wp-plugin-restore

name	wp-plugin-restore
description	Restore deleted WordPress plugins from a sibling WP site on the same server (instant copy, no download) or from wordpress.org API. Then optionally reactivates them in the database. Works on any host, any WP installation.
metadata	{"type":"management","script":"scripts/restoration/wp-plugin-restore.py","requires":"paramiko"}

WP-PLUGIN-RESTORE — Restore Deleted Plugins

When to use

When plugins have been deleted from wp-content/plugins/ but are still listed in active_plugins. WordPress renders raw post_content (no Elementor layout) because plugin hooks never register.

Usage

# Restore from sibling WP on same server (fastest — no download, instant copy)
python scripts/restoration/wp-plugin-restore.py \
  --config config/config.yaml \
  --plugins elementor,cloudflare,seo-by-rank-math \
  --sibling-plugins-path /var/www/html/anothersite/wp-content/plugins \
  --activate

# Restore from wordpress.org (when no sibling available)
python scripts/restoration/wp-plugin-restore.py \
  --config config/config.yaml \
  --plugins elementor,imagify,auto-sizes \
  --activate

All flags

Flag	Description
--plugins	Comma-separated slugs to restore
--sibling-plugins-path	Path to another WP site's plugins/ dir on same server
--activate	Re-add to active_plugins in DB after restoring
--dry-run	Preview only — no changes

Finding a sibling plugins path

If you have multiple sites on the same hosting account, they share the server filesystem. Find the other site's WP root, then append /wp-content/plugins.

# SSH in and find other WP installations
find / -name "wp-config.php" 2>/dev/null | grep -v node_modules

Plugin slug reference (common plugins)

Common name	WP.org slug
Rank Math SEO	seo-by-rank-math
Header Footer Elementor	header-footer-elementor
Insert Headers and Footers	insert-headers-and-footers
Kadence Starter Templates	kadence-starter-templates
WooCommerce	woocommerce
Yoast SEO	wordpress-seo
Contact Form 7	contact-form-7

After restoring

Run wp-elementor-fix if the site uses Elementor — restoring plugins alone doesn't clear the CSS cache.