Title: Buggy code that references globals without error checking Last modified: July 30, 2018 --- # Buggy code that references globals without error checking * [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/) * Installed this plugin and noticed errors in my php log so I posted the issue which was quickly deemed as an “un-supported use case” * How can it be an un-supported use case if your code throws errors about a global value not being present. * I would think they would be more interested in refactoring their code when they see this in any situation. * Maybe the support is better when you pay for the plugin but I am not willing to chance it. Viewing 12 replies - 1 through 12 (of 12 total) * Plugin Author [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * (@awesomesupport) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10541940) * Hi: * I’m sorry you encountered an error when you tried to use our plugin but, as we mentioned in the thread you opened ([https://wordpress.org/support/topic/undefined-index-error-server_name/](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/undefined-index-error-server_name/)), the scenario you “tested” is not supported. The plugin REQUIRES that operations be conducted from a browser and not in a headless environment as you attempted. I don’t understand why you would give a one star review simply because we don’t support a particular esoteric use-case. * I hope you find a plugin that does what you need it to do. * Thread Starter [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10541953) * As I stated in the forum post, the plugin doesn’t just throw the error from command line, it constantly throws this error over and over which I can see in the debug log. * I gave one star because this issue was so quickly dismissed as an unsupported use-case when there is obviously a problem with the code referencing a global which might not be present. * I proved this by showing the code that was attempting this and it was still dismissed. * Plugin Author [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * (@awesomesupport) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10541976) * We didn’t dismiss it. We said we’d take it under advisement AND *asked if there was a way to reproduce the issue that didn’t involve WP-CLI* (i.e.: from the admin/browser). And instead of getting a response to that, we ended up with this 1 star review. We certainly weren’t dismissing anything – we just needed a way to reproduce the issue with the use-cases the plugin was designed to support. Especially since its something that does not show up in the thousands of other users logs that are using the plugin. Its obviously not a common case but if you could reproduce it in a manner from wp-admin or the front-end we would be happy to address it. * Thread Starter [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10542011) * I don’t think you can positively say that it doesn’t show up in 1000’s of other installs when 90 percent of the people that use WordPress do not know what a php log is. * The way I reproduced this using the default Twenty Seventeen theme was to install Awesome support ( with no other plugins) and then look at the php log which clearly shows that on line 198 the Awesome Support file at /plugins/awesome-support/includes/ functions-general.php is trying to access two globals that are not present. * SERVER_NAME and SERVER_PORT * Plugin Author [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * (@awesomesupport) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10542020) * We can only go by the reports we receive otherwise it would by trying to prove a negative. This is the first report on this one as far as I can tell. * The procedure you just outlined with the 2017 theme is something we run through dozens of times per month and we haven’t seen this error yet. We do it on AWS servers, local hosts and a 3rd party host (currently we’re using flywheel) and haven’t encountered it yet. So there’s some aspect to the process or environment that we’re missing in order to reproduce the issue. Can you tell us more about the environment you’re running in? In particular: * – Host name – The plan you’re on – PHP version – WP Version – MY SQL Version– Browser – Mac/Windows? * If you’re up for it, a video would be great – maybe we’ll notice something on there that might help us narrow down what’s going on. * Thanks. * Thread Starter [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10542023) * A simple fix for this would be something like * function rum_get_full_url() { if(isset($_SERVER[“SERVER_NAME”])) { $s = empty( $_SERVER[“HTTPS”]) ? ” : ($_SERVER[“HTTPS”] == “on”) ? “s” : “”; $sp = strtolower( $_SERVER[“SERVER_PROTOCOL”]); $protocol = substr($sp, 0, strpos($sp, “/”)) . $s; $port = ($_SERVER[“SERVER_PORT”] == “80”) ? “” : (“:”.