Title: How to optimize this function?
Last modified: August 31, 2016

---

# How to optimize this function?

 *  Resolved [Doug](https://wordpress.org/support/users/nicoblog/)
 * (@nicoblog)
 * [10 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/)
 * Hi, i’m not a coder. But i made function to append total post count to the menu
   on multisite. I’m seeing rather high load on the VPS so i want to know if this
   function could be the culprit or not and if so, how can i optimize it?
    This 
   is the code: [http://pastebin.com/7QBie8Cj](http://pastebin.com/7QBie8Cj)
 * Please remember i’m not a coder and what i’m doing is probably ridiculous but
   i don’t know any other way to achieve same result. If you do please let me know.
   
   Thanks in advance.

Viewing 8 replies - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)

 *  [aut0poietic](https://wordpress.org/support/users/aut0poietic/)
 * (@aut0poietic)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062711)
 * There’s a pretty nice example on stack exchange here: [http://wordpress.stackexchange.com/questions/66963/how-to-display-network-post-count](http://wordpress.stackexchange.com/questions/66963/how-to-display-network-post-count)
 * That post is doing what you are ( with a few details changed ) and appears to
   address a memory leak issue with switch_to_blog(). However, querying multiple
   blogs is an expensive operation by nature. Another part of the solution would
   be to store the information in a transient — essentially a variable that expires
   after a set amount of time or when flagged as invalid.
 * Your function would need to 1) check to see if there was a transient 2) if their
   is,output the data from there 3) if not, rebuild the transient and output the
   new data.
 * In addition, you’d have to add an action in save_post for all your blogs that
   purges the transient any time a post is published.
 * More information to get you started:
 * [https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Action_Reference/save_post](https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Action_Reference/save_post)
   
   [https://codex.wordpress.org/Transients_API](https://codex.wordpress.org/Transients_API)
 *  Thread Starter [Doug](https://wordpress.org/support/users/nicoblog/)
 * (@nicoblog)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062875)
 * I think that’s too much for me.. can you tell me if this would work?
 *     ```
       register_activation_hook(__FILE__, 'my_activation');
   
       function my_activation() {
       	wp_schedule_event(time(), 'daily', 'my_daily_event');
       }
   
       add_action('my_daily_event', 'do_this_daily');
   
       function do_this_daily() {
       	$original_blog_id = get_current_blog_id();
       switch_to_blog(2);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site1 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(3);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site2 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(15);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site3 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(18);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site4 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(20);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site5 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(22);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site6 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(21);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site7 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(6);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site8 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(16);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site9 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(17);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site10 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(19);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $site11 = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog( $original_blog_id );
       }
   
       function prefix_nav_description( $item_output, $item, $depth, $args ) {
   
              $item_output = str_replace( "Volvo", "Volvo ($site1)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Mazda", "Mazda ($site2)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "BMW", "BMW ($site3)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Mercedes", "Mercedes ($site4)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Porsche", "Porsche ($site5)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Mitsubishi", "Mitsubishi ($site6)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Hyundai", "Hyundai ($site7)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Fiat", "Fiat ($site8)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Ferrari", "Ferrari ($site9)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Citroen", "Citroen ($site10)", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Renault", "Renault ($site11)", $item_output );
   
           return $item_output;
       }
       add_filter( 'walker_nav_menu_start_el', 'prefix_nav_description', 10, 4 );
       ```
   
 *  Moderator [bcworkz](https://wordpress.org/support/users/bcworkz/)
 * (@bcworkz)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062880)
 * There’s a variable scope issue you have not addressed. The `$site1` etc. variables
   set in the daily task are not available in the nav menu filter. Declaring them
   as globals ( a typical hacky shortcut ) will not even work because the variables
   occur in completely different processes.
 * You need to store the variables somewhere. aut0poietic’s suggestion of storing
   as a transient is a good one. If you address this I think your code will more
   or less work. There’s room for improvement, but it should at least work.
 * One improvement would be to store the counts in a single array instead of several
   variables, then they can be easily kept under a single transient value. For example,
   instead of `$site1` use `$doug_site[1]`, etc. Then all counts are in the `$doug_site`
   array, which can be stored and retrieved like a single variable, but all values
   are available within it.
 * I prepended “doug” to the variable name because “site” is a generic word which
   could clash with other code variables. Prepending a non-generic string makes 
   your variable name much less prone to name conflicts. Of course it doesn’t need
   to be “doug”, any unique string will work.
 *  Thread Starter [Doug](https://wordpress.org/support/users/nicoblog/)
 * (@nicoblog)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062890)
 * [@bcworkz](https://wordpress.org/support/users/bcworkz/), thanks for the input.
   I followed your post carefully and came up with new code, is this doing what 
   i wanted? I mean only updating only every 24hs? What do you think of it?
 *     ```
       function prefix_nav_description( $item_output, $item, $depth, $args ) {
       $posts_counters = array(
           "Volvo" => 0,
           "Mazda" => 0,
       	"BMW" => 0,
       	"Mercedes" => 0,
       	"Porsche" => 0,
       	"Mitsubishi" => 0,
       	"Hyundai" => 0,
       	"Fiat" => 0,
       	"Ferrari" => 0,
       	"Citroen" => 0,
       	"Renault" => 0,
       );
   
