WP_Query::get_posts(): WP_Post[]|int[]

Description

Compatibility

Present in every tracked release (6.7.7 to 7.1.0), and compiles on PHP 7.4 through 8.6-dev.

Return value

WP_Post[]|int[]

Array of post objects or post IDs.

Performance profile

How much work a call to WP_Query::get_posts() does, and what it touches: the algorithmic scaling, the Zend instruction count per call across PHP versions, the hooks it hands control to, and the core code that calls it. Measured from the compiled opcodes, not a stopwatch, so every number is identical on any machine running the same PHP version, and every function in core is ranked by cost.

Cost class

Heavy

Reaches the database via get_post().

Scaling

Scales with input

The body loops, so the work grows with how much data it finds.

Instructions

471–571

Executed per call on PHP 8.5, depending on the branch taken. The body compiles to 3321.

Plugin surface

35 hooks

Third-party callbacks on 'pre_get_posts', 'wp_allow_query_attachment_by_filename', 'posts_search' run inside this call, and their cost is not bounded by anything here.

Called by

1

1 place in core call this, so the cost is paid more often than your own code shows.

What it touches

• hookthird-party callbacksdo_action_ref_array()called directly
• optionoption read or writeget_option()called directly
• querycontent queryget_post()called directly
• cacheobject cachewp_cache_get_last_changed()called directly
• serializeserialisationserialize()called directly

Further down the call graph this can also reach transient. That is the worst case, several calls deep and usually down an error path, not what a normal call pays.

What one call costs · 32 distinct outcomes

One number would be a lie: the work depends on which branch runs. These are every distinct cost WP_Query::get_posts() can have, taken from its control-flow graph on PHP 8.5.

This body has more branch combinations than are worth enumerating, so the table covers the outcomes found first rather than every one that exists.

Hooks and filters fired · 40

40 hooks fire while WP_Query::get_posts() runs, in this order:

1. 1
   do_action( pre_get_posts )actionline 1906 (+16 into the body)

   Fires after the query variable object is created, but before the actual query is run.

2. 2
   apply_filters( wp_allow_query_attachment_by_filename )filterline 1921 (+31 into the body)

   Filters whether an attachment query should include filenames or not.

3. 3
   apply_filters( posts_search )filterline 2287 (+397 into the body)

   Filters the search SQL that is used in the WHERE clause of WP_Query.

4. 4
   apply_filters( posts_search_orderby )filterline 2562 (+672 into the body)

   Filters the ORDER BY used when ordering search results.

5. 5
   apply_filters( posts_where )filterline 2784 (+894 into the body)

   Filters the WHERE clause of the query.

6. 6
   apply_filters( posts_join )filterline 2794 (+904 into the body)

   Filters the JOIN clause of the query.

7. 7
   apply_filters( comment_feed_join )filterline 2835 (+945 into the body)

   Filters the JOIN clause of the comments feed query before sending.

8. 8
   apply_filters( comment_feed_where )filterline 2845 (+955 into the body)

   Filters the WHERE clause of the comments feed query before sending.

9. 9
   apply_filters( comment_feed_groupby )filterline 2855 (+965 into the body)

   Filters the GROUP BY clause of the comments feed query before sending.

10. 10
    apply_filters( comment_feed_orderby )filterline 2865 (+975 into the body)

    Filters the ORDER BY clause of the comments feed query before sending.

11. 11
    apply_filters( comment_feed_limits )filterline 2875 (+985 into the body)

    Filters the LIMIT clause of the comments feed query before sending.

12. 12
    apply_filters( posts_where_paged )filterline 2935 (+1045 into the body)

    Filters the WHERE clause of the query.

13. 13
    apply_filters( posts_groupby )filterline 2945 (+1055 into the body)

    Filters the GROUP BY clause of the query.

14. 14
    apply_filters( posts_join_paged )filterline 2957 (+1067 into the body)

    Filters the JOIN clause of the query.

