Lw Site Manager Overview

LW Site Manager: overview and consumer reference

For developers and AI agents calling the LW Site Manager plugin's abilities — a curated, security-checked exposure of 120+ WordPress operations through the WP 6.9+ Abilities API. The plugin's positioning is "AI-ready alternative to MainWP" — but the surface and the security model differ, and that distinction matters for both consumers and reviewers.

Misconception this skill corrects

"It's just MainWP with a different name — point a token at it and run remote management."

It isn't. MainWP-class tools use a single privileged dashboard token to do almost-anything against the target install; LW Site Manager exposes per-operation abilities, each gated by a specific WP capability check through a centralized PermissionManager. Verified at src/Abilities/PermissionManager.php — can_manage_updates requires both update_plugins AND update_themes; can_install_plugins requires install_plugins; can_view_health requires view_site_health_checks; can_manage_backups / can_manage_database / can_manage_cache / can_manage_options all require manage_options. There is no "admin override" or single-token bypass.

The practical difference for an integrator:

• A user with WP role editor (no install_plugins) can call site-manager/list-plugins (read) but NOT site-manager/install-plugin — gracefully gets 403 from the WP layer, not from a custom ACL.
• A user without view_site_health_checks can't call site-manager/health-check even if their Application Password is valid.
• A compromised Application Password is bounded by THAT user's WP capabilities, not by a global token.

Other AI-prone misconceptions:

• "PHP 8.1+ per the README." Wrong — the actual plugin header (Requires PHP: 8.2) is binding. Verified at lw-site-manager.php:8. The README and CHANGELOG are stale on this; WP enforces the header.
• "All abilities are listed in the README's table." Wrong — the README lists ~60 abilities; source has 126 unique IDs (verified by grepping 'site-manager/...' literals in src/Abilities/). The full set includes things the README skips: bulk-posts, bulk-comments, restore-post, duplicate-post, duplicate-page, reorder-pages, set-post-meta, delete-user-meta, wc-revenue-stats, wc-low-stock-products, wc-bulk-orders, etc.
• "The MCP adapter ships with the plugin." No. The plugin exposes abilities; the MCP adapter is a separate concern (Anthropic's MCP server bridge for the WP Abilities API). The plugin works without it via the REST run endpoint.

When to use this skill

Trigger when ANY of the following is true:

• Calling site-manager/* abilities from PHP, REST, or MCP.
• The user asks "how do I drive a WP site with Claude / ChatGPT".
• A diff references 'site-manager/...', wp-abilities/v1, LW_SITE_MANAGER_* constants.
• Reviewing AI agent integration code that targets WP maintenance flows.
• Choosing between "raw REST endpoints" and "Abilities API" for AI agent tooling — this skill is the proof-of-concept.

Plugin identity (verified)

Calling pattern — REST

Every Abilities-API ability has a "run" REST endpoint at:

POST /wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/{namespace}/{ability-slug}/run
Authorization: Basic <base64(username:application-password)>
Content-Type: application/json

{ "input": { /* ability-specific input matching the ability's input_schema */ } }

Concrete example:

# Check for all available updates
curl -X POST "https://site.example/wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/site-manager/check-updates/run" \
  -u 'admin:xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"input":{"type":"all","force_refresh":false}}'

The response shape comes from the ability's output_schema; for read abilities it's typically a list/entity envelope (see listOutputSchema / entityOutputSchema helpers documented in lw-site-manager-extend-abilities).

HEAD and GET on the same path return the ability's metadata (label, description, input/output schemas, annotations) — useful for AI agent discovery.

Calling pattern — PHP

// Direct PHP invocation — bypasses REST, runs in-process.
$ability = wp_get_ability( 'site-manager/check-updates' );
$result  = $ability->execute( [ 'type' => 'all' ] );

execute() validates input, runs the permission callback, calls the registered execute_callback, and validates output. Throws WP_Error on permission failure or schema mismatch.

Calling pattern — MCP

The Anthropic MCP server bridge for the WP Abilities API exposes every registered ability as an MCP tool automatically. Configure once at the MCP server level; AI agents see all abilities (including LW Site Manager's site-manager/* set) through their normal tool-discovery flow. Out of scope for THIS plugin — the plugin doesn't ship MCP code, it benefits from the Abilities API's native MCP integration.

Ability catalog (all 126, grouped)

Updates and packaging (10): check-updates, update-core, update-plugin, update-theme, update-all, install-plugin, install-theme, activate-plugin, deactivate-plugin, delete-plugin, activate-theme, delete-theme.

Posts (10): list-posts, get-post, create-post, update-post, delete-post, restore-post, duplicate-post, bulk-posts, set-post-terms, get-post-terms.

