Developer and Testing Tools

This page covers tools in Benecaster → Settings → Tools → Danger Zone that are useful when developing, testing, or debugging a Benecaster installation. None of these controls appear on production sites.

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Reset Plugin Data

Appears when: WP_DEBUG is true in wp-config.php

The “Reset plugin data (testing only)” card wipes everything Benecaster has written to the database and resets the plugin to its post-activation state:

• All Benecaster custom database tables (subscribers, download log, analytics, email queue, etc.)
• All Benecaster CPT posts (shows, episodes, migration patrons)
• All benecaster_* options, including the license key
• All scheduled Benecaster cron events
• All Benecaster-managed media uploads

WordPress users, pages, themes, and all other plugins are untouched. After the reset, the plugin re-runs its activator as if it were a fresh install — the next admin page load redirects to the Setup Wizard.

How to use:

1. Go to Benecaster → Settings → Tools → Danger Zone
2. Find the “Reset plugin data (testing only)” card
3. Type RESET in the confirmation field (case-sensitive)
4. Click Reset — the wipe runs immediately

This action is irreversible. Use it only on development or staging sites.

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Reset Setup Wizard

Appears when: the site’s environment is local, development, or staging (as reported by wp_get_environment_type()), or when WP_DEBUG is true.

Never visible on production.

The “Reset setup wizard (testing only)” card clears all wizard state and returns the wizard to its initial screen:

• benecaster_setup_wizard_complete
• benecaster_setup_wizard_dismissed
• benecaster_wizard_show_id
• benecaster_wizard_membership_mode
• All benecaster_wizard_step_*_complete options

Show data, episodes, subscribers, and the license key are untouched. The Reset Wizard control is the right tool when you need to re-run wizard paths without rebuilding the entire site.

How to use:

1. Go to Benecaster → Settings → Tools → Danger Zone
2. Find the “Reset setup wizard (testing only)” card
3. Click Reset wizard — all wizard state options are deleted immediately and the wizard paused-state notice clears on the next page load

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301 Redirect Cleanup Notices

Not a Danger Zone control — this one appears as a standard admin notice in the Benecaster shell.

When a 301 redirect rule generated by a prefix change is more than a year old, Benecaster shows a notice suggesting you remove it. After a year, podcast apps and search crawlers will have updated to the new URL, so the rule is no longer protecting anything.

What the notice says: “The redirect from /{old-prefix}/ has been active for over a year. Consider removing it — podcast apps and search engines will have updated by now.”

To dismiss: Click the × on the notice. Dismissal is per-rule — each redirect rule’s notice can be dismissed independently. The rule itself remains active until you explicitly delete it; dismissal only hides the notice.

If you later decide to delete the rule entirely, go to Benecaster → Settings → Permalinks and remove it from the active redirect list.

See Permalink Settings for how redirect rules are generated and managed.