{"id":40897,"date":"2022-10-13T15:00:52","date_gmt":"2022-10-13T13:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/?p=40897"},"modified":"2023-01-09T11:27:52","modified_gmt":"2023-01-09T10:27:52","slug":"deactivate-vs-uninstall-wordpress-plugin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/deactivate-vs-uninstall-wordpress-plugin\/","title":{"rendered":"Deactivate vs Uninstall a WordPress Plugin &#8211; Understand the Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]There is a lot of jargon a new user inevitably encounters when adopting new technology. WordPress, accessible as it is, is no exception. Whatever kind of website you are building or running, it is highly likely that you are using a <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/what-are-wordpress-plugins\/\">WordPress plugin<\/a>, or two, or many. Generally, a plugin\u2019s developer will keep the plugin up to date and maintained, while WordPress will distribute it through its repository at WordPress.org. However, you might, at some point, <strong>decide not to use a plugin anymore<\/strong>. What can you do? Well, on the same screen you can use to <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-install-a-wordpress-plugin\/\">install a WordPress plugin<\/a>, you will also find the option to deactivate and uninstall it. But what is<strong> the difference between uninstalling and deactivating a WordPress plugin<\/strong>? This, and many other questions, we will answer in this article.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]This might get a little technical, so we\u2019ve divided it into some more manageable chunks. These are the topics we will be addressing:<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#before-deactivating-or-uninstalling-plugin\">Before Deactivating or Uninstalling a Plugin<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#how-to-deactivate-wordpress-plugin\">How to Deactivate a WordPress Plugin<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#what-happens-when-you-deactivate-plugin\">What Happens When You Deactivate a Plugin<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#how-to-uninstall-wordpress-plugin\">How to Uninstall a WordPress Plugin<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;5px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\"><a href=\"#what-happens-when-you-uninstall-plugin\">What Happens When You Uninstall a Plugin<\/a><\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][vc_widget_sidebar sidebar_id=&#8221;new-top-picks-banner&#8221;][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;80px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"before-deactivating-or-uninstalling-plugin\"><\/a>Before Deactivating or Uninstalling a Plugin<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]If you are not sure whether a plugin you are about to deactivate or uninstall is needed to run your website, it is <strong>best to make a complete backup<\/strong> of it. You can <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wordpress-backup-with-updraftplus-plugin\/\">use the UpdraftPlus plugin to back up your website<\/a>, or you can <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-backup-wordpress-database\/\">make a manual backup<\/a>. That way, if anything goes wrong, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/manually-restore-wordpress-website-backup\/\">restore your WordPress website<\/a> and reverse any adverse changes you may have made.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"how-to-deactivate-wordpress-plugin\"><\/a>How to Deactivate a WordPress Plugin<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Perhaps somewhat disappointingly sensibly, you can find the control you need to deactivate a plugin by navigating to the <strong>Plugins<\/strong> screen from your WordPress dashboard. Once there, you will see that active plugins are highlighted (light blue) and they also have their names in bold. Immediately below a plugin\u2019s name, you can see the <em>Deactivate<\/em> link. Clicking it will deactivate a plugin.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"518\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Deactivate-Button.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Deactivate Button\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Deactivate-Button.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Deactivate-Button-300x160.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Deactivate-Button-768x411.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Deactivate-Button-620x331.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Note, though, that this may not apply to everything that can technically be called a plugin. The example that comes to mind is the Gutenberg page editor. Initially developed as an optional plugin by WordPress, it became the default page editor from version 5.0, in 2018. This means you get it with your default WordPress installation. It will not appear on the list on your <strong>Plugins<\/strong> screen, either. Still, though we\u2019d generally advise against it, you can still <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-disable-gutenberg-in-wordpress\/\">disable Gutenberg<\/a> if you so choose.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"what-happens-when-you-deactivate-plugin\"><\/a>What Happens When You Deactivate a Plugin<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]When a WordPress plugin is <strong>deactivated<\/strong>, the website simply runs without it, <strong>not loading the plugin as if it weren\u2019t ever installed<\/strong> at all. However, you can still <strong>activate it again<\/strong>, and your plugin, along with all your custom settings, will be restored.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]This makes deactivating a plugin very useful in those cases when you want to <strong>see whether a plugin is causing bugs<\/strong> or <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/how-to-deal-with-wordpress-plugin-conflicts\/\">plugin conflicts<\/a> on your website, or if you are <strong>testing another solution<\/strong> that you are not yet sure you will adopt.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]It often happens that a user stops using a plugin, but does not uninstall it. This is not a great idea. For one thing, the plugin and its data is still in your database, <strong>taking up space<\/strong>, and you are not using it. For another, more important thing, it is still in your database, and <strong>unscrupulous hackers may still exploit it<\/strong> to access your website.