$_SERVER[“SERVER_PORT”]); return $protocol . “://” . $_SERVER[‘SERVER_NAME’] . $port . $_SERVER[‘REQUEST_URI’];}} * Plugin Author [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * (@awesomesupport) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10542046) * Hi: * Thanks – we appreciate the code. But if we can’t reproduce an issue in house we can’t tell if a fix worked or how well it worked. We would still have to construct a test suite around the fix which would be impossible to do without being able to consistently reproduce the original issue. * So, we would still like to be able to reproduce the issue and THEN apply any potential fixes. * Thanks. * PS: The moderators are likely to close this thread soon since we’re doing support in a review thread which they certainly do not like. * Thread Starter [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10542058) * Now that I know we are going to try and debug this, I will move back to my original post in the forum * Thread Starter [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10556029) * Just as a closing remark, this vendor quickly responded in the referenced forum thread and basically said the equivalent of “Works on my machine”. * As other’s have said “Awesome Support, does not have Awesome Support”, and I will never purchase other products if this is all they have to say. * Plugin Author [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * (@awesomesupport) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10556161) * You know, I guess we’ll never be able to make you happy. You initially complained about the product using an unsupported scenario. Then, when we explained that, you changed your tune and said the issue occurred on every install. So, we asked for your configuration at your host and we spent money to open an account there, spin up a server and install the product following your steps as best we could. We still could not reproduce the issue. * Overall, we have spent hours on this issue and you’re still not satisfied that we’ve done everything we can to help you. This is a free product for which you haven’t paid anything at all and we have bent over backwards to try to help you, spending hours to try to reproduce your issue and even going so far as to spend dollars on a hosting account to try to match your set up. * If that isn’t good enough for you to believe that we’re acting in good faith then we will never be able to make you happy. We hope you find a product that meets your needs. * Thread Starter [GhostInTheMachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/dekirs/) * (@dekirs) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10556181) * I’m just doing what the moderator’s suggest. * Giving advise on how you can improve your product. * If you want to complain about your customers being unsatisfied with your free product then you deserve what you get, which is those same customers never spending actual money with you. * Rant all you want, but I am finished commenting. * Plugin Author [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * (@awesomesupport) * [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10557030) * I am sorry [@ghostinthemachines](https://wordpress.org/support/users/ghostinthemachines/) but this review could not be designated as useful. Maybe you truly believe that was your intention. But in what way would the opening post help us improve the product or the business? There is only one reason anyone slaps a one star review on a free product and that is to punish. * As a user in a public forum you have the power to do that and we, as a publisher, have no recourse to that. Its part of the world we live in and comes as part of the territory when we decide to engage in these forums. You had the power to do damage to our business and you decided to wield it. But, unfortunately, its not going to make the plugin or the business better as you maybe thought it would. The one and two star review is generally punitive in nature (despite what the organizers and designers behind it might have intended.) * Believe it or not, there are guidelines that are in place for leaving an effective negative review. You can find two articles about them here: * [https://chrislema.com/theres-wrong-way-give-plugin-feedback-wordpress-org/](https://chrislema.com/theres-wrong-way-give-plugin-feedback-wordpress-org/) [https://pippinsplugins.com/how-to-leave-a-good-bad-review/](https://pippinsplugins.com/how-to-leave-a-good-bad-review/) * Very few people read these kinds of things of course. When emotions are running hot and things aren’t working who would take the time to read them? But, they are still there and a 1 star review along the lines of what is in those two articles would have been a lot more useful than the one star review offered up in the opening post to this thread. * Thanks. Viewing 12 replies - 1 through 12 (of 12 total) The topic ‘Buggy code that references globals without error checking’ is closed to new replies. * ![](https://ps.w.org/awesome-support/assets/icon-256x256.png?rev=1849681) * [Awesome Support - WordPress HelpDesk & Support Plugin](https://wordpress.org/plugins/awesome-support/) * [Frequently Asked Questions](https://wordpress.org/plugins/awesome-support/#faq) * [Support Threads](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/awesome-support/) * [Active Topics](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/awesome-support/active/) * [Unresolved Topics](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/awesome-support/unresolved/) * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/awesome-support/reviews/) * 12 replies * 2 participants * Last reply from: [awesomesupport](https://wordpress.org/support/users/awesomesupport/) * Last activity: [7 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/buggy-code-that-references-globals-without-error-checking/#post-10557030)