activated-note">The XXX Plugin is installed and activated.</span>' );
},