User-uploaded webp files being deleted

  • Resolved skolcs

    (@skolcs)


    8 months, 3 weeks ago

    I have the same issue as @clicknathan. User-uploaded webp files are being deleted by the plugin when the “Use WebP files” setting is toggled off. The plugin deleted the files it made (which is expected), but it also deletes any Webp files that you previously uploaded to the website yourself. They stay in the media library, but the underlying files are deleting, causing pretty much all images on a site to potentially 404 when viewed by the user.

    This is a huge problem! It looks like the “solution” was to put a warning when you deactivate this feature, and then call it “intended behavior”. A warning is not a legitimate solution to this.

    Imagine: you have a website that you have years worth of .webp files that you manually uploaded. You migrate your site to Siteground, and enable all these cool new features, and later decide to (or accidentally) disable the WebP feature…. and now your entire media library 404s.

    OK, so you restore from a backup, and now your webp files are back, but that feature is re-enabled (because it was in the backup). You now have no way to disable that feature safely without disabling the plugin entirely.

    Let’s call this what it is: a bug that would require time and effort to resolve, yes, but the right thing to do is to fix this, please.

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)
  • Plugin Support stanimirpanayotov

    (@stanimirpanayotov)

    8 months, 3 weeks ago

    Hello @skolcs,

    Thank you for your feedback! The behavior you reported, where all WebP images are deleted after disabling the “Use WebP Images” feature, is normal for the current version of the plugin. This has been the standard behavior for several years. Additionally, a pop-up warning informs you of this action and requires your confirmation before proceeding.

    In case the images were lost and you are a SiteGround customer, you can use the latest available daily backup for your site and restore only the “wp-content/uploads/” folder. This should effectively restore all missing media files. For more details on the backup service and how to use it, please refer to this article:

    https://www.siteground.com/kb/backup-service/#How_to_restore_files_databases_and_emails

    We understand the importance of such cases, and I can assure you that we value our customers’ feedback. This is why we requested our WordPress developers to review the case. However, as we cannot specify an ETA on when this would happen and if the feature will be reworked, there is no need to keep this thread open. You can regularly check the release notes of future updates to see if a change has been implemented for this functionality.

    Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

    Best Regards,
    Stanimir Panayotov

    Plugin Support stanimirpanayotov

    (@stanimirpanayotov)

    8 months, 3 weeks ago

    Hello again,

    I wanted to provide you with a brief update: our WordPress developers have confirmed that an internal task has been created and a solution has been implemented. This solution is planned to be included in the upcoming plugin releases.

    Thank you once again for your valuable feedback and patience!

    Best Regards,
    Stanimir Panayotov

    Thread Starter skolcs

    (@skolcs)

    8 months, 3 weeks ago

    Excellent news, thank you!

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)

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