Unattached Media Manager

Fix the WordPress Unattached media filter. Automatically attach used media files to their posts so you can safely clean up your library.

Author:	sungraizfaryad (profile at wordpress.org)
WordPress version required:	5.8
WordPress version tested:	6.9.2
Plugin version:	1.0.6
Added to WordPress repository:	21-02-2026
Last updated:	10-03-2026
Rating, %:	0
Rated by:	0
Plugin URI:	https://wordpress.org/plugins/unattached-medi...
Total downloads:	372
Active installs:	10+
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Why This Plugin Is Different

Most media cleaner plugins help you delete unused images. This plugin fixes a fundamental WordPress problem first.

WordPress has a built-in “Unattached” filter in the Media Library. The idea is simple: it shows you media files that aren’t connected to any post, so you can decide whether to keep or delete them.

The problem? WordPress only marks media as “attached” if it was uploaded directly through the post editor. Any image added through ACF fields, Gutenberg blocks, page builders, widgets, theme options, or shortcodes shows as “Unattached” — even though it’s actively being used on your site.

This makes WordPress’s native “Unattached” filter completely unreliable.

How Unattached Media Manager Fixes This

This plugin scans your entire site, finds every place where media files are actually being used, and properly attaches them to their parent posts. Once attached:

WordPress’s “Unattached” filter actually works — It now shows only truly unused media
You can use WordPress’s native tools — No need to depend on third-party plugins to manage media
Import/export plugins work correctly — Tools like WP All Import, WP Migrate, Duplicator, and others can now properly identify and migrate media with their associated posts
You can safely uninstall this plugin — The attachments remain as part of WordPress’s native structure

The Workflow

Scan — The plugin finds all media usage across your site (content, ACF, blocks, widgets, options, etc.)
Attach — One-click to properly attach all “used but unattached” media to their parent posts
Review — Now WordPress’s “Unattached” filter shows only genuinely unused files
Clean Up — Use WordPress’s native tools OR this plugin’s safe deletion features
Done — Uninstall if you want; the fixes stay with WordPress

Yes, It Also Deletes Unused Media

Like other media cleaners, this plugin also helps you safely delete unused media with:

Trash support — Move to trash first, restore if needed
Permanent delete — Remove forever when you’re sure
Change history — Track all attachment changes with one-click revert

But the real value is fixing WordPress’s attachment system so you don’t need to depend on any plugin long-term.

Two Processing Modes

Browser-Driven (Recommended) — Fast and reliable with real-time progress. Keep the browser tab open until complete.
Background (WP-Cron) — Processing continues even after closing your browser. Ideal for server cron setups.

Key Features

Comprehensive Scanning — Detects media usage in post content, featured images, Gutenberg blocks, ACF fields, Elementor, Meta Box, WooCommerce, SEO plugins, widgets, theme options, and more
Fix Unattached Media — One-click to properly attach all “used but unattached” media
Media Library Integration — See usage count directly in your Media Library list view
Safe Deletion — WordPress trash support with restore capability
Change History — Full audit trail with one-click revert for any attachment
Pause & Resume — Stop any operation and continue later
Resource Aware — Three modes (Low/Auto/High) for shared hosting to dedicated servers
Export Reports — Download CSV reports of all media usage
Developer Friendly — Hooks, filters, REST API, and WP-CLI commands

The Problem It Solves

WordPress marks media as “Unattached” if it wasn’t uploaded directly to a post. But many media files ARE being used — they’re just embedded via:

The block editor (Gutenberg)
Page builders like Elementor or Beaver Builder
ACF image/gallery fields
WooCommerce product galleries
Theme customizer settings
Widget areas
Shortcodes
Custom meta boxes

Unattached Media Manager finds ALL these references and properly attaches the media, so WordPress correctly reflects which files are actually in use.

Server-Friendly Design

This plugin is designed to work on ALL servers, including shared hosting with limited resources:

Never blocks your site – All heavy operations are processed in batches
Adaptive resource usage – Automatically detects server limits and adjusts accordingly
Three resource modes:
- Low Resources – 5 items/batch, 2-minute intervals (for shared hosting)
- Auto (Recommended) – 15 items/batch, 1-minute intervals (adjusts automatically)
- High Performance – 50 items/batch, 30-second intervals (for dedicated servers)
Two processing strategies – Choose browser-driven (fast) or background WP-Cron mode

Supported Content Types

ALL features below are FREE – no Pro version required!

Post Content – Classic editor, Gutenberg blocks, shortcodes, inline styles, data attributes
Featured Images – Thumbnail assignments
ACF Fields – Image, gallery, file, repeater, flexible content, and group fields
Gutenberg Blocks – Core image, gallery, cover, media & text blocks
Elementor – All widgets, backgrounds, galleries, sliders, and responsive images
Meta Box – All field types including groups and cloneable fields
WooCommerce – Product galleries, variation images, downloadable files, category thumbnails
SEO Plugins – Yoast SEO, Rank Math, All in One SEO, SEOPress (OpenGraph & Twitter images)
Widgets – Image widgets, text widgets with media, custom HTML
Theme Options – Customizer settings, theme mods, custom logos
Options Table – Plugin settings that store media IDs or URLs
Video & Audio – HTML5 video/audio elements, poster images, source tags
Responsive Images – srcset attributes and lazy-loading data attributes

For Developers

Unattached Media Manager is built with extensibility in mind:

Hooks & Filters – Extend scanning with custom parsers
REST API – Query media usage programmatically
WP-CLI Commands – Run scans from the command line (wp aioms scan)
Custom Post Types – Automatically scans all public post types

