[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #32366: wp_count_comments() is hardcoded into /wp-admin/menu.php and queries all comments every single page load within the admin area, regardless of if edt_posts is removed from top menu or not

[WordPress Trac]

#32366: wp_count_comments() is hardcoded into /wp-admin/menu.php and queries all
comments every single page load within the admin area, regardless of if
edt_posts is removed from top menu or not
-----------------------------+------------------------------------------
 Reporter:  justindocanto    |       Owner:  (none)
     Type:  defect (bug)     |      Status:  reopened
 Priority:  normal           |   Milestone:
Component:  Comments         |     Version:  4.2
 Severity:  normal           |  Resolution:
 Keywords:  has-patch close  |     Focuses:  administration, performance
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Comment (by iCaleb):

 > When multiple plugins `add_filter wp_count_comments`, each with their
 own logic, possibly making heavy queries, situation becomes significantly
 more complex.

 This is key to the problem here. I'm looking at a site right now where
 there are filters on `wp_count_comments` coming from WooCommerce, WC
 Memberships, and Action Scheduler as they need to remove their own comment
 types from being returned. Each of these queries becoming significantly
 heavier as the site size increases. What's perhaps even worse is that the
 site has comments completely disabled, and doesn't even use them in the
 traditional post-reply sense.

 The filter inside of `wp_count_comments` is simply not sufficient because
 it doesn't grant enough context. There are two places in the admin where
 comments are counted on every page:

 - In the menu (the cause of this ticket):
 https://github.com/WordPress/WordPress/blob/6fd8080e7ee7599b36d4528f72a8ced612130b8c
 /wp-admin/menu.php#L77
 - In the admin bar
 https://github.com/WordPress/WordPress/blob/f2d2126d0d8d4c329141bbdbbd3f24a0f44e7d5c
 /wp-includes/admin-bar.php#L886

 The later can be removed by unhooking it from `admin_bar_menu`. And a
 bonus location on the dashboard where you can also remove the
 `wp_count_comments()` call by unsetting the "At a Glance" widget.


 ----

 While I would still love a way to unhook the call from menu.php, it might
 be worth also taking a step back and see what the underlining issue is
 here.

 The three plugins I mentioned are all doing the same thing on the
 `wp_count_comments` filter. They re-query and remove their custom
 comment_type's from the response. So maybe the better answer is an
 optional, filter-powered query clause in `get_comment_count()` where
 plugins can pass a list of comment_types that need to be ignored? It will
 slow the query down, but it's 1000x better than having to query the whole
 thing again to remove just one type at a time.

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Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/32366#comment:15>
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