15. 15
    apply_filters( posts_orderby )filterline 2967 (+1077 into the body)

    Filters the ORDER BY clause of the query.

16. 16
    apply_filters( posts_distinct )filterline 2977 (+1087 into the body)

    Filters the DISTINCT clause of the query.

17. 17
    apply_filters( post_limits )filterline 2987 (+1097 into the body)

    Filters the LIMIT clause of the query.

18. 18
    apply_filters( posts_fields )filterline 2997 (+1107 into the body)

    Filters the SELECT clause of the query.

19. 19
    apply_filters( posts_clauses )filterline 3020 (+1130 into the body)

    Filters all query clauses at once, for convenience.

20. 20
    do_action( posts_selection )actionline 3040 (+1150 into the body)

    Fires to announce the query's current selection parameters.

21. 21
    apply_filters( posts_where_request )filterline 3057 (+1167 into the body)

    Filters the WHERE clause of the query.

22. 22
    apply_filters( posts_groupby_request )filterline 3069 (+1179 into the body)

    Filters the GROUP BY clause of the query.

23. 23
    apply_filters( posts_join_request )filterline 3081 (+1191 into the body)

    Filters the JOIN clause of the query.

24. 24
    apply_filters( posts_orderby_request )filterline 3093 (+1203 into the body)

    Filters the ORDER BY clause of the query.

25. 25
    apply_filters( posts_distinct_request )filterline 3105 (+1215 into the body)

    Filters the DISTINCT clause of the query.

26. 26
    apply_filters( posts_fields_request )filterline 3117 (+1227 into the body)

    Filters the SELECT clause of the query.

27. 27
    apply_filters( post_limits_request )filterline 3129 (+1239 into the body)

    Filters the LIMIT clause of the query.

28. 28
    apply_filters( posts_clauses_request )filterline 3154 (+1264 into the body)

    Filters all query clauses at once, for convenience.

29. 29
    apply_filters( posts_request )filterline 3207 (+1317 into the body)

    Filters the completed SQL query before sending.

30. 30
    apply_filters( posts_pre_query )filterline 3226 (+1336 into the body)

    Filters the posts array before the query takes place.

31. 31
    apply_filters( split_the_query )filterline 3404 (+1514 into the body)

    Filters whether to split the query.

32. 32
    apply_filters( posts_request_ids )filterline 3426 (+1536 into the body)

    Filters the Post IDs SQL request before sending.

33. 33
    apply_filters( posts_results )filterline 3472 (+1582 into the body)

    Filters the raw post results array, prior to status checks.

34. 34
    apply_filters( comment_feed_join )filterline 3477 (+1587 into the body)

    Filters the JOIN clause of the comments feed query before sending.

35. 35
    apply_filters( comment_feed_where )filterline 3480 (+1590 into the body)

    Filters the WHERE clause of the comments feed query before sending.

36. 36
    apply_filters( comment_feed_groupby )filterline 3483 (+1593 into the body)

    Filters the GROUP BY clause of the comments feed query before sending.

37. 37
    apply_filters( comment_feed_orderby )filterline 3487 (+1597 into the body)

    Filters the ORDER BY clause of the comments feed query before sending.

38. 38
    apply_filters( comment_feed_limits )filterline 3491 (+1601 into the body)

    Filters the LIMIT clause of the comments feed query before sending.

39. 39
    apply_filters( the_preview )filterline 3566 (+1676 into the body)

    Filters the single post for preview mode.

40. 40
    apply_filters( the_posts )filterline 3629 (+1739 into the body)

    Filters the array of retrieved posts after they've been fetched and internally processed.

Uses · 58

• do_action_ref_array()Calls the callback functions that have been added to an action hook, specifying arguments in an array.
• apply_filters()Calls the callback functions that have been added to a filter hook.
• remove_all_filters()Removes all of the callback functions from a filter hook.
• _deprecated_argument()Marks a function argument as deprecated and inform when it has been used.
• __()Retrieves the translation of $text.
• get_option()Retrieves an option value based on an option name.
• absint()Converts a value to non-negative integer.
• get_post_type_object()Retrieves a post type object by name.
• sanitize_title_for_query()Sanitizes a title with the 'query' context.
• get_page_by_path()Retrieves a page given its path.
• wp_basename()i18n-friendly version of basename().
• get_post()Retrieves post data given a post ID or post object.

