Title: UpdaWa – the update watchdog
Author: Designer Solutions
Published: <strong>April 8, 2026</strong>
Last modified: April 9, 2026

---

Search plugins

![](https://s.w.org/plugins/geopattern-icon/updawa.svg)

# UpdaWa – the update watchdog

 By [Designer Solutions](https://profiles.wordpress.org/papa-zulu/)

[Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/updawa.1.0.2.zip)

 * [Details](https://wordpress.org/plugins/updawa/#description)
 * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/updawa/#reviews)
 *  [Installation](https://wordpress.org/plugins/updawa/#installation)
 * [Development](https://wordpress.org/plugins/updawa/#developers)

 [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/updawa/)

## Description

UpdaWa keeps track of pending updates for your WordPress installation and makes 
that information available in two ways:

 * **Admin dashboard** – a dedicated UpdaWa menu item shows the current update status
   as a formatted JSON view or an HTML table (plugins, themes, WordPress core).
 * **REST API endpoint** – `GET /wp-json/updawa/v1/status` returns the same data
   as JSON, protected by a per-site Bearer token that you generate and manage from
   the admin panel.

### Features

 * One-click status refresh for plugins, themes, and WordPress core.
 * JSON view with pretty-printed output.
 * Table view with colour-coded update indicators.
 * Secure, per-site API token (64-character hex string, cryptographically random).
 * Token regeneration with a single click.
 * QR code in the Token API tab encodes the site name, site URL, and token for easy
   mobile access.
 * Zero external dependencies — the QR code library is bundled with the plugin.

### REST API

The endpoint is read-only and requires a valid Bearer token:

    ```
    `bash
    ```

curl -H “Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN” https://example.com/wp-json/updawa/v1/
status
 `

The response is a JSON object with keys `generated_at`, `wordpress`, `plugins`, 
and `themes`.

## Installation

 1. Upload the `updawa` folder to `/wp-content/plugins/`.
 2. Activate the plugin through the **Plugins** screen in WordPress.
 3. Go to **UpdaWa** in the admin sidebar.
 4. Open the **Token API** tab to find or regenerate your API token.

## FAQ

### Does the plugin send any data to external servers?

No. All update checks use WordPress’s built-in functions (`wp_update_plugins`, `
wp_update_themes`, `wp_version_check`), which are the same calls WordPress itself
makes. The bundled QR code library runs entirely in your browser and sends no data
anywhere.

### How is the API token stored?

The token is stored as a WordPress option (`updawa_token`) in your site’s database.
It is never transmitted or logged by the plugin itself.

### What happens to my data when I delete the plugin?

The plugin registers an uninstall routine that removes the `updawa_token` option
from the database when the plugin is deleted through the WordPress admin.

### Can I use the REST API from a remote monitoring system?

Yes. Copy the Bearer token from the **Token API** tab and include it as the `Authorization`
header in your HTTP requests. The endpoint returns a JSON snapshot of the current
update status.

### How do I regenerate the token?

Open the **Token API** tab and click **Regenerate token**. The old token becomes
invalid immediately.

## Reviews

There are no reviews for this plugin.

## Contributors & Developers

“UpdaWa – the update watchdog” is open source software. The following people have
contributed to this plugin.

Contributors

 *   [ Designer Solutions ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/papa-zulu/)

[Translate “UpdaWa – the update watchdog” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/updawa)

### Interested in development?

[Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/updawa/), check out
the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/updawa/), or subscribe to
the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/updawa/) by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/updawa/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss).

## Changelog

### 1.0.2

 * Change plugin name to UpdaWa because Update Watchdog is too similar to existing
   ones

### 1.0.1

 * Fixed regulatory compliance issues.

### 1.0.0

 * Initial release.

## Meta

 *  Version **1.0.2**
 *  Last updated **9 hours ago**
 *  Active installations **Fewer than 10**
 *  WordPress version ** 6.0 or higher **
 *  Tested up to **6.9.4**
 *  PHP version ** 7.0 or higher **
 * Tags
 * [maintenance](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/maintenance/)[monitoring](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/monitoring/)
   [rest-api](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/rest-api/)[security](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/security/)
   [updates](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/updates/)
 *  [Advanced View](https://wordpress.org/plugins/updawa/advanced/)

## Ratings

No reviews have been submitted yet.

[Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/updawa/reviews/#new-post)

[See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/updawa/reviews/)

## Contributors

 *   [ Designer Solutions ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/papa-zulu/)

## Support

Got something to say? Need help?

 [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/updawa/)