Import external attachments
by ryanpcmcquen · Media
Makes local copies of all the linked images and pdfs in a post, adding them as gallery attachments.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
D 44/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Open vulnerability
Active installs
1K+
≈1.9K estimated
Momentum
+28%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: “attachments”, “gallery” and “images” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
44 health vs 62 average across 3,279 Media plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →3.8%
of downloads still active
At least 1K of 26.1K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Media plugin keeps 0.8%, across 2,318 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Media plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
High removal-risk signals
63/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Long abandoned. No update in 9+ years — the top precursor to removal once a vulnerability is found.
- Compatibility drift. Tested only up to WordPress 4.4.34, well behind 6.8.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Under-optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 3536 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 4.4.34; the current branch is 6.8
4.3★ over 26 reviews, smoothed to 4.17★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 3536 days ago — ship an update; wp.org decays a listing's search weight after ~180 days.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
Not enough tracked days yet to call a direction. Momentum needs at least three keywords measured a week or more apart.
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| photobloggers your tag | #2 | #1 | 0 |
| attachments your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| gallery your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| images your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| photo your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
1 search this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days. 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “attachments”, “gallery” and “images” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 524 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
No release in a yearHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
0
releases in the last 12 months
9.7y ago
latest release · v1.5.12 · 24 Feb 2017
6
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 100% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “1K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 3 months ago and the previous band took 2.9 years to cross, so the real count is still just under 2K.
Install history since 5 Oct 2016
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ mikulya2.4y ago
Плагин выполняет свои функции с классическом редактором, но замораживается процесс, когда попадается статья, с неработающей внешней картинкой. Предварительно лучше избавиться от нерабочих картинок
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ pichichi3.8y ago
This worked for me in 2023. All I had to do was install Classic editor and make sure the post pages wern’t using any third party page builders. To import the missing attachments, I then opened the edit page for each post one by one and followed the instructions in the right sidebar. Once done, simply uninstalled classic editor and this plugin. Awesome. Thank you.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ sae2810626.6y ago
Works with 5.3.2
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mikewaveit6.8y ago
I import the images from the posts of a blog migrated from Blogger into WordPress. Works great.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ mikeallteams7.7y ago
Brilliant plugin. Works great for PDFs.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ swagatamm7.9y ago
This plugin does more than what it says, it is so good. I only hope it stays updated regularly. This topic was modified 7 years, 7 months ago by swagatamm.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ messaar7.9y ago
It works (and still works, WordPress 4.9.8)
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ epsilon428.4y ago
I’ve read of some people having issues with this for larger files but I haven’t encountered any issues yet and have dealt with fairly large PDFs and images. Maybe it’s your server configuration that’s causing issues. Can download attachments on a per post/page basis (via meta box in sidebar) or site wide (Media > Import Attachments from the menu). It’s great how it stands out in the editor sidebar so it’s obvious the post you’re looking at has external content. If there is no external content then the panel isn’t visible.
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 1.5.12 Adds support for pages. Adds support for .doc and .docx files. Fixes security issue by not directly echoing $_GET['post'] but casting it to int . Adds support for filenames with spaces in them (by removing the space from 1.5.12
- — Version 1.5.11 Add .jpeg support. 1.5.11
- — Version 1.5.9 Remove duplicate README. 1.5.9
- — Version 1.5.8 Fix some typos. 1.5.8
- — Version 1.5.7 Add GitHub link. 1.5.7
- — Version 1.5.6 Fix naming. 1.5.6
Security history
via Wordfence Intelligence2 open vulnerabilities affect the current version (1.5.12). 0 of 2 disclosed are patched.
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.2.16 · WP 5.3
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 26 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Makes local copies of all the linked images and pdfs in a post, adding them as gallery attachments."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 3 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 3 of 3 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 0 lists; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ! Enough to quote 558 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "photo", "photobloggers" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-08-16 2K+ → 1K+ down after 1042 days in tier
- 2023-10-09 3K+ → 2K+ down after 1154 days in tier
- 2020-08-11 4K+ → 3K+ down after 270 days in tier
- 2019-11-15 2K+ → 4K+ up after 871 days in tier
- 2017-06-27 1K+ → 2K+ up after 74 days in tier
- 2017-04-14 300+ → 1K+ up
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
Lightbox with PhotoSwipe 20K+ installs · 4.8★ · 3 shared tags A -
Firelight Lightbox 200K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
Responsive Lightbox & Gallery 100K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags B -
Lightbox & Modal Popup WordPress Plugin – FooBox 100K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags B -
ACF Photo Gallery Field 60K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags B -
LightPress Lightbox 40K+ installs · 4.5★ · 2 shared tags B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Import external attachments into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/import-external-attachments" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Import external attachments — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Import external attachments: 1K+ active installs, 4.3★ (26 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/import-external-attachments
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