{"id":354641,"date":"2026-08-18T12:11:47","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T12:11:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/kobak-social-share-posts-to-mastodon-and-bluesky\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T12:38:39","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T12:38:39","slug":"kobak-social","status":"publish","type":"plugin","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/kobak-social\/","author":162203,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"version":"1.3.2","stable_tag":"1.3.2","tested":"7.0.4","requires":"6.0","requires_php":"7.4","requires_plugins":null,"header_name":"kobak social: share posts to Mastodon and Bluesky","header_author":"Koren Bal\u00e1zs","header_description":"Automatically shares every new post to Bluesky and Mastodon, with optional LinkedIn support. Adds u-syndication links so Brid.gy can bring replies back.","assets_banners_color":"131017","last_updated":"2026-08-18 12:38:39","external_support_url":"","external_repository_url":"","donate_link":"","header_plugin_uri":"https:\/\/kobak.org\/plugins\/","header_author_uri":"","rating":0,"author_block_rating":0,"active_installs":0,"downloads":47,"num_ratings":0,"support_threads":0,"support_threads_resolved":0,"author_block_count":0,"sections":["description","installation","faq","changelog"],"tags":{"1.3.1":{"tag":"1.3.1","author":"kobak","date":"2026-08-18 12:11:24"},"1.3.2":{"tag":"1.3.2","author":"kobak","date":"2026-08-18 12:38:39"}},"upgrade_notice":{"1.3.0":"

First public release. If you used an earlier private build, check the new Mastodon username field under Settings \u2192 kobak social.<\/p>"},"ratings":[],"assets_icons":{"icon-128x128.png":{"filename":"icon-128x128.png","revision":3652808,"resolution":"128x128","location":"assets","locale":"","width":128,"height":128},"icon-256x256.png":{"filename":"icon-256x256.png","revision":3652808,"resolution":"256x256","location":"assets","locale":"","width":256,"height":256}},"assets_banners":{"banner-1544x500.png":{"filename":"banner-1544x500.png","revision":3652862,"resolution":"1544x500","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1544,"height":500},"banner-772x250.png":{"filename":"banner-772x250.png","revision":3652862,"resolution":"772x250","location":"assets","locale":"","width":772,"height":250}},"assets_blueprints":{},"all_blocks":[],"tagged_versions":["1.3.1","1.3.2"],"block_files":[],"assets_screenshots":[],"screenshots":{"1":"The settings screen: Bluesky and Mastodon on top, LinkedIn as an optional section below.","2":"The syndication box under a published post.","3":"The log, showing what was sent where."}},"plugin_section":[],"plugin_tags":[223781,14242,139106,5699,36480],"plugin_category":[],"plugin_contributors":[276271],"plugin_business_model":[],"class_list":["post-354641","plugin","type-plugin","status-publish","hentry","plugin_tags-bluesky","plugin_tags-indieweb","plugin_tags-mastodon","plugin_tags-syndication","plugin_tags-webmention","plugin_contributors-kobak","plugin_committers-kobak"],"banners":{"banner":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/kobak-social\/assets\/banner-772x250.png?rev=3652862","banner_2x":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/kobak-social\/assets\/banner-1544x500.png?rev=3652862","banner_rtl":false,"banner_2x_rtl":false},"icons":{"svg":false,"icon":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/kobak-social\/assets\/icon-128x128.png?rev=3652808","icon_2x":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/kobak-social\/assets\/icon-256x256.png?rev=3652808","generated":false},"screenshots":[],"raw_content":"\n

You write a post. It should appear on your social accounts. That used to be a solved problem, and then it wasn't.<\/p>\n\n

This plugin does the boring part: when a post is published for the first time, it posts a message to Bluesky and Mastodon, remembers the URLs it created, and lists them under the post with the u-syndication<\/code> microformat.<\/p>\n\n

It only runs on the transition to published. Editing an old post never re-shares it.<\/p>\n\n

About replies coming back<\/h4>\n\n

Be clear about what this plugin does and does not do. It publishes<\/strong> your posts and marks up<\/strong> the syndicated copies. It does not<\/strong> receive webmentions, and it does not talk to Brid.gy.<\/p>\n\n

Bringing replies back from Bluesky and Mastodon needs three separate pieces:<\/p>\n\n

