9 Super Useful WordPress Multisite Plugins For Network Managers

When you first enable WordPress Multisite you may be surprised to find that the network management tools are fairly minimal. The purpose is to provide the basics and let networks add more management capabilities depending on your site’s needs.

If you’re a Multisite super admin, you’re sure to find a few new tools for your toolbox among these plugins. All of them have been newly added to the WordPress repository this month.

Dashboard Switcher

The Dashboard Switcher plugin adds a dropdown list of the sites owned within a network. This will enable you to quickly switch between them. Grab this plugin to save yourself a few clicks when managing sites in your network.

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Restrict Password Changes Multisite

This is a plugin for WordPress Multisite networks that restricts user password changes and/or resets to super admin users only. It comes in handy when user creation and authentication are handled from an external application, in which case user passwords should only be changed on one system.

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Google News Sitemap With Multisite Support

This plugin dynamically generates a feed that complies with the Google News Sitemap protocol. Install the plugin and the sitemap will be instantly available. It’s also compatible with commonly used caching plugins such as Super Cache, W3 Total Cache and Quick Cache.

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Superadmin plugin

The Superadmin plugin attempts to protect the superadmin (userid 1) against attempts to edit or delete this user. This one still needs some testing, so don’t install it as your only protection.

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Block Spam by Math Reloaded

Block by Math Reloaded is a new plugin that adds a simple math question to spam-vulnerable areas on your site. It protects registration, login and comment forms and is compatible with WordPress single user, Multisite and BuddyPress. If your site is letting a lot of splogs through, give this plugin a try.

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Network Blog Manager

This is one plugin I’d recommend as an addition to any WordPress Multisite network as it helps you easily find blogs on your network with its internal search engine. It also offers you an overview of posts, pages, and comments for each site as well as quick access to the site admin.

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Drupal to WP XML-RPC

This plugin adds some Multisite-specific functions to the WordPress XML-RPC interface. If you’re using the Drupal to WP module to bring your content into WordPress, this plugin is required to complete the process.

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Networks for WordPress

This plugin adds a networks panel for network admins to create and manage multiple networks from one WordPress installation. Each Network can exist on its own domain, and have its own set of blogs / sites, its own set of plugins, themes, administrators, permissions, and policies, but all will share a database of user accounts. Sites can be moved among networks, but for now this will require some manual file changes.

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Admin Bar Minimiser

This plugin gives you an easy way to minimize the new WP 3.1 admin bar with one click. It keeps the admin bar active but less obtrusive, and the best part is that it’s fully Multisite compatible.

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