Beschreibung

Flex Explorer adds a single-page file manager to wp-admin. Every operation runs
through a sandboxed REST surface that resolves paths against a configurable
root, refuses symlink escapes, and never lets a request reach outside the site.

What it does

Browse in icon, list or macOS-style column views, with a folder tree, drag-and-drop move, multi-select, sorting, dotfile toggle and recursive filename search.
Upload with drag-and-drop, enforcing the site’s size cap and WordPress filename sanitisation.
Create, rename, copy, move and delete files and folders.
Trash catches deletions: items move to a recoverable store with restore, purge, and automatic cleanup after a retention period you set. Turn it off and deletions are permanent again.
Zip and download a single file or a whole folder. Large selections run as background jobs with live progress, cancel, HTTP Range (resumable) downloads, and a single-use signed token per archive.
Extract a zip in place or into a named folder.
Risky-operation gate asks for confirmation before touching load-bearing files. A file is flagged only when it matches a „Risky file patterns“ glob and sits inside a „Risky folders“ entry, so a stray *.php under uploads/ stays quiet.
Preview images inline; anything else downloads.
Per-user interface language and a light / dark / cream theme, independent of the rest of wp-admin.
WP-CLI: wp flex-explorer reset clears the plugin’s options and tables.

There is no file editor in this build

WordPress.org does not allow a plugin in the directory to edit site files, so
this build ships no editor: the Edit action explains that and points you at the
build that has one. That build is free as well, and it is downloaded from
flexacommerce.com/products/flex-explorer.
Settings, trash contents and background jobs carry over, because both builds use
the same slug, options and tables. Installing one over the other keeps your
configuration.

Security model

Access is limited to administrators (manage_options, filterable via
flex_explorer/capabilities/manage). Mutating calls require a nonce. A site
defining DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT switches the plugin off entirely, and on multisite
only network super admins pass, because the sandbox root is the whole network’s
filesystem. wp-config.php, .htpasswd, .htaccess and the WordPress core
files at the site root can never be deleted, renamed or moved by anyone, with no
bypass: removing any of them would take the site down.

External services

Your files never leave your server. Flex Explorer reads and writes the
filesystem locally, and the file manager itself makes no outbound calls. The
plugin connects to one external service, only in the admin, for the reason
below.

Deactivation feedback (Flexa Product Intelligence)

When you go to deactivate Flex Explorer on the Plugins screen, a short optional
survey asks why. This is served by Flexa’s product intelligence service at
https://product-intelligence.flexacommerce.com. It runs only on
wp-admin/plugins.php, never on the front end, and never blocks deactivation:
if the service is unreachable, the normal Deactivate link still works.

What is sent, and when:

On opening the Plugins screen: a request to /api/v1/config (product slug and tier) to load the survey configuration. Cached for 6 hours.
When you deactivate or interact with the survey: the reason you pick and any optional message you type, sent to /api/v1/deactivations, /api/v1/events, /api/v1/feedback, /api/v1/feature-requests and /api/v1/recovery-events.

Every request includes an anonymous per-site identifier (a random UUID), the
plugin version, and by default your WordPress version, PHP version
and locale. No email, site domain, user identity, file name, file content or
raw IP is collected.

Turn the environment details off with:
add_filter( ‚flex_explorer/deactivation_survey/config‘, fn( $c ) => array( ‚collect_environment‘ => false ) + $c );

Disable the survey entirely with:
add_filter( ‚flex_explorer/deactivation_survey/enabled‘, ‚__return_false‘ );

Service terms and privacy policy: https://flexacommerce.com/pages/terms and https://flexacommerce.com/pages/privacy

Screenshots

List view: the folder tree, the breadcrumb, the toolbar and the right-click menu.

Column view, macOS style, with details of the selected file in the last pane. — List view: the folder tree, the breadcrumb, the toolbar and the right-click menu.

Installation

Upload the plugin files to /wp-content/plugins/flex-explorer, or install through the WordPress Plugins screen.
Activate the plugin through the Plugins screen.
Open Flex Explorer from the admin menu.

FAQ

Who can use Flex Explorer?

Only users with the manage_options capability, which in practice means
administrators. The gating capability is filterable via
flex_explorer/capabilities/manage.

Does it work on multisite?

Yes, with access restricted to network super admins. manage_options is a
per-site capability, but the sandbox root is the whole network’s filesystem, so a
subsite administrator would otherwise reach every other site’s files. A network
that does want per-site access can opt in with the
flex_explorer/capabilities/require_super_admin filter.

