WebberZone Link Warnings v1.6: Download Warnings, Sitewide Content Processing and more
Link warnings need to appear wherever visitors encounter a link. Post content is only one part of a WordPress site. Menus, widgets, comments, and block-theme template parts can all introduce external links. Download links are another gap: a file hosted on the same site can still trigger a download, but earlier versions did not treat it as a download warning.
I focused WebberZone Link Warnings 1.6.0 on those two cases. The release adds download-aware warnings, extends the server-side processing layer to more rendered content, and fixes several edge cases in external-link detection and redirect handling.
Warn visitors before configured downloads
WebberZone Link Warnings now recognizes downloadable files by the extension at the end of the URL path. The default list covers pdf, zip, doc, docx, xls, xlsx, exe, and dmg.
This applies to downloads hosted on the current site and files hosted elsewhere. Query strings and URL fragments do not affect the match, so a URL such as /files/report.pdf?download=1 still receives a download warning, while /download?file=report.pdf does not because the path itself does not end in .pdf.
Configure the list under Settings > Link Warnings > Advanced > Download Links with the Downloadable File Extensions setting. The separate Download Modal Title and Download Modal Message settings under Display > Modal Dialog let download warnings use copy that is different from the message for external navigation. The WebberZone Link Warnings settings reference has the full list of available options.
Download links also receive a distinct download indicator icon when icons are enabled. The result is a warning that describes the action visitors are about to take, rather than treating every destination as just another external page.
Process more content on the server
The new External Content section under Settings > Link Warnings > General adds four independent controls:
- Process Widget Output covers block, text, and custom HTML widgets.
- Process Navigation Menus covers classic navigation menu output.
- Process Comments covers comment text.
- Process Block Theme Template Parts covers rendered template parts in block themes.
All four are enabled after you update. Links in your menus, widgets, comments, and template parts start showing warnings immediately, with no configuration step. If you would rather not warn on one of these areas, turn it off under General > External Content.
The server-side filters reuse the same content processor as post content, so the configured scope, exclusions, indicators, and warning method remain consistent across these sources. The JavaScript scan still covers output that a theme or another plugin adds after the server-side filters run.
This matters when the HTML needs to carry the warning before the browser finishes loading the page. The getting started guide covers the plugin’s processing layers and warning methods.
Fixes that affect existing installs
Protocol-relative external links now receive warnings. A link such as //example.com/page was previously treated as internal because it omitted the URL scheme. The plugin now resolves the hostname before classifying the link.
Redirect screens now preserve valid destinations. URLs containing &, #, or + could fail the signature check and send visitors to the home page instead of the intended destination. Force-external links and internal target="_blank" links under the redirect methods had the same failure mode. The redirect flow now preserves the signed destination.
Wrapper exclusions stop at the right boundary. A wzlw-no-icon-wrapper, wzlw-force-external-wrapper, or affiliate wrapper containing an <iframe>, <script>, <textarea>, or similar element could suppress or alter every link after that element. The processor now keeps wrapper state local to the element where it belongs.
Excluded domains now behave the same in PHP and JavaScript. Links outside post content are marked during server-side processing, so the browser scan doesn’t add a warning that PHP already decided to exclude.
Uppercase closing tags receive their indicators. Links closed with </A> now receive the same icon and screen reader text as links using the usual lowercase closing tag.
The modal and redirect scripts also reject malformed destination data instead of passing it to navigation sinks. Activation no longer writes a duplicate copy of the default settings.
Upgrade notes
- Update WebberZone Link Warnings to 1.6.0.
- Open Settings > Link Warnings > General > External Content. All four sources are already enabled. You can turn off any area where you don’t want warnings.
- Review Advanced > Download Links and adjust Downloadable File Extensions if your site uses file types outside the default list.
No database migration is required. The plugin continues to modify rendered output only, so stored post content and existing links remain unchanged. Existing settings are preserved during activation.
WebberZone Link Warnings 1.6.0 closes two practical gaps without changing the way the plugin fits into a WordPress site: warnings now follow more of the rendered page, and downloads get a warning that matches the action.