Upload the plugin to /wp-content/plugins/automatic-linker/, activate via the Plugins menu, then go to Automatic Linker → Dashboard and click Rebuild index. The first index of an existing site takes a few seconds per 1,000 posts and runs in the background.
WordPress 6.0 → 6.7+ on PHP 7.4 → 8.3. CI tests run a 3×3 matrix on every push (PHP 7.4/8.0/8.2 × WP 6.0/6.4/6.7).
Negligibly. In our tests the auto-link rule pass adds about 0.09ms to the_content on a typical post. Suggestions are cached as transients keyed on post_id + post_modified_gmt with a 6-hour TTL.
Not in the default mode. Automatic Linker computes link relevance entirely on your server using TF-IDF and cosine similarity. The optional BYOK LLM mode sends content to OpenAI or Anthropic only if you explicitly enable it and provide your own API key.
The key is encrypted at rest with sodium_crypto_secretbox, keyed off wp_salt('auth'). It is never returned by the REST API and the logger has scrubbing rules to keep key fragments out of any output.
Yes — it's off by default. Without a key configured, all suggestions come from the local TF-IDF engine.
Automatic Linker never touches existing <a> tags. Auto-linking rules skip any content already inside an anchor, code block, heading, or shortcode by swapping protected regions out as placeholders before applying the substitution.
Yes — under Automatic Linker → Settings, choose which post types are indexed and which are eligible suggestion targets. Filter automatic_linker_suggestion_post_types for code-driven control.
Yes. Rules apply at the_content priority 99 — after do_blocks() and after Elementor / Beaver Builder render their output. The editor sidebar is Gutenberg/Classic Editor; page-builder canvases use the same REST endpoints under the hood.
Through a self-hosted LicensorPro instance — no third-party SaaS. Define AUTOMATIC_LINKER_LICENSORPRO_API_URL in wp-config.php, then activate your key at Settings → Automatic Linker License. Auto-updates flow through the same channel.
After a short grace period the Pro features switch off and Automatic Linker reverts to the free tier — your index, rules, and reports are never deleted. Updates and support also stop. Renew any time to restore Pro, updates, and support. The free tier always remains free.
Each bulk change is logged to wp_automatic_linker_url_changes with a batch ID. Visit Automatic Linker → URL Changer, find the batch in the history list, and click Rollback.