Pages (9): list-pages, get-page, create-page, update-page, delete-page, restore-page, duplicate-page, reorder-pages, page-hierarchy, page-templates, set-page-template.

Taxonomies (10): list-categories, get-category, create-category, update-category, delete-category, list-tags, get-tag, create-tag, update-tag, delete-tag. (All also work on custom taxonomies via the taxonomy parameter.)

Comments (8): list-comments, get-comment, create-comment, update-comment, delete-comment, approve-comment, spam-comment, bulk-comments, comment-counts.

Users (6): list-users, get-user, create-user, update-user, delete-user, reset-password, get-roles.

Media (5): list-media, get-media, upload-media, update-media, delete-media.

Meta (post / user / term, 6): get-post-meta, set-post-meta, delete-post-meta, get-user-meta, delete-user-meta, get-term-meta, delete-term-meta.

Settings (8): get-general-settings, update-general-settings, get-reading-settings, update-reading-settings, get-discussion-settings, update-discussion-settings, get-permalink-settings, update-permalink-settings, front-page-settings, set-homepage, set-posts-page, get-post-types.

Backup (4 + 1): create-backup, list-backups, restore-backup, delete-backup, backup-status, cancel-backup.

Health and diagnostics (2): health-check, error-log.

Database (3): optimize-database, cleanup-database, repair-database.

Cache (1): flush-cache.

Plugin database updates (4): check-plugin-db-updates, update-plugin-db, update-all-plugin-dbs, get-supported-db-plugins.

Options (3): get-option, update-option, list-options.

WooCommerce — products (8): wc-list-products, wc-get-product, wc-create-product, wc-update-product, wc-delete-product, wc-duplicate-product, wc-bulk-products, wc-list-variations, wc-update-stock, wc-list-product-categories.

WooCommerce — orders (7): wc-list-orders, wc-get-order, wc-update-order-status, wc-bulk-orders, wc-list-order-statuses, wc-list-order-notes, wc-add-order-note, wc-create-refund.

WooCommerce — reports (5): wc-orders-totals, wc-products-totals, wc-sales-report, wc-revenue-stats, wc-top-sellers, wc-low-stock-products.

Total: 126 unique abilities (verified by grepping all 'site-manager/...' IDs in src/Abilities/).

Authentication

The plugin doesn't ship its own auth; it inherits the Abilities API's REST authentication. The recommended path:

1. Application Passwords (WP 5.6+ native). User profile → "Application Passwords" → generate. Use Basic auth: Authorization: Basic base64(username:app-password). Bound to a specific WP user; revocable per app.
2. Cookie + nonce for browser-side calls from logged-in admins (same-origin).
3. JWT / custom bearer via a separate auth plugin or via better-route middleware if the consumer wants tokens with shorter lifetimes / scoping.

Best practice: dedicated WP user per AI agent / consumer, with the minimum role required for the abilities they'll call. An "AI editor" role with edit_posts + upload_files + moderate_comments is enough for content workflows; an "AI maintainer" role with manage_options + update_plugins + install_plugins for site management.

Relationship to other tooling

Critical rules

• Calls use the WP Abilities API REST surface, NOT a plugin-specific REST namespace. The path is /wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/site-manager/{slug}/run, not /wp-json/lw-site-manager/v1/....
• Per-ability capability checks via PermissionManager. A 403 is the user's WP role missing the cap, not a plugin-level deny list.
• Application Password auth is the canonical consumer path. Use a dedicated WP user per agent.
• Plugin requires PHP 8.2 per the binding plugin header — README is stale on this.
• 126 unique abilities in v1.1.22 — the README undercounts.
• No filter mutation hooks. The plugin is additively extensible only (two action hooks); intercepting built-in abilities goes through the WP Abilities API's general ability_* filters, not plugin-specific ones.
• WooCommerce abilities only register when WC is active. Verified at lw-site-manager.php:225 — class_exists('WooCommerce') guard. Don't depend on wc-* ability IDs without that prerequisite.
• The plugin is in the LW Plugins family. Shares an admin menu integration (lw_plugins_overview_cards action) — don't assume single-plugin standalone behavior in admin UI tests.

Common mistakes

# WRONG — assuming a plugin-specific REST namespace
curl https://site.example/wp-json/lw-site-manager/v1/check-updates
# → 404. Plugin doesn't register a custom REST namespace.

# RIGHT — Abilities API canonical path
curl -X POST https://site.example/wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/site-manager/check-updates/run \
  -d '{"input":{"type":"all"}}'

# WRONG — admin user assumed to bypass per-ability cap checks
curl -u 'admin:app-pwd' .../site-manager/install-plugin/run
# Works because admin has install_plugins. But if you assigned the AI agent
# to an editor account, install-plugin returns 403 even with valid auth.