       if ( false === ( $posts_counters = get_transient( 'posts_counters' ) ) ) {
   
       $original_blog_id = get_current_blog_id();
       switch_to_blog(2);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Volvo"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(3);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Mazda"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(15);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["BMW"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(18);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Mercedes"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(20);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Porsche"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(22);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Mitsubishi"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(21);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Hyundai"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(6);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Fiat"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(16);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Ferrari"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(17);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Citroen"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog(19);
       $count_posts = wp_count_posts();
       $posts_counters["Renault"] = $count_posts->publish;
       switch_to_blog( $original_blog_id );	 
   
            set_transient( 'posts_counters', $posts_counters, 24 * HOUR_IN_SECONDS );
       }
   
              $item_output = str_replace( "Volvo", "Volvo (".$posts_counters["Volvo"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Mazda", "Mazda (".$posts_counters["Mazda"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "BMW", "BMW (".$posts_counters["BMW"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Mercedes", "Mercedes (".$posts_counters["Mercedes"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Porsche", "Porsche (".$posts_counters["Porsche"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Mitsubishi", "Mitsubishi (".$posts_counters["Mitsubishi"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Hyundai", "Hyundai (".$posts_counters["Hyundai"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Fiat", "Fiat (".$posts_counters["Fiat"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Ferrari", "Ferrari (".$posts_counters["Ferrari"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Citroen", "Citroen (".$posts_counters["Citroen"].")", $item_output );
       	   $item_output = str_replace( "Renault", "Renault (".$posts_counters["Renault"].")", $item_output );
   
           return $item_output;
       }
       add_filter( 'walker_nav_menu_start_el', 'prefix_nav_description', 10, 4 );
       ```
   
 * Thanks.
 *  Moderator [bcworkz](https://wordpress.org/support/users/bcworkz/)
 * (@bcworkz)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062907)
 * That looks good, nice work!
 * While there could be some minor syntax errors remaining, the basic logic appears
   sound. One thing to check for is that the `str_replace()` functions are only 
   replacing what they are supposed to. Check that counts are not added to anything
   but what is visible on the page.
 * Another possible improvement would be which nav menu filter hook you are using.“
   Possible” because the following suggestion may not be feasible. The ‘start_el’
   hook fires once for every item in the menu, so most of the `str_replace()` calls
   are superfluous for any given pass. Consider using a hook like ‘wp_nav_menu’ 
   which only fires once for all menu items. This may not work if the strings to
   modify are not unique within the entire menu structure. The counts might end 
   up where they don’t belong. But if this does work it’ll cut down on the overall
   processing required. It’s not necessary to do this, but it might be worth investigating.
 *  Thread Starter [Doug](https://wordpress.org/support/users/nicoblog/)
 * (@nicoblog)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062916)
 * str_replace() was also replacing the “title” attribute of the menu items.
    I 
   solved this by typing the anchor text in upper case, changed the str_replace 
   to match the strings in upper case only. Since the theme already has a css rule“
   text-transform: uppercase;” for this items nobody notice the difference.
 * Now i’m sure the replace only happens once for each item.
 * How would i go about using wp_nav_menu? Is this enough or i have to change something
   else too?
 *     ```
       //change this line:
       add_filter( 'walker_nav_menu_start_el', 'prefix_nav_description', 10, 4 );
       //like this?
       add_filter( 'wp_nav_menu_args', 'prefix_nav_description', 10, 4 );
       ```
   
 * Thanks!
 *  Moderator [bcworkz](https://wordpress.org/support/users/bcworkz/)
 * (@bcworkz)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062921)
 * Sort of, that’s almost it. The filter is ‘wp_nav_menu’, not ‘wp_nav_menu_args’.
 * Also change the 4 to a 2 and remove `$item, $depth,` from the function declaration:
   `
   function prefix_nav_description( $item_output, $args ) {`
 * This is all assuming that your theme uses `wp_nav_menu()`, which is not always
   the case.
 *  Thread Starter [Doug](https://wordpress.org/support/users/nicoblog/)
 * (@nicoblog)
 * [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062926)
 * I’ve made all changes suggested on your last post, the counters show up so i 
   assume all went OK, it’s a twenty fourteen child so it should be coded by the
   book.
    Thanks for the help!
 * PS: On the post linked by aut0poietic they are doing wp_cache_flush() before 
   every switch_to_blog. I don’t know what that does but if it’s clearing the W3
   total cache…then it would have a negative effect on busy server, the load would
   be huge it might even crash. So i’m not doing it.

Viewing 8 replies - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)

The topic ‘How to optimize this function?’ is closed to new replies.

## Tags

 * [function](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/function/)
 * [multisite](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/multisite/)
 * [navigation-menu](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/navigation-menu/)

 * In: [Hacks](https://wordpress.org/support/forum/plugins-and-hacks/hacks/)
 * 8 replies
 * 3 participants
 * Last reply from: [Doug](https://wordpress.org/support/users/nicoblog/)
 * Last activity: [10 years, 3 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-to-optimize-this-function-1/#post-7062926)
 * Status: resolved

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