Why is there no Flex Explorer menu entry?

The most likely reason is that your site defines DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT, which
switches the plugin off completely: it is a much bigger lever than the core file
editor that constant disables. The Plugins screen shows a note when this is the
case. To keep the constant and still use the file manager, filter
flex_explorer/capabilities/enabled to true.

Where did the file editor go?

Plugins distributed through the WordPress.org directory are not allowed to edit
site files, so this build has no editor and no write-content route at all: only
„new empty file“ remains. Choosing Edit opens a dialog with a link to the
full build at
flexacommerce.com/products/flex-explorer,
which is free and keeps the editor. Both builds share the same slug, settings
and tables, so switching between them loses nothing.

Can files like wp-config.php be deleted?

No, and that is not configurable. wp-config.php, .htpasswd, .htaccess and
the WordPress core files at the site root (wp-settings.php, wp-load.php, the
root index.php, wp-login.php, xmlrpc.php, wp-cron.php and friends) are
refused for delete, trash, rename and move, for everyone. The core-file guard
matches only the copy at the site root, so a plugin’s own index.php in a
subfolder stays yours to manage.

What does „risky operation“ mean?

Deleting, renaming, moving or overwriting an existing load-bearing file shows an
extra confirmation. You control exactly what counts, with two lists under
Settings Risky operations: „Risky file patterns“ (e.g. *.php,
.htaccess) and „Risky folders“ (the tokens @wp-core, @active-theme,
@active-plugins, @mu-plugins, @self, or literal paths). A file is flagged
only when it matches a pattern AND lives inside one of the folders.

Can I change the root folder?

Yes, within your WordPress install. The sandbox root defaults to ABSPATH, and
the root_path setting can narrow it to any folder inside the install, for
example wp-content to keep the file manager away from everything else. It
cannot widen past the install: a stored path outside it is refused, because a
setting that reaches the rest of the server is not something a form field should
be able to do. A site that genuinely needs a root elsewhere sets it in code,
with the flex_explorer/sandbox/root filter.

Where are deleted files and background archives kept?

Both live in a private folder that the plugin creates inside your uploads
directory. The folder name includes 128 random bits generated once per site, and
trashed items are stored without their original file extension, so there is no
URL to guess and nothing in there can be executed. The plugin also writes
.htaccess and web.config rules that deny direct access, which Apache and IIS
honour; nginx ignores them, which is why the name is randomised rather than
fixed, and why Settings Trash warns you when it detects such a server.

To take HTTP out of the picture altogether, define FLEX_EXPLORER_STORAGE_DIR
in wp-config.php and point it at a writable folder outside your web root.
Set it before you start using the trash: moving it later leaves the existing
items behind at the old location.

Is large-file download safe on shared hosting?

Yes. Big zips run as background jobs that write into the private folder
described above, poll for cancellation, and serve the finished archive over a
sha256 token with HTTP Range support, so an interrupted download can resume.
Finished archives are deleted after 24 hours.

Does anything get sent off my site?

Only the optional deactivation survey, documented under „External services“
above, and only when you go to deactivate the plugin. File names and file
contents are never sent anywhere.

Rezensionen

Zu diesem Plugin liegen noch keine Rezensionen vor.

Mitwirkende und Entwickler

„Flex Explorer“ ist Open-Source-Software. Folgende Menschen haben an diesem Plugin mitgewirkt:

FlexaTech

Übersetze „Flex Explorer“ in deine Sprache.

Interessiert an der Entwicklung?

Durchstöbere den Code, sieh dir das SVN-Repository an oder abonniere das Entwicklungsprotokoll per RSS.

Änderungsprotokoll

1.5.0

Security: the trash and the background-zip archives moved out of their old, guessable locations under uploads/ into a private folder whose name carries 128 random bits generated once per site. Existing trash is moved across automatically on upgrade.
Security: trashed items are now stored without their original file extension, so a deleted .php file cannot be executed by a host that runs PHP inside the uploads directory.
Security: the access rules written next to that folder now cover Apache 2.2, Apache 2.4 and IIS. The previous .htaccess used 2.2 syntax only, which on a 2.4 server without mod_access_compat produced a 500 instead of a denial.
Security: define FLEX_EXPLORER_STORAGE_DIR to keep that folder outside your web root entirely. Settings Trash now warns when the server is one that ignores .htaccess.
Security: the root_path setting may now only narrow the sandbox root to a folder inside your WordPress install. A stored path outside it is refused, and an existing one is ignored at runtime. Widening the root is still possible in code, with the flex_explorer/sandbox/root filter.
Change: new installs keep trashed items for 30 days instead of forever. Sites already running the plugin keep whatever they have set.
Fix: the archive folder is now hidden from the file manager itself, like the trash folder already was, so one administrator can no longer browse to another’s finished archive.

