Backup and Restore Settings

The Help page backup exports site configuration — not vote data. Use it to clone settings between staging and production, or save a snapshot before major updates.

WP ULike → Help → Settings backup

Export

1. Go to WP ULike → Help.
2. In Settings backup, click Export.
3. Save the JSON file (wp-ulike-settings-YYYY-MM-DD.json).

Requires manage_options capability.

What is included

The export is a single JSON object with these top-level keys:

Settings (settings)

Everything under WP ULike → Settings, including when Pro is active:

• General — toasts, counters, IP privacy, caching, admin columns, view tracking, serialized storage, blacklist
• Content Types — posts, comments, BuddyPress, bbPress groups (templates, auto-display, voting, likers box, dislike options)
• Profiles — profile pages, tabs, badges, permalinks, dashboard lockdown [pro]
• Login & Signup — forms, redirects, 2FA, reCAPTCHA [pro]
• Social Logins — OAuth credentials per network [pro]
• Share Buttons — repeater sets with slugs and network config [pro]
• Translations → Strings — vote and form notices
• Translations → Emails — email templates and sender options [pro]
• Developer Tools — custom CSS, PHP snippets, JS snippets

PHP snippets and OAuth secrets are included in the JSON — treat the file as sensitive.

Customizer (customize)

Everything under WP ULike → Customize:

• Button wrapper, button group, counter group styling
• Toast notification styling
• Dislike icon images [pro]
• Profile template styling [pro]
• Login/signup form styling [pro]
• Social button styling [pro]

Pro extensions (extensions.wp-ulike-pro)

When WP ULike Pro is active, the export adds:

Display rule fields exported per rule:

id, enabled, title, content_type, placement, placement_group, custom_hook, hook_priority, priority, position, override_default, template, display_counter, display_likers, likers_style, conditions (show_on, hide_on, post_types, taxonomy, term_ids, WooCommerce/EDD/bbPress filters)

REST API settings exported:

What is NOT included

These are never in the backup file:

Important: Exporting settings does not copy Schema Generator configurations. Reconfigure schema per post on the new site, or use the post editor panel links under Tools → Schema Generator.

Import

1. On the target site, open WP ULike → Help.
2. Choose your JSON file and click Import.
3. Confirm the overwrite prompt.

Pro sites see: "Import will replace your current WP ULike settings, customizer values, display rules, and REST API configuration."

Import behavior

Import clears the Help health report cache and fires the wp_ulike_backup_imported action.

After import checklist

1. Activate Pro license on the target site if not already active.
2. Regenerate REST API keys under Tools → REST API (keys are not in the export).
3. Open Customize and click Save once if front-end button styles look wrong (CSS file may need regeneration).
4. Revisit Tools → Schema Generator for per-post markup — schema is not in the backup.
5. Run Tools → Maintenance → Sync Counter Values only if you also migrated vote data separately.
6. Confirm Content Types post type filters match the target site's post types.

Error handling

When to use backup

• Moving settings from staging to production — see Staging & Development Sites
• Cloning configuration across multisite subsites (import per subsite; vote data is separate)
• Snapshot before major plugin updates or Display Automation changes
• Sharing a baseline config with a client site (remove OAuth secrets from JSON first)

Developer hooks

Extend or validate backup payloads:

// Add data to export
add_filter('wp_ulike_backup_export_payload', function($data) {
    $data['my_extension'] = get_option('my_plugin_data');
    return $data;
});

// Restore extension data on import
add_filter('wp_ulike_backup_import_extensions', function($result, $payload) {
    if (!empty($payload['my_extension'])) {
        update_option('my_plugin_data', $payload['my_extension']);
    }
    return $result;
}, 10, 2);

// Run after successful import
add_action('wp_ulike_backup_imported', function($payload) {
    // Clear caches, notify admin, etc.
});

Other filters: wp_ulike_backup_intro, wp_ulike_backup_import_confirm.

Related: Display Automation · REST API · Database & Meta