Simple History plugin review and common issues

Simple History logs events based on WordPress actions and filters. Theme change events are typically logged when a theme is switched via Appearance → Themes. If theme changes are not appearing: (1) verify the theme was changed using the WordPress admin (theme changes via WP-CLI or direct database modification may not trigger the logged actions); (2) check if there are any PHP errors in the WordPress debug log that might prevent the theme change event from being recorded; (3) clear the Simple History display cache if using object caching.

Simple History sends weekly email reports via WordPress wp_mail(). Check: (1) WordPress email is working — use WP Mail SMTP test email to verify; (2) configure WP Mail SMTP with a proper SMTP service for reliable email delivery; (3) check the recipient email address in Simple History → Settings → Email Reports — verify it is a valid, monitored email address; (4) check spam folders; (5) the weekly report is sent every Monday — if it has been less than a week since setup, wait for the first Monday after activation.

Simple History does not have built-in IP or user exclusion settings like WP Activity Log. Options for reducing noise: (1) use the log’s severity filter to show only Warning/Error level events and hide Info/Debug level automated events; (2) if using the REST API, Simple History REST API events can be filtered by configuring what REST API requests trigger logging; (3) for WP-Cron events, check if those events are genuinely important to track — if not, they may not be logged by Simple History’s standard loggers at all.

Simple History exposes log data via the WordPress REST API at the endpoint /wp-json/simple-history/v1/events. Authentication requires a valid WordPress auth cookie or application password. Parameters allow filtering by date, user, event type, and log level. Example request: GET /wp-json/simple-history/v1/events?since=7d&user=admin. This enables building custom dashboards, integrating with external monitoring tools, or triggering automated responses to specific events without polling the WordPress admin.

Simple History provides a developer API for custom event logging. In your plugin’s code: SimpleLogger()->info(“Custom event”, array(“data” => “event details”)); Use the SimpleLogger static methods: info(), warning(), error(), debug(). Provide an event message and an associative array of metadata. Custom events appear in the Simple History log with the standard formatting. For structured event types, create a custom Logger class extending Simple_History_Logger — this enables consistent event templates and better filtering of your custom event type.

For a small blog with one or two administrators, Simple History is the better choice. It provides meaningful activity logging (content changes, login events, plugin updates) with no configuration and a clean interface. WP Activity Log’s comprehensive logging and complex configuration are valuable for compliance, multi-user sites, and WooCommerce stores — but add unnecessary overhead for simple sites. Simple History’s zero-friction approach and weekly email summary make it the more practical choice for most small sites.

By default, Simple History retains log entries for a configurable period (typically 60 days in recent versions, configurable in Settings → Simple History → Retention). Older entries are automatically deleted during WordPress cron cleanup runs. For longer retention (compliance or investigation purposes), increase the retention period in settings or export the log periodically. WP Activity Log Premium provides external database storage for unlimited log retention, which Simple History cannot match.

Yes, that can happen, especially on older sites with many plugins. This usually happens when the plugin, theme, and add-ons are updated out of sequence. In most cases, testing on staging catches the issue before it reaches the live site. From experience, backups and changelog reviews save a lot of cleanup time.

Start by checking whether another plugin already does the same job. In most cases, overlap is what creates avoidable conflicts and performance issues. A common issue is installing a plugin because it looks convenient without checking the stack first. From experience, a short compatibility review avoids most of the pain later.