1.4.0

First WordPress.org release. Same plugin as the direct download, minus the file editor, which the directory guidelines do not allow. The Edit action links to the free full build instead.
New: an optional deactivation survey. If you deactivate Flex Explorer, a short form asks why, so the next release fixes what actually went wrong. Answering is optional, the form never blocks deactivation, and what it sends is documented under „External services“, including the filters to switch it off.
New: „File manager“ and „Get the full version“ links on the plugin’s row on the Plugins screen.

1.3.0

Security: on a network, access is limited to network super admins (filterable via flex_explorer/capabilities/require_super_admin), because manage_options is per-site while the sandbox root is the whole network’s filesystem.
Security: a site defining DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT disables the plugin entirely (no menu, no REST, no admin page), with a note on the Plugins screen explaining why and a flex_explorer/capabilities/enabled filter to override it.
Fix: bundled translations now load. WordPress only looks for plugin translations in its own languages directory unless the plugin registers its path; the plugin now registers i18n/languages on init.
Fix: column view panes scroll vertically again when a folder has more rows than fit.
Change: the minimum PHP version is now 8.0, down from 8.2.
Harden: $_SERVER reads are sanitized and the dev-only scripts refuse to run outside WP-CLI.

1.2.0

New: trash. Deleting moves items to a recoverable store with restore, purge and automatic cleanup; turning the setting off restores immediate deletion.

1.1.0

New: configurable risky-operation confirmation gate. A file is flagged only when it both matches a „Risky file patterns“ glob and sits inside a „Risky folders“ entry. Folders accept the dynamic tokens @wp-core, @active-theme, @active-plugins, @mu-plugins, @self, or literal paths. New filter: flex_explorer/risk/folders.
Improve: the Settings dialog body scrolls on short screens, so content is never clipped.
Improve: a consistent thin scrollbar rail across the column view and other scrolling panes.
Fix: removed the WordPress admin focus halo from the plugin’s checkboxes and radios.

1.0.0

React 18 admin single-page app (Vite 6, Tailwind v4) with TanStack Query and Zustand.
Sandboxed REST surface (flex-explorer/v1) for browse, preview, upload, create, delete, rename, copy, move, zip, unzip and search.
Icon, list and macOS-style column views with drag-and-drop move, multi-select and per-folder search.
3-tier zip pipeline (buffered, streamed, background job) with HTTP Range download support and a single-use sha256 token gate.
Confirmation prompt before destructive operations on load-bearing files.
Per-user locale override and an OS-aware light/dark theme toggle.
WP-CLI: wp flex-explorer reset.

0.2.3

Resolve the content directory through wp_upload_dir() instead of the WP_CONTENT_DIR constant, so the browser root follows custom content and uploads locations.
Restore the original zlib.output_compression setting after a download streams, keeping the change confined to that one request.

0.2.2

New: search filenames in the current folder and all subfolders (results are bounded); matching folds multibyte characters where available.

0.2.1

Lowered the ZIP size limit to 50 MB so archives stay within typical shared-hosting execution limits.

0.2.0

New: download an individual file (sent as an attachment, never rendered inline).
New: download the current folder as a ZIP, with file-count and total-size limits, skipping symlinks and blocked files.
Downloads flush pending output buffers and disable on-the-fly compression before streaming, so binary files and archives are never corrupted or truncated.

0.1.1

Security: on multisite, restrict access to network super admins instead of every per-site administrator.
Security: disable the plugin (including its admin menu) when DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT is defined as true.

0.1.0

Initial release: read-only browsing of wp-content with inline text and image preview.

Beschreibung

External services

Deactivation feedback (Flexa Product Intelligence)

Screenshots

Installation

FAQ

Who can use Flex Explorer?

Does it work on multisite?

Why is there no Flex Explorer menu entry?

Where did the file editor go?

Can files like wp-config.php be deleted?

What does „risky operation“ mean?

Can I change the root folder?

Where are deleted files and background archives kept?

Is large-file download safe on shared hosting?

Does anything get sent off my site?