March 07, 2024

Dashboard quick links widget Plugin

A lightweight plugin to allows admins to create a admin dashboard widget with frequently accessed links for quick access.

A lightweight plugin to allows admins to create an admin dashboard widget with frequently accessed links for quick access.

I originally developed this plugin after spending hours creating client/user documentation for every WordPress project. Instead of writing step-by-step navigation documentation, I used this plugin to organise all necessary links on the single widget for non-technical users. As a developer, I also use this script myself to organise frequently accessed links for quick access.

Links format

Each link should be entered in a separate line in the following format
(the fourth parameter, i.e. font awesome icon class is optional)

Link text|Button link|Button text|font-awesome icon class

Examples

Post blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php|Post blog Post blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php|Post blog|fa fa-cog Post blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php newtab|Post blog|fa fa-cog`

If you have any feedback or queries please contact me at hemthapa.com

Installation

Install the plugin from within the Dashboard or upload the directory dashboard-quick-link-widget and all of its contents to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory of your website
Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress
Configure the widget options and links on Settings->Dashboard links widget.
Preview and confirm the dashboard widget.
That’s all, Now users can simply click on the button in the dashboard widget to access the page.

Screenshots

Dashboard widget preview
plugin settings dialog

FAQ

How to format the list of the links?

You need to list each link in a separate line in the following format
Link text|Button link|Button text|font-awesome icon class

(fourth parameter, i.e. Font Awesome icon class is optional)

Example:

Post new blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php|Create new post|fa fa-cog

How to open links in new tab?

By default, all links open in the same tab, if you want to open all the links on the widget in a new tab tick the ‘Open all links in a new tab’ box.

However, if you want to open only selected links in a new tab, add the keyword ‘newtab’ after the link.

Example:

Post new blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php newtab|Post new blog

How to add a divider or additional info in between the links?

If you need to add any text, divider or any plain or HTML content in between the links, please add the new line with ‘#’ in the front. Any new lines starting with # are rendered as it is in the widget. You can add any HTML tags in this line.

Example:
#<strong> Section title </strong>
Post new blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php|Post new blog
#<hr/>
Post new blog|/wp-admin/post-new.php|Post new blog

Why Font Awesome icons is not working properly?

Please make sure correct the Font Awesome version is selected.

Changelog

1.6.0

4 Sep 2023

Support for custom HTML block is added to add text, space or whatever you like in between the links to categorise and manage the links block
Support for multiple version of Font Awesome icon is added
Individual links can now be set to open in a new tab