[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #42217: Plugins misuse get_plugins(), should be cached

[WordPress Trac]

#42217: Plugins misuse get_plugins(), should be cached
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 Reporter:  fabifott     |      Owner:
     Type:  enhancement  |     Status:  new
 Priority:  normal       |  Milestone:  Awaiting Review
Component:  Plugins      |    Version:  4.8
 Severity:  normal       |   Keywords:
  Focuses:  performance  |
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 Many popular plugins misuse `get_plugins()`. They call it to check if a
 certain extension is available, and they do it every request.
 This is the actual reason why it is recommended to keep your plugins
 directory clean.

 I tried to reach some of the plugin devs telling them that they are using
 `get_plugins()` in a wrong way, but they did not listen.

 `get_plugins()` uses the non-persistent object cache. Once there is some
 plugin call it, it will scan the plugin directory. It depending on your
 number of installed plugins, this can take a while. (On VVV, host i7
 skylake with NVME SSD, 32 plugins in the plugins dir, 400 - 600 ms). Any
 subsequent calls during the same request are at no cost.

 For a fix I propose to use an additional transient for caching. This
 transient should have a lifetime of at least 1 hour. To be able to
 instantly find plugins that have been installed or updated on the file
 system, this transient should be deleted on every request of the plugins
 admin screen. Additionally, it can be refreshed on every cron request.

 This would significantly increase performance of the dashboard, if there
 is at least one plugin misusing `get_plugins()`.

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Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/42217>
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