How to Automatically Delete Post Attachments and Featured Images in WordPress

When managing a WordPress website, you may come across situations where you need to delete multiple posts at once. However, WordPress does not automatically delete attachments or featured images associated with those posts. This can lead to unnecessary clutter in your media library and storage usage.

In this article, we will show you how to automatically delete attachments and featured images when deleting posts in WordPress using a simple code snippet.

Understanding the Problem

By default, when you delete a post in WordPress, its attachments (such as images, PDFs, or other media) and featured images remain in the media library. This can be problematic for large-scale cleanups or when you want to ensure all associated data is removed along with the post.

The Solution

To address this, you can add a custom function to your WordPress site that automatically deletes all attachments and the featured image whenever a post is deleted.

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Open your WordPress theme directory and locate the functions.php file. Alternatively, you can create a custom plugin for this code.
2. Add the following code snippet to the file:

function delete_post_attachments($post_id) {
    // Check if the deleted item is a post
    if (get_post_type($post_id) !== 'post') {
        return;
    }

    // Get all attachments linked to the post
    $attachments = get_attached_media('', $post_id);
    foreach ($attachments as $attachment) {
        wp_delete_attachment($attachment->ID, true);
    }

    // Get and delete the post's featured image
    $featured_image_id = get_post_thumbnail_id($post_id);
    if ($featured_image_id) {
        wp_delete_attachment($featured_image_id, true);
    }
}
add_action('before_delete_post', 'delete_post_attachments');

This function uses the before_delete_post hook to run whenever a post is deleted. It removes:

• All media attachments associated with the post.
• The featured image of the post (if set).

How It Works

The function checks if the deleted item is a post. If it is, it retrieves all attachments linked to the post using get_attached_media() and deletes them with wp_delete_attachment(). Additionally, it removes the featured image using get_post_thumbnail_id().

Things to Keep in Mind

• This solution works specifically for posts. If you want to include other post types, you can modify the condition in the function.
• Make sure to test this functionality on a staging environment before applying it to a live site.
• Backup your database and files to prevent accidental data loss.

Conclusion

With this simple code snippet, you can streamline your post management process and ensure that no unnecessary attachments or featured images are left behind when deleting posts. This is especially useful for bulk deletions or large-scale website cleanups.

We hope this guide helps you keep your WordPress site organized and efficient. If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to reach out!