# RIGHT — match the AI agent's WP role to the abilities they need
# editor → list-posts / create-post / list-media / upload-media work; install-plugin doesn't

# WRONG — passing input at the request root
curl -X POST .../site-manager/create-post/run \
  -d '{"title":"Hello","content":"..."}'
# → 400 — Abilities API expects {"input": {...}} envelope.

# RIGHT — wrap in input
curl -X POST .../site-manager/create-post/run \
  -d '{"input":{"title":"Hello","content":"..."}}'

// WRONG — assuming wc-* abilities exist regardless of WC
$ability = wp_get_ability( 'site-manager/wc-list-products' );
$ability->execute(); // → null on sites without WooCommerce.

// RIGHT — feature-detect before calling
if ( null !== wp_get_ability( 'site-manager/wc-list-products' ) ) {
    $ability = wp_get_ability( 'site-manager/wc-list-products' );
    $result = $ability->execute(/* ... */);
}

// WRONG — assuming README's ability list is exhaustive
$abilities = [ 'check-updates', 'update-plugin', /* ... 60 more from README */ ];

// RIGHT — discover via the Abilities API registry, OR list per category
$registry = wp_get_ability_categories_registry(); // pseudo — check actual registry call name
// OR enumerate via the REST discovery endpoint:
// GET /wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities → full list of registered abilities

Cross-references

• Run wp-abilities-api for the underlying WP Abilities API mechanics (categories, register_ability, execute_callback, JSON Schema input/output, REST run endpoint, MCP integration). LW Site Manager is a consumer; that skill is the substrate.
• Run lw-site-manager-extend-abilities when adding custom abilities to the plugin's namespace via the extensibility hooks. Reuses the centralized PermissionManager and the AbstractAbilitiesRegistrar helper builders.
• Run wp-plugin-options-storage when an ability you're adding needs to read / write WP options — settings abilities here are good examples of the pattern.

What this skill does NOT cover

• Per-ability docs — those live in docs/abilities/ inside the plugin (14 markdown files: posts.md, pages.md, comments.md, media.md, meta.md, tags.md, settings.md, theme-management.md, plugin-management.md, categories.md, user-management.md, maintenance.md, woocommerce.md). For input/output schemas of a specific ability, read those.
• Implementation internals (UpdateManager, BackupManager, CacheManager service classes). Third-party code should hit abilities, not poke services directly.
• MCP server setup. Anthropic's WP-Abilities MCP bridge is a separate project; configuration is at the MCP server level, not in this plugin.
• MainWP migration. Different model entirely; not a drop-in replacement.
• Custom REST namespace — the plugin doesn't register one. All calls go through /wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/.

References

• Plugin header: wp-content/plugins/lw-site-manager/lw-site-manager.php:1-15 — version 1.1.22, requires WP 6.9, requires PHP 8.2, namespace LightweightPlugins\SiteManager, text domain lw-site-manager.
• Constants: lw-site-manager.php:26-29 — LW_SITE_MANAGER_VERSION, LW_SITE_MANAGER_FILE, LW_SITE_MANAGER_DIR, LW_SITE_MANAGER_URL.
• Ability registrar orchestrator: src/Abilities/Registrar.php — instantiates 4 specialized registrars (Update / Maintenance / User / Content) and fires lw_site_manager_register_abilities action at line 48.
• Permission map: src/Abilities/PermissionManager.php — central typed cap-check methods.
• Categories registration: lw-site-manager.php:120-285 — built-in category registrations via wp_register_ability_category, then lw_site_manager_register_categories action at line 232.
• WooCommerce gate: lw-site-manager.php:225 — class_exists('WooCommerce') check before registering WC categories.
• All registered ability IDs: 126 unique values matching 'site-manager/*' regex across src/Abilities/.
• README (partially stale): README.md.
• Per-ability docs: docs/abilities/ — 14 markdown files for individual ability reference.
• Plugin GitHub: https://github.com/lwplugins/lw-site-manager.
• LW Plugins home: https://lwplugins.com.
• Official documentation: https://developer.wordpress.org/apis/abilities-api/
• Verified source paths:
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-site-manager/src/Abilities/Registrars/AbstractAbilitiesRegistrar.php
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-site-manager/src/Abilities/Registrars/UpdateAbilitiesRegistrar.php
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-site-manager/src/Abilities/Registrars/MaintenanceAbilitiesRegistrar.php
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-site-manager/src/Abilities/Registrars/UserAbilitiesRegistrar.php
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-site-manager/src/Abilities/Registrars/ContentAbilitiesRegistrar.php