    \n
  1. The u-syndication<\/code> links, so a service can tell which social post belongs to which article. This plugin provides that.<\/strong><\/li>\n
  2. A webmention receiver on your site, for example the Webmention<\/a> plugin. Not included here.<\/strong><\/li>\n
  3. Brid.gy<\/a>, a free external service you connect to your accounts, which watches for replies and sends them to your site as webmentions. Not included here, and not affiliated with this plugin.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n

    Without the other two, this plugin still shares your posts perfectly well. You simply will not get replies back, and the syndication box is just a list of links.<\/p>\n\n

    What it does<\/h4>\n\n
      \n
    • Posts to Bluesky<\/strong> and Mastodon<\/strong> when a post is first published<\/li>\n
    • Handles the character limits (300 on Bluesky, 500 on Mastodon): the excerpt is shortened, the title and the link always survive<\/li>\n
    • Makes links in the Bluesky post clickable, using proper richtext facets<\/li>\n
    • Stores the URL of every copy it created and shows a syndication box under the post<\/li>\n
    • Can hide the local comment form without breaking webmentions<\/strong>, for people who collect replies on social instead<\/li>\n
    • Keeps a short log of what was sent and what came back<\/li>\n
    • Sends every request through the WordPress HTTP API, so it also works on hosts where curl_exec()<\/code> is disabled<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

      LinkedIn is optional<\/h4>\n\n

      LinkedIn is deliberately a separate, opt-out-by-default section. Bluesky and Mastodon need nothing but an app password or a token, and take two minutes to set up. LinkedIn is a different story:<\/p>\n\n

        \n
      • You have to create your own LinkedIn app and request the Share on LinkedIn<\/em> and Sign In with LinkedIn using OpenID Connect<\/em> products<\/li>\n
      • You have to generate an access token yourself, with the w_member_social<\/code>, openid<\/code> and profile<\/code> scopes<\/li>\n
      • That token expires after roughly 60 days<\/strong> and has to be generated again by hand<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

        If that sounds like too much, leave the LinkedIn section switched off and ignore it. Everything else works without it. If you do turn it on, the post goes out as a link card with your featured image, and there are two buttons in the settings: one that checks the connection without posting anything, and one that posts a test to LinkedIn only.<\/p>\n\n

        What it is not<\/h4>\n\n

        It is not a full social media scheduler. There is no queue, no analytics, no per-network message, no reposting of old content. It shares new posts, and that is all.<\/p>\n\n

        External services<\/h3>\n\n

        This plugin sends data to third party services. Nothing is transmitted until you enter credentials for a service and enable sharing.<\/p>\n\n

        Bluesky (AT Protocol)<\/strong>\nUsed to publish your post to Bluesky. On each publish the plugin sends your handle and app password to https:\/\/bsky.social\/xrpc\/com.atproto.server.createSession<\/code> to obtain a session, then sends the message text and your post URL to https:\/\/bsky.social\/xrpc\/com.atproto.repo.createRecord<\/code>.\nTerms of service: https:\/\/bsky.social\/about\/support\/tos \u2014 Privacy policy: https:\/\/bsky.social\/about\/support\/privacy-policy<\/p>\n\n

        Mastodon<\/strong>\nUsed to publish your post to the Mastodon instance you configure. The plugin sends your access token, the message text and your post URL to \/api\/v1\/statuses<\/code> on that instance. The instance is chosen by you, so its terms and privacy policy are those of that server. For the default suggestion, mastodon.social: https:\/\/mastodon.social\/terms-of-service and https:\/\/mastodon.social\/privacy-policy<\/p>\n\n

        LinkedIn (only if you enable it)<\/strong>\nUsed to publish your post to your LinkedIn profile. The plugin sends your access token to https:\/\/api.linkedin.com\/v2\/userinfo<\/code> to look up your member URN, uploads your featured image to https:\/\/api.linkedin.com\/rest\/images<\/code>, and sends the message text, post title, excerpt and URL to https:\/\/api.linkedin.com\/rest\/posts<\/code>.\nTerms of service: https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/legal\/user-agreement \u2014 Privacy policy: https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/legal\/privacy-policy<\/p>\n\n

        Credentials you enter are stored in your own WordPress database and are never sent anywhere except to the service they belong to.<\/p>\n\n\n