How to Use

Step 1: Run Your First Scan

Navigate to Media Media Solution
Click Start Full Scan
Choose your processing mode (Browser-Driven recommended for most users)
Watch the real-time progress as your media library is scanned

Step 2: Review the Dashboard

After scanning, you’ll see:

Total Media Files – All attachments in your library
In Use – Media files with detected references
Potentially Unused – Media files with no detected references
Used but Unattached – Media that’s used but marked as “Unattached” in WordPress
Total References – Total number of places media is referenced

Step 3: Fix Unattached Media

If you have “Used but Unattached” media:

Click the Attach All Media Files button
The operation runs in the background
Each attachment is tracked in Change History for easy reverting

Step 4: Clean Up Unused Media

Go to the Unused Media tab to:

Review – Check each file before taking action
Move to Trash – Safely move to WordPress trash (can be restored)
Restore – Bring items back from trash if needed
Delete Permanently – Remove forever (cannot be undone)
Empty Trash – Delete all trashed media at once

Important: All bulk operations run in the background. You’ll see a status bar showing progress.

Step 5: Review Change History

The Change History tab shows:

All attachments made by this plugin
When each change occurred
What post each media was attached to
Option to Revert any change (detaches the media)

Important Precautions

Before Deleting Any Media

Always run a full scan first – Make sure the index is up to date
Review files manually – The scanner detects database references, but images might be:
- Hardcoded in theme PHP files
- Used by external websites linking to your images
- Referenced in custom code or third-party plugins not yet supported
- Used in email templates stored outside WordPress
Use Trash first – Move to trash instead of deleting permanently
Wait before emptying trash – Keep trashed items for a few days to catch any issues

About “Potentially Unused” Media

Files marked as “Potentially Unused” means:

No references were found in the scanned content
This doesn’t guarantee the file is unused
The file might be used in ways not detected:
- Theme template files (hardcoded)
- External sites linking to your images
- Custom plugins with non-standard storage
- CSS background images defined in stylesheets
- JavaScript-loaded images

Recommended Workflow

Scan – Run a full scan with all content types enabled
Review – Look at the Unused Media tab
Research – For each file, consider where it might be used
Trash – Move questionable items to trash (not permanent delete)
Monitor – Check your site for a few days for missing images
Delete – Only permanently delete after confirming no issues

Server Resources

Shared Hosting – Use “Low Resources” mode in settings
If operations timeout – Switch to Low Resources mode
Large media libraries – The scan may take longer but will complete
WP Cron must work – Ensure WordPress cron is running (check with your host)

Privacy Policy

Unattached Media Manager does not:

Collect any personal data
Send any data to external servers
Use any third-party services
Track users or usage

All data is stored locally in your WordPress database in custom tables that are removed when you uninstall the plugin.

Uninstallation

When you uninstall (delete) the plugin:

All custom database tables are removed
All plugin options are deleted
All plugin transients are cleared
All scheduled cron events are removed
Post meta created by the plugin is deleted

Note: Attachment relationships (post_parent) that were set by this plugin are NOT removed, as these are now part of WordPress’s native media library structure. If you need to revert these, use the Change History tab before uninstalling.

Credits

Built with love for the WordPress community
Icons from WordPress Dashicons
Inspired by the need to keep media libraries clean and organized

Screenshots
FAQ

Will scanning slow down my site?

No. The scanner processes items in small batches and automatically adjusts its resource usage. Visitors to your site won’t notice any slowdown.

Can I close my browser during operations?

It depends on your chosen processing mode. With Browser-Driven mode (recommended), you need to keep the tab open. With Background (WP-Cron) mode, operations continue even after closing your browser — though this requires WP-Cron to be working properly on your site.

What if I accidentally delete something?

If you used “Move to Trash” instead of “Delete Permanently”, you can restore from the Trash view in the Unused Media tab. This is why we recommend always using Trash first.

What if I attached media incorrectly?

Go to the Change History tab and click Revert on any change. This will detach the media from the post it was attached to.

What happens if the scan gets stuck?

You can pause the scan at any time and resume it later. If something goes wrong, use the Stop button to reset and start fresh.

Does this work with page builders?

Yes. Unattached Media Manager scans all post content, which includes content created by page builders like Elementor, Beaver Builder, Divi, and others. The scanner looks for both image IDs and URLs in the content.

Does this work with ACF?

Yes. There’s a dedicated ACF parser that understands image fields, gallery fields, file fields, repeaters, flexible content, and group fields.

Will it detect images added via code/theme?

If images are stored in the database (post meta, options, theme mods), they will be detected. Images hardcoded in PHP theme files are not detected as they’re not stored in the database.

Is it safe to delete media marked as “unused”?

Always review before deleting! The scanner indexes database references, but images might be:
– Hardcoded in theme files
– Used by external services
– Linked from other websites
– Used in custom code

We strongly recommend using Trash first and waiting a few days before permanently deleting.

Does this work with Multisite?

Currently, Unattached Media Manager works on individual sites. Network-wide scanning for Multisite is planned for a future release.

My server has very limited resources. Will this work?

Yes! Set the Resource Mode to “Low Resources” in Settings. This uses smaller batches (5 items) with longer intervals (2 minutes) to prevent timeouts on shared hosting.

How do I extend the scanner?

Use the aioms_parsers filter to add custom parsers:

add_filter( 'aioms_parsers', function( $parsers ) {
    $parsers['my_custom'] = new My_Custom_Parser();
    return $parsers;
} );

Your parser should implement the MUI_Parser_Interface.

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