WP Debug is a controlled, dashboard-friendly way to flip the standard WordPress debug constants on and off, plus a built-in viewer for debug.log. Turn debugging on for a few minutes when something breaks, watch the errors stream in, and turn it off again with a single click, all without editing wp-config.php by hand.

What this feature does

WordPress already includes a debugging system built around three constants in wp-config.php:

  • WP_DEBUG turns the system on.
  • WP_DEBUG_LOG writes errors and warnings to a file at wp-content/debug.log.
  • WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY prints them to the screen.

WP Debug exposes those constants as toggles in the AdminEase dashboard and writes them safely back to wp-config.php using AdminEase’s file handler. It also adds a live Debug Log Viewer right inside the dashboard with refresh, clear, and download actions, so you don’t need FTP, SSH, or a file manager to inspect debug.log.

How to enable it

  1. Open AdminEase › Debug. In the WordPress admin menu, click AdminEase, then switch to the Debug tab.
  2. Toggle WP Debug on. The settings panel expands to reveal the three child toggles and the viewer options.
  3. Pick how errors are surfaced. For most troubleshooting, turn on WP Debug Log and leave WP Debug Display off so visitors don’t see PHP notices on the page.
  4. Save settings. AdminEase writes the matching constants to wp-config.php. The Debug Log Viewer mounts below the toggles after the dashboard reloads.
Don’t leave Debug Display on for live sites

WP Debug Display prints PHP errors directly to the rendered HTML. It exposes file paths, plugin internals, and sometimes database queries to anyone visiting the site. Use it on staging only, and use Debug Log on production when you need to capture errors silently.

Settings reference

Setting What it does Default
WP Debug Master switch. Sets the WP_DEBUG constant in wp-config.php. Without this on, the other two flags have no effect. Off
WP Debug Log Sets WP_DEBUG_LOG. Errors are written to wp-content/debug.log. Required for the in-dashboard log viewer to have anything to show. Off
WP Debug Display Sets WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY. Prints errors to the rendered page. Recommended only on staging or local environments. Off
Debug Log Auto-Refresh Interval How often the log viewer reloads itself when auto-refresh is on. Choose 3, 5, 10, 30, or 60 seconds. 10 seconds
Debug Log Lines to Show How many of the most recent lines from debug.log the viewer reads in. Range: 1,000 (faster) to 500,000 (slowest). 10,000 is the recommended default. 10,000 lines

Using the Debug Log Viewer

With WP Debug and WP Debug Log on, AdminEase shows a viewer panel below the settings. The panel reads the tail of debug.log and renders each line in a scrollable monospace block.

Debug log viewer showing timestamps and error lines
The Debug Log Viewer with timestamps in muted text and error severity colour-coded.

Viewer actions

  • Refresh: reloads the latest n lines on demand.
  • Clear: empties wp-content/debug.log after a confirmation. Useful when you want a clean slate before reproducing a bug.
  • Download: serves the current log as a file so you can share it with support or archive it.
  • Auto-refresh: a toggle that reloads the viewer every n seconds (the interval you set in the settings).

What happens behind the scenes

wp-config.php and the file handler

Toggling any of the three constants causes AdminEase to call its internal file handler, which queues a managed write to wp-config.php using a marker block. The handler creates a backup of the file the first time AdminEase activates (see Installing AdminEase) so deactivation can restore the original.

The constants themselves are PHP define() calls placed inside an AdminEase-managed block, with comments marking the start and end. Manual edits outside the block are preserved. Inside the block, AdminEase is the source of truth.

Auto-disable safety net

If debug.log grows past 90% of your PHP memory limit, AdminEase automatically flips all three debug toggles off and writes the change to wp-config.php. A red admin notice appears explaining what happened. This prevents an unbounded log file from taking down your site. Clear the log with the Clear button, then re-enable the toggles when you’re ready.

Troubleshooting

The Debug Log Viewer says “No debug log file found”

WordPress hasn’t created the file yet because no errors have been logged. Either trigger one (e.g. visit a broken page) or confirm that WP Debug Log is on. The file appears at wp-content/debug.log on the first error.

I enabled debugging and nothing changed

Double-check that AdminEase has write permission to wp-config.php. On hardened hosts the file is sometimes locked. If AdminEase can’t write, the constants stay at whatever values are already in the file, and the dashboard toggles will not take effect.

The viewer is slow to load

Lower Debug Log Lines to Show. Reading 500,000 lines on every refresh is genuinely slow. 10,000 is enough to cover most recent activity.

I deactivated AdminEase but the constants are still in wp-config.php

AdminEase removes its managed block on deactivation and restores the backup taken at activation. If something interrupts the deactivation, the block can persist. Open wp-config.php manually and remove anything between the BEGIN AdminEase and END AdminEase markers.