          \n
        1. Install and activate the plugin.<\/li>\n
        2. Go to Settings \u2192 kobak social<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
        3. Enter your Bluesky handle and an app password (Bluesky: Settings \u2192 Privacy and security \u2192 App passwords). Do not use your account password.<\/li>\n
        4. Enter your Mastodon instance URL and an access token (Mastodon: Preferences \u2192 Development \u2192 New application, scope write:statuses<\/code>).<\/li>\n
        5. Tick Automatic sharing<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
        6. Optional: set up LinkedIn as described in the FAQ.<\/li>\n
        7. Publish a post, or use the test button to try it with your latest post.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n
          \n

          Will it re-share my old posts?<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          No. It only fires when a post moves from draft, pending or scheduled to published. Editing a published post does nothing.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          Can I change the message?<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          Yes. The template supports {title}<\/code>, {excerpt}<\/code> and {url}<\/code>. If the result is too long for a network, the excerpt is trimmed and the title and link are kept.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          How do I set up LinkedIn?<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          Create an app at the LinkedIn developer portal, add the Share on LinkedIn<\/em> and Sign In with LinkedIn using OpenID Connect<\/em> products, then generate an access token with the w_member_social<\/code>, openid<\/code> and profile<\/code> scopes. Paste the token, not the Client Secret, into the LinkedIn section. Use the Check the LinkedIn connection<\/strong> button first: it verifies the token and stores your author URN without posting anything.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          My LinkedIn share stopped working<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          The token expired. LinkedIn tokens last about 60 days. The log will show a 401 error. Generate a new token and paste it in.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          Will this bring replies from Bluesky and Mastodon back to my site?<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          Not on its own. This plugin only publishes your posts and adds the u-syndication<\/code> links. To actually receive replies you also need a webmention receiver, such as the Webmention plugin, and an external service like Brid.gy connected to your accounts. See the description for how the three pieces fit together.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          Does turning off local comments break webmentions?<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          No, and that is the point. Webmentions arrive over the REST API, where the plugin leaves comments_open<\/code> alone. Only the visitor-facing comment form is hidden, so if you do run a webmention plugin, the replies it receives still appear under the post.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          It does not post anything<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          Check the log at the bottom of the settings page: it records the result of every attempt. Sharing runs 30 seconds after publishing via WP-Cron, so if cron is disabled on your site, nothing will fire.<\/p><\/dd>\n

          Does it work if my host disabled curl_exec()?<\/h3><\/dt>\n

          Yes. Every request goes through wp_remote_*<\/code>, which falls back to a stream based transport when cURL is unavailable.<\/p><\/dd>\n\n<\/dl>\n\n\n

          1.3.2<\/h4>\n\n
            \n
          • Clearer wording about what the plugin does and does not do: it adds the u-syndication markup, but receiving replies also needs a webmention plugin and Brid.gy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

            1.3.1<\/h4>\n\n
              \n
            • Translations are handled through translate.wordpress.org, so bundled translation files were removed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

              1.3.0<\/h4>\n\n
                \n
              • Full internationalisation, Hungarian translation included<\/li>\n
              • Mastodon profile fallback link is now configurable instead of hardcoded<\/li>\n
              • Added uninstall cleanup<\/li>\n
              • First public release<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

                1.2.2<\/h4>\n\n
                  \n
                • Added a LinkedIn-only test button, so testing does not post to Bluesky and Mastodon<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

                  1.2.1<\/h4>\n\n
                    \n
                  • Added a LinkedIn connection check that stores the author URN without posting<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

                    1.2.0<\/h4>\n\n
                      \n
                    • Optional LinkedIn support: link card posts with the featured image<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

                      1.1.0<\/h4>\n\n
                        \n
                      • Syndication box with u-syndication links<\/li>\n
                      • Option to hide the local comment form while keeping webmentions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n

                        1.0.0<\/h4>\n\n
                          \n
                        • Bluesky and Mastodon sharing on publish<\/li>\n<\/ul>","raw_excerpt":"Publishes every new post to Bluesky and Mastodon and adds u-syndication links. LinkedIn support is optional.","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin\/354641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/plugin"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=354641"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wporg\/v1\/users\/kobak"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=354641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"plugin_section","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin_section?post=354641"},{"taxonomy":"plugin_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin_tags?post=354641"},{"taxonomy":"plugin_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin_category?post=354641"},{"taxonomy":"plugin_contributors","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin_contributors?post=354641"},{"taxonomy":"plugin_business_model","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/plugin_business_model?post=354641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}