Title: Adding admin menu functionality Last modified: August 18, 2016 --- # Adding admin menu functionality * [clarke1866](https://wordpress.org/support/users/clarke1866/) * (@clarke1866) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/) * For more details, [please see this post](http://wordpress.org/support/topic.php?id=29205#post-164402). This is the shortform: * I need help on inserting the proper code into the wordpress admin backend to allow a user to edit the various options of my created plugin. I have read extensively on the subject, but since I am a learning php from scratch (with very limited programming background) I am just going in circles. It seems the wordpress codex is written by developers for developers, which is fine, except that I am missing some key chunks of basic knowledge (for example, why do I need to define my own functions?). Anyway: * How can I insert my options form into wordpress? — My present form is self submitting, and writes the configuration to an ini file in the plugins’ own directory (flat file). * From my research I have figured out that I need something like the following code in a file in the /wp-content/plugins/ directory: ` /* Plugin Name: WP-My Name Plugin URI: someurl Description: Blah. Version: 0.001 Author: Me Author URI: someurl */ * add_options_page(__("Plugin Test Page"), __('PlugTest'), 5, plugdir(__FILE__).' form.php'); * At which point the form.php would take over by including and reading the ini file, and various other files in the plugdir. * The problem is that this doesn’t work. What am I doing wrong? I have tried looking at other authors methods, but frankly what they do is way over my head. I need a simple example. Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 19 total) 1 [2](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/page/2/?output_format=md) [→](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/page/2/?output_format=md) * Moderator [James Huff](https://wordpress.org/support/users/macmanx/) * (@macmanx) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178467) * These might be what you’re looking for: * [http://codex.wordpress.org/Adding_Administration_Menus](http://codex.wordpress.org/Adding_Administration_Menus) * [http://codex.wordpress.org/Writing_a_Plugin#Saving_Plugin_Data_to_the_Database](http://codex.wordpress.org/Writing_a_Plugin#Saving_Plugin_Data_to_the_Database) * [http://codex.wordpress.org/Writing_a_Plugin](http://codex.wordpress.org/Writing_a_Plugin) * [http://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API](http://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API) * Thread Starter [clarke1866](https://wordpress.org/support/users/clarke1866/) * (@clarke1866) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178472) * Thanks for the reply, but I have already read and tried those examples, and they don’t seem to work. To make it simple, what code would I need to surround the following code to allow for it to be displayed in the admin backend: * echo “really stupid example”; die; * Moderator [James Huff](https://wordpress.org/support/users/macmanx/) * (@macmanx) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178514) * I’m not a plugin developer, so I’m really not sure. Spam Karma and WP-ContactForm both add options to the Options menu, but both use different methods. You may want to dissect them and see how they accomplish that. * [http://www.unknowngenius.com/blog/wordpress/spam-karma/](http://www.unknowngenius.com/blog/wordpress/spam-karma/) * [http://ryanduff.net/wp-plugins/wp-contactform/](http://ryanduff.net/wp-plugins/wp-contactform/) * [demuretwilight](https://wordpress.org/support/users/demuretwilight/) * (@demuretwilight) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178523) * maybe you already totally realize this (are are having a different problem), but just in case: php code all has to be enclosed by tags (or you can use ) * so * echo “really stupid example”; die; * won’t do what you want unless you enclose it: * * Thread Starter [clarke1866](https://wordpress.org/support/users/clarke1866/) * (@clarke1866) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178529) * Thanks, I do. But me and these forums have a disagreement on pasting code, so I don’t paste the ?’s anymore. Thanks for the reply! * Moderator [James Huff](https://wordpress.org/support/users/macmanx/) * (@macmanx) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178530) * If you want to post code, post it in backticks (the key to the left of the 1 key). * Ex: * ` * Thread Starter [clarke1866](https://wordpress.org/support/users/clarke1866/) * (@clarke1866) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178542) * Macmanx, do you knno that nowhere does it say what backticks are! Thanks for filling me in! ‘’ * [lisch](https://wordpress.org/support/users/lisch/) * (@lisch) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178593) * I tried copying the text directly from <[http://codex.wordpress.org/Adding_Administration_Menus>](http://codex.wordpress.org/Adding_Administration_Menus>);, and it adds all the right menu items, but the actual pages are blank. That is, they have the proper headers and footers, but none of the content that should be there. * It’s as though the hook functions are never being called. * I have WordPress 1.5, PHP 4.3.10. * Moderator [James Huff](https://wordpress.org/support/users/macmanx/) * (@macmanx) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178601) * Those are just examples. You cannot copy/paste and expect them to work. You need to define `page_title`, `menu_title`, `access_level`, `file`, and `[function]`. * [lisch](https://wordpress.org/support/users/lisch/) * (@lisch) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178653) * The example provides values for those arguments, or do I misunderstand? I am referring to the big example at the bottom of the page I referenced. It defines functions for the options page, manage page, etc. It calls add_options_page, add_management_page, etc., providing arguments for the page_title, menu_title, etc., parameters. * When I install the file in the plugins directory, and activate the plugin, the correct menu items are added, so the basic calls to add_options_page, etc., work just fine. The problem is that the functions that are registered in those calls do not seem to be called. When I select the Test pages for the Top level, Options, etc., I get a page with a standard header and footer, but nothing in between. * Moderator [James Huff](https://wordpress.org/support/users/macmanx/) * (@macmanx) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178659) * Ah, it looks like you’ve fallen to bug #902: [http://mosquito.wordpress.org/view.php?id=902](http://mosquito.wordpress.org/view.php?id=902) * You can either download the patch provided, grab the latest /wp-admin/menu-header. php file from [http://trac.wordpress.org/](http://trac.wordpress.org/) , or wait for WordPress v1.5.1. * I’d recommend grabbing the latest /wp-admin/menu-header.php file from [http://trac.wordpress.org/](http://trac.wordpress.org/). * [lisch](https://wordpress.org/support/users/lisch/) * (@lisch) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178667) * Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! It works now. * Moderator [James Huff](https://wordpress.org/support/users/macmanx/) * (@macmanx) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178670) * You’re welcome. Sorry I didn’t think about that sooner. * Thread Starter [clarke1866](https://wordpress.org/support/users/clarke1866/) * (@clarke1866) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178715) * I’ll give this a try too. Thanks for the update. * Thread Starter [clarke1866](https://wordpress.org/support/users/clarke1866/) * (@clarke1866) * [21 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/#post-178903) * Ok I updated menu-header.php, cut and pated the code from [http://codex.wordpress.org/Adding_Administration_Menus](http://codex.wordpress.org/Adding_Administration_Menus), and I still don’t get it. What am I doing wrong? Here is my code: ` /* Plugin Name: Menu Test Plugin URI: http://wordpress.org Description: Menu Test II Author: Nobody Author URI: http://example.com */ * // mt_add_pages() is the sink function for the 'admin_menu' hook function mt_add_page(){// Add a new menu under Options: add_options_page('Test Options', 'Test Options', 8, __FILE__, 'mt_options_page'); } * // mt_options_page() displays the page content for the Test Options submenu function mt_options_page() { echo "

Test Options

"; } * // Insert the mt_add_pages() sink into the plugin hook list for 'admin_menu' add_action('admin_menu', 'mt_add_page'); * A link in the options backend to test menu is provided however, upon viewing it the error is “Invalid plugin page.” * I’m stumped. All I want is a menu page in the backend that will `echo "this text is your menu page or some such thing";`. * Any help? Thanks again for all your previous help. Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 19 total) 1 [2](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/page/2/?output_format=md) [→](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/page/2/?output_format=md) The topic ‘Adding admin menu functionality’ is closed to new replies. * 19 replies * 7 participants * Last reply from: [dp76](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dp76/) * Last activity: [20 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/adding-admin-menu-functionality/page/2/#post-179095) * Status: not resolved ## Topics ### Topics with no replies ### Non-support topics ### Resolved topics ### Unresolved topics ### All topics