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Even if the plugin you have deactivated is not one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/most-vulnerable-wordpress-plugins\/\">most vulnerable WordPress plugins<\/a>, it is <strong>very dangerous not to update it<\/strong>, or to continue using a plugin that no longer gets updates. If you are not using a plugin, it is best to delete it altogether.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"how-to-uninstall-wordpress-plugin\"><\/a>How to Uninstall a WordPress Plugin<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]As with installing and deactivating a plugin, you can <strong>use your WordPress dashboard to uninstall a plugin<\/strong>, too. A plugin <strong>needs to be deactivated before it can be uninstalled<\/strong>. Once a plugin is deactivated, it will go from pale blue to pale gray, and, where there earlier was a <em>Deactivate<\/em> link, you will see a link to <em>Activate<\/em> the plugin, and a link to <em>Delete<\/em> it.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"518\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Activate-Plugin.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Activate Plugin\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Activate-Plugin.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Activate-Plugin-300x160.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Activate-Plugin-768x411.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Activate-Plugin-620x331.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]Clicking the <em>Delete<\/em> link will cause a prompt to appear, asking you to confirm whether you wish to delete the plugin or not. To uninstall the plugin, simply click the <strong>OK<\/strong> button.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;]<div class=\"qodef-single-image-holder   qodef-has-border \">\n    <div class=\"qodef-si-inner\" >\n                                    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"969\" height=\"518\" src=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Press-OK.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Press OK\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Press-OK.jpg 969w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Press-OK-300x160.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Press-OK-768x411.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Press-OK-620x331.jpg 620w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 969px) 100vw, 969px\" \/>                        <\/div>\n<\/div>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;38px&#8221;][vc_column_text]In most cases, the plugin, along with all its associated files, will be deleted from your website. If you want to use it again, you will likely have to install it and configure it again.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\"><a id=\"what-happens-when-you-uninstall-plugin\"><\/a>What Happens When You Uninstall a Plugin<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Plugins typically store all their files in a folder designed for just that purpose. If you are using FTP to access your database (and if you aren\u2019t, your system administrator is), you can find these files in the <em>wp-content\/plugins<\/em> folder.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]While the method described in the previous section will uninstall a plugin,<strong> it may not fully remove all its data from your database<\/strong>. Certain plugins store their files outside this folder. To create an exhaustive list of those would be beyond the scope of this article, and, as new plugins are developed, any such list would likely become obsolete within days, if not hours. Still, the plugins which often store data outside the <em>wp-content\/plugins<\/em> folder are usually:[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;22px&#8221;]<ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\">form plugins<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\">caching plugins<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\">SEO plugins, and<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><ul class=\"qodef-unordered-list-item qodef-toc\">\n    <li>\n\t        <div class=\"qodef-ul-title-holder\">\n            <span class=\"qodef-ul-title-content\">security plugins<\/span>        <\/div>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>[vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]You may need to use FTP to <strong>check for any files which may be left over and delete them.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]You may also find that, in case your newly uninstalled plugin provided you with some shortcodes you were using on your website, <strong>these shortcodes no longer work<\/strong>. You need to remove them all from whichever pages you have used them on. WordPress will just parse them as text in brackets, and that will make your website look ugly, but there\u2019s more to that than aesthetics. Your website, and, by extension, you will appear unprofessional. And an unprofessional website often causes users to consider it unsafe, even though it really isn\u2019t.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;28px&#8221;][vc_column_text]For more details on how to handle those issues, as well as a method to uninstall a plugin using FTP, we strongly suggest you consult our article on <a href=\"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/uninstall-wordpress-plugin\/\">how to properly uninstall a WordPress plugin<\/a>.[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;68px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"qodef-h4\">In Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]To deactivate vs. uninstall a plugin in WordPress? It is most definitely not a difference without a distinction. While both actions will stop the plugin from running on your website, simply deactivating a plugin still leaves a back door for bad actors to exploit, especially if you don\u2019t update it. Deactivating a plugin instead of uninstalling it is great for diagnostics and troubleshooting, but it is only ever meant to be short-term. If you want your WordPress website to be as secure from hackers as it can be, you need to remove all unused plugins as well as their files.<br \/>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ever wandered what is the difference between deactivating and uninstalling a plugin? We will set you straight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16990,"featured_media":40916,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[289,15,4],"class_list":["post-40897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-resources","tag-maintenance","tag-plugins","tag-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16990"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40897\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qodeinteractive.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}