Variable Inspector

Contributors: qriouslad
Donate link: https://paypal.me/qriouslad
Tags: php variables, variable dump, debug, developer
Requires at least: 4.8
Tested up to: 6.0.2
Stable tag: 1.8.0
Requires PHP: 5.6
License: GPLv2 or later
License URI: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html

Inspect PHP variables on a central dashboard in wp-admin for convenient debugging.

Description

Variable Inspector allows you to easily inspect your PHP $variables in a visually clean manner at a central dashboard in wp-admin. It aims to be an easy and useful enough debug tool.

It provides a single-line code to inspect your variable (see "How to Use" below). Nothing is shown to site visitors nor being output on the frontend, and the $variable content is nicely formatted for review using var_dump(), var_export() and print_r() on the inspector dashboard in wp-admin.

It's a real time-saver for scenarios where Xdebug or even something like Ray is not ideal or simply an overkill. For example, when coding on a non-local environment via tools like Code Snippets, WPCodeBox, Scripts Organizer or Advanced Scripts. Additionally, because it is a regular WordPress plugin, you simply install, activate and use without the need for complicated configuration.

How to Use

Simply place the following line anywhere in your code after the $variable_name you'd like to inspect:

do_action( 'inspect', [ 'variable_name', $variable_name ] );

If you'd like to record the originating PHP file and line number, append the PHP magic constants __FILE__ and __LINE__ as follows.

do_action( 'inspect', [ 'variable_name', $variable_name, __FILE__, __LINE__ ] );

This would help you locate and clean up the inspector lines once you're done debugging.

Give Back

• A nice review would be great!
• Give feedback and help improve future versions.
• Github repo to contribute code.
• Donate and support my work.

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Screenshots

1. The main Variable Inspector page

Frequently Asked Questions

How was this plugin built?

Variable Inspector was built with: WordPress Plugin Boilerplate | wppb.me | CodeStar framework | Simple Accordion | Fomantic UI. It was originally inspired by WP Logger.

Changelog

1.8.0 (2022.12.08)

• Fix an issue where sometimes inspection shows empty or false result when result type is array or object.
• Additional suppression of admin notices via all_admin_notices hook and via CSS.

1.7.1 (2022.10.25)

• All admin notices are now suppressed, i.e. no longer shown, on the Variable Inspector page.

1.7.0 (2022.10.11)

• Add viewer (function) selector, e.g. print_r, that will apply to all inspection results after the selection is made and will persist after page reload. The selection is stored in wp_options table. Different viewer can still be selected for each result. Props to @pexlechris for the feedback.

1.6.0 (2022.10.11)

• Add toggle to expand or collapse all inspection results. Props to @pexlechris for the feedback.

1.5.0 (2022.10.09)

• Remove CodeStar framework dependency and replace with lightweight solution
• Dequeue public css and js files as they are empty and unused

1.4.0 (2022.08.18)

• Add Refresh button and "Auto refresh" checkbox to load latest results. Props to @imantsk for the code and suggestion
• Add quick tutorial on the inspector results page to enable users to quickly reference the inspector code

1.3.2 (2022.05.26)

• Confirmed compatibility with WordPress 6.0

1.3.1 (2022.05.19)

• Fixed output via var_export()
• Better sanitization of variable name output
• Update plugin description

1.2.0 (2022.04.14)

• Fixed output buffering mistake causing the output of the '1' character in variable values
• NEW: implement tabbed output of var_export, var_dump and print_r

1.1.0 (2022.04.13)

• Fixed "Fatal error: Uncaught Error: Call to undefined function dbDelta()". Thanks to @rashedul007 for the fix!

1.0.1 (2022.04.13)

• Initial stable release

Upgrade Notice

None required yet.