wp_insert_attachment( string|array $args, string|false $file = false, int $parent_post_id = 0, bool $wp_error = false, bool $fire_after_hooks = true ): int|WP_Error
- Since
- 2.0.0, 4.7.0, 5.6.0
- Source
wp-includes/post.php:6778
Description
If you set the 'ID' in the $args parameter, it will mean that you are updating and attempt to update the attachment. You can also set the attachment name or title by setting the key 'post_name' or 'post_title'.
You can set the dates for the attachment manually by setting the 'post_date' and 'post_date_gmt' keys' values.
By default, the comments will use the default settings for whether the comments are allowed. You can close them manually or keep them open by setting the value for the 'comment_status' key.
Compatibility
- WordPress
- since 5.6.0
- PHP
- 7.4–8.6-dev
- 6.7.7
- 6.8.8
- 6.9.7
- 7.0.4
- 7.1.0
Present in every tracked release (6.7.7 to 7.1.0), and compiles on PHP 7.4 through 8.6-dev.
Parameters
$argsstring|array- Arguments for inserting an attachment.
$filestring|falseoptional- Filename. Default false.Default:
false $parent_post_idintoptional- Parent post ID or 0 for no parent. Default 0.Default:
0 $wp_errorbooloptional- Whether to return a WP_Error on failure. Default false.Default:
false $fire_after_hooksbooloptional- Whether to fire the after insert hooks. Default true.Default:
true
Return value
int|WP_Error- The attachment ID on success. The value 0 or WP_Error on failure.
Performance profile
How much work a call to wp_insert_attachment() 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
- Scaling
- Constant
- Instructions
- 23–25
- Plugin surface
- None
- Called by
- 14
Reaches the database via get_post().
No loop in the body: the same number of instructions runs whatever you pass in.
Executed per call on PHP 8.5, depending on the branch taken. The body compiles to 25.
Nothing here hands control to plugin code.
14 places in core call this, so the cost is paid more often than your own code shows.
What it touches
- querycontent query
get_post()one call below wp_insert_attachment() - hookthird-party callbacks
apply_filters()one call below wp_insert_attachment() - optionoption read or write
get_option()one call below wp_insert_attachment()
Further down the call graph this can also reach cache, serialize and transient. Those are the worst case, several calls deep and usually down an error path, not what a normal call pays.
What one call costs · 1 distinct outcome
One number would be a lie: the work depends on which branch runs. These are every distinct cost wp_insert_attachment() can have, taken from its control-flow graph on PHP 8.5.
| When | Instructions | Calls it makes |
|---|---|---|
| always | 23–25 | wp_parse_args(), wp_insert_post() |
Across PHP versions
Compiles the same on PHP 7.4, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 8.5 and 8.6-dev: 25 instructions, 23–25 executed per call, 1 branch. The work does not change between versions.
An instruction is not a fixed amount of time, so a matching count is not necessarily the same speed; what it rules out is a difference in the work itself.
Uses · 2
- wp_parse_args()Merges user defined arguments into defaults array.
- wp_insert_post()Inserts or updates a post in the database.
Used by · 14
- Custom_Background::handle_upload()Handles an Image upload for the background image.
- Custom_Image_Header::insert_attachment()Inserts an attachment and its metadata.
- Custom_Image_Header::step_2_manage_upload()Uploads the file to be cropped in the second step.
- File_Upload_Upgrader::__construct()Construct the upgrader for a form.
- WP_REST_Attachments_Controller::edit_media_item()Applies edits to a media item and creates a new attachment record.
- WP_REST_Attachments_Controller::insert_attachment()Inserts the attachment post in the database. Does not update the attachment meta.
- WP_Site_Icon::insert_attachment()Inserts an attachment.
- media_handle_sideload()Handles a side-loaded file in the same way as an uploaded file is handled by media_handle_upload().
- media_handle_upload()Saves a file submitted from a POST request and create an attachment post for it.
- wp_ajax_crop_image()Handles cropping an image via AJAX.
- wp_generate_attachment_metadata()Generates attachment meta data and create image sub-sizes for images.
- wp_import_handle_upload()Handles importer uploading and adds attachment.
Show all 14
- wp_update_post()Updates a post with new post data.
- wp_xmlrpc_server::mw_newMediaObject()Uploads a file, following your settings.
Source code
function wp_insert_attachment( $args, $file = false, $parent_post_id = 0, $wp_error = false, $fire_after_hooks = true ) { $defaults = array( 'file' => $file, 'post_parent' => 0, ); $data = wp_parse_args( $args, $defaults ); if ( ! empty( $parent_post_id ) ) { $data['post_parent'] = $parent_post_id; } $data['post_type'] = 'attachment'; return wp_insert_post( $data, $wp_error, $fire_after_hooks );}Changelog
Introduced in 2.0.0. Unchanged from 6.7.7 through 7.1.0.
Signature, return type and hooks compared across 5 parsed releases.
$fire_after_hooks parameter.from the docblock$wp_error parameter to allow a WP_Error to be returned on failure.from the docblockAbout this page
- Parsed data
- Generated from the wordpress-develop 7.1.0 tag, from
src/wp-includes/post.php, and regenerated for each WordPress release so it tracks the code rather than a snapshot of it. - Corrections
- Something wrong on this page? Report it and it gets fixed in the next regeneration.