What You’ll Learn
- Review detected plugins and themes
- Add a custom identifier using search or manual entry
- Check licensing and activity when updates are missing
- Keep existing compatibility snippets working
Prerequisites
- MainWP Dashboard 6.2 or later and current MainWP Child versions
- Administrator access to MainWP Dashboard
- Child sites synced so their installed plugin and theme information is available
- The vendor’s required license, account connection, or registration on each child site
Open Premium Updates
Go to MainWP > Settings > Premium Updates (admin.php?page=PremiumUpdates). Built-in compatibility is automatic; there is no switch to enable first.
MainWP does not provide premium licenses or bypass vendor requirements. An update can appear in your Dashboard while the vendor still refuses its download because the child site’s license or account connection is inactive.
Review Detected Products
Expand Detected Plugins or Detected Themes to see products from your synced child sites that match built-in compatibility rules or custom identifiers.Add a Custom Identifier
Use Custom Identifiers when a premium product needs compatibility that is not already built in, or when a theme’s installed folder has been renamed. An identifier tells MainWP which installed product to match across your child sites.1
Sync the affected child sites
Go to MainWP > Sites > Manage Sites and sync the sites that have the product installed. Then return to Settings > Premium Updates.
2
Choose Plugin or Theme
In Custom Identifiers, select the appropriate Type.
3
Find or enter the identifier
Start typing at least two characters from the product name or identifier. Select the matching result to fill in its identifier, or enter it manually using the format below.
Search includes non-premium products too. Only select the premium product you intend to add. Products already covered by built-in rules or saved custom identifiers are omitted from suggestions.
Use the actual installed identifier, not the product’s display name, website URL, or license key. For plugins, a folder name alone is not enough. Ask the vendor for the plugin’s main file if you are unsure.
4
Add the identifier
Click Add New. Confirm that the identifier appears in the custom table below the form. Each custom entry applies to both update detection and update requests for that product across your Dashboard.
5
Sync and check updates
Sync the affected sites again, then check the Updates screens. Adding an identifier does not install or update the product by itself.
Theme Folders and Renamed Themes
Select Theme and use the installed folder underwp-content/themes/. If the folder was renamed, enter the renamed folder instead of the vendor’s original name. For a premium parent theme used by an active child theme, use the parent theme’s installed folder.
Remove a Custom Identifier
In the custom table, click the trash icon beside the entry and confirm removal. To correct an identifier, remove the old entry and add the correct one. Removal deletes only that custom compatibility entry. It does not uninstall the product, stop normal updates, remove a built-in rule, or change a PHP snippet. Use Ignore Updates to stop tracking particular plugin updates, or the theme equivalent.Existing Compatibility Snippets
The existing plugin and theme compatibility filters still work in MainWP Dashboard 6.2. You do not need to migrate a working snippet just because the settings page is available. The filters receive built-in identifiers and your saved custom identifiers. Append to that array to preserve them. Identifiers added only by PHP filters are not automatically imported into the settings tables. See the advanced examples in Premium Plugin Updates Not Detected and Premium Theme Updates Not Detected.If Updates Still Fail
- Check whether the update appears in Dashboard > Updates on the child site itself.
- Verify the vendor’s licensing or account requirements on that child site and check whether the product is active.
- Confirm the identifier, sync again, and try updating the affected item separately.