Used by · 1

• WP_Query::query()Sets up the WordPress query by parsing query string.

Source code

View on Trac ↗View on GitHub ↗

1890	public function get_posts() {1891		global $wpdb;1892 1893		$this->parse_query();1894 1895		/**1896		 * Fires after the query variable object is created, but before the actual query is run.1897		 *1898		 * Note: If using conditional tags, use the method versions within the passed instance1899		 * (e.g. `$query->is_main_query()` instead of `is_main_query()`). This is because the functions1900		 * like `is_main_query()` test against the global `$wp_query` instance, not the passed one.1901		 *1902		 * @since 2.0.01903		 *1904		 * @param WP_Query $query The WP_Query instance (passed by reference).1905		 */1906		do_action_ref_array( 'pre_get_posts', array( &$this ) );1907 1908		// Locally scoped reference for easy of use.1909		$query_vars = &$this->query_vars;1910 1911		// Fill again in case 'pre_get_posts' unset some vars.1912		$query_vars = $this->fill_query_vars( $query_vars );1913 1914		/**1915		 * Filters whether an attachment query should include filenames or not.1916		 *1917		 * @since 6.0.31918		 *1919		 * @param bool $allow_query_attachment_by_filename Whether or not to include filenames.1920		 */1921		$this->allow_query_attachment_by_filename = apply_filters( 'wp_allow_query_attachment_by_filename', false );1922		remove_all_filters( 'wp_allow_query_attachment_by_filename' );1923 1924		// Parse meta query.1925		$this->meta_query = new WP_Meta_Query();1926		$this->meta_query->parse_query_vars( $query_vars );1927 1928		// Set a flag if a 'pre_get_posts' hook changed the query vars.1929		$hash = md5( serialize( $this->query_vars ) );1930		if ( $hash !== $this->query_vars_hash ) {1931			$this->query_vars_changed = true;1932			$this->query_vars_hash    = $hash;1933		}1934		unset( $hash );1935 1936		// First let's clear some variables.1937		$distinct         = '';1938		$whichauthor      = '';1939		$whichmimetype    = '';1940		$where            = '';1941		$limits           = '';1942		$join             = '';1943		$search           = '';1944		$groupby          = '';1945		$post_status_join = false;1946		$page             = 1;1947 1948		if ( isset( $query_vars['caller_get_posts'] ) ) {1949			_deprecated_argument(1950				'WP_Query',1951				'3.1.0',1952				sprintf(1953					/* translators: 1: caller_get_posts, 2: ignore_sticky_posts */1954					__( '%1$s is deprecated. Use %2$s instead.' ),1955					'<code>caller_get_posts</code>',1956					'<code>ignore_sticky_posts</code>'1957				)1958			);1959 1960			if ( ! isset( $query_vars['ignore_sticky_posts'] ) ) {1961				$query_vars['ignore_sticky_posts'] = $query_vars['caller_get_posts'];1962			}1963		}1964 1965		if ( ! isset( $query_vars['ignore_sticky_posts'] ) ) {1966			$query_vars['ignore_sticky_posts'] = false;1967		}1968 1969		if ( ! isset( $query_vars['suppress_filters'] ) ) {

Changelog

Introduced in 1.5.0. Unchanged from 6.7.7 through 7.1.0.

1. 6.7.7
2. 6.8.8
3. 6.9.7
4. 7.0.4
5. 7.1.0

Signature, return type and hooks compared across 5 parsed releases.

About this page

Parsed data

Generated from the wordpress-develop 7.0.4 tag, from src/wp-includes/class-wp-query.php, and regenerated for each WordPress release so it tracks the code rather than a snapshot of it.

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