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Classic Monks v2.0

July 22, 2026

13 new features, 8 improvements, 6 bug fixes. Classic Monks v2.0 is the biggest release yet for this WordPress all-in-one admin plugin.

v2.0 overhauls the WordPress admin experience. The new Setup Wizard guides you through feature discovery and preset application. Admin Columns Manager, Menu Manager, Role Manager, and the OTP login system all ship for the first time. The dashboard, watermarks, and plugin updates also got significant improvements.

Classic Monks replaces 20 to 30 separate WordPress plugins with one lightweight toolkit. If you manage multiple WordPress sites, this release cuts configuration time and reduces plugin dependency further.

Tested up to

WordPress Version: 7.0.2
WooCommerce Version: 10.9.4
Bricks Builder Version: 2.3.9

What’s New in v2.0

Admin Power Tools

This release gives you granular control over every part of the WordPress admin. Columns, menus, roles, and toolbar items are all customizable now. These features replace several popular standalone WordPress admin customization plugins.

Setup Wizard: Guided setup helps you find features and apply Performance Focus, Hardened Security, AI Suite, or Minimalist Admin presets in a few steps. Reduces initial configuration time for new installations.
Admin Columns Manager: Customize WordPress admin list tables with custom fields (including ACPT support), taxonomy columns, global list search, frozen columns with horizontal scrolling, and inline featured-image editing.
Admin Menu & Toolbar Manager: Customize WordPress admin navigation with SVG and custom icon overrides, menu spacers, inline menu-title editing, visibility controls by role or user, and custom toolbar item placement.
Role Manager & Access Control: Create custom WordPress roles, manage granular capabilities, and limit specific roles to designated posts or pages.
Alphabetical Menu Sorting: Sort the main WordPress admin menu alphabetically with one toggle.
Wider Admin Sidebar: Set a wider WordPress admin navigation sidebar for longer menu labels.

Login, Security, and Email

Passwordless authentication and full email personalization, plus a safety net for database resets.

OTP Login & Registration: Offer passwordless login, registration, and password resets using one-time passcodes sent by email, SMS, WhatsApp, or Firebase. Replaces the need for separate WordPress two-factor authentication plugins.
Customizable System Emails: Personalize WordPress notification emails, including password resets, new-user, comment, and two-factor emails, with dynamic merge tags.
Database Reset Lockout Protection: Preserves the administrator password hash and active session during a database reset to prevent accidental lockouts.

Media and Taxonomy

Watermark automation, taxonomy reordering, and admin list filtering.

Image Watermark Manager: Add image or text watermarks automatically or in bulk, with AVIF support, live progress, operation logs, and backup and restore controls.
Taxonomy Term Reordering: Reorder hierarchical taxonomy terms with drag-and-drop, search, and bulk ordering controls.
Admin List Taxonomy Filters: Add configurable taxonomy dropdown filters to selected WordPress admin post lists.
Auto-Resize Filename Exclusions: Define filename prefixes and suffixes for images that should skip automatic resizing.

Navigation and Polish

Small quality-of-life touches that add up.

Deep-Linked Tab Navigation: Bookmark or share a direct link to any Classic Monks settings tab or subtab.
Admin Dashboard: Redesigned the plugin dashboard with a sticky tabbed header, consistent configuration cards, and clearer tables across the plugin.

Full Changelog

Setup Wizard: Guided setup now helps you find features and apply Performance Focus, Hardened Security, AI Suite, or Minimalist Admin presets in a few steps.Added

Admin Columns Manager: Customize WordPress admin list tables with custom fields (including ACPT support), taxonomy columns, global list search, frozen columns with horizontal scrolling, and inline featured-image editing.Added

Admin Menu & Toolbar Manager: Customize admin navigation with SVG and custom icon overrides, menu spacers, inline menu-title editing, visibility controls by role or user, and custom toolbar item placement.Added

Image Watermark Manager: Add image or text watermarks automatically or in bulk, with AVIF support, live progress, operation logs, and backup and restore controls.Added

OTP Login & Registration: Offer passwordless login, registration, and password resets using one-time passcodes sent by email, SMS, WhatsApp, or Firebase.Added

Role Manager & Access Control: Create custom roles, manage granular capabilities, and limit specific roles to designated posts or pages.Added

Customizable System Emails: Personalize WordPress notification emails, including password resets, new-user, comment, and two-factor emails, with dynamic merge tags.Added

Taxonomy Term Reordering: Reorder hierarchical taxonomy terms with drag-and-drop, search, and bulk ordering controls.Added

Admin List Taxonomy Filters: Add configurable taxonomy dropdown filters to selected WordPress admin post lists.Added

Deep-Linked Tab Navigation: Bookmark or share a direct link to any Classic Monks settings tab or subtab.Added

Alphabetical Menu Sorting: Sort the main WordPress admin menu alphabetically with one toggle.Added

Wider Admin Sidebar: Set a wider WordPress admin navigation sidebar for longer menu labels.Added

Auto-Resize Filename Exclusions: Define filename prefixes and suffixes for images that should skip automatic resizing.Added

Admin Dashboard: Redesigned the plugin dashboard with a sticky tabbed header, consistent configuration cards, and clearer tables across the plugin.Improved

Folder Manager Uploads: Media-folder counts stay in sync after uploads and deletions, upload progress is clearer, and folder controls stay out of attachment-detail modals.Improved

Image Watermarks: Watermark previews, batch progress, backup statistics, restore flows, and in-product feedback are clearer and more reliable.Improved

Post Type Reordering: Drag-and-drop ordering now supports attachment post types and provides clearer interaction feedback.Improved

Plugin Updates: Trigger a manual update check directly from the plugin entry in the WordPress admin.Improved

Media and Email Settings: Media Manager and Email settings use the shared sticky header save action for a more consistent workflow.Improved

Admin Bar Navigation: License and support shortcuts are positioned for faster access.Improved

AI Alt Text Generator: Removed the setup notice for a cleaner generation workflow.Improved

Database Reset Lockout Protection: Preserves the administrator password hash and active session during a database reset to prevent accidental lockouts.Fixed

Two-Factor Authentication: Prevents duplicate verification submissions and skips challenges for non-interactive background requests.Fixed

White Label Link Visibility: Forum, support, and Facebook links now honor their White Label visibility settings.Fixed

Admin Columns: Column discovery no longer breaks when ordering parameters collide with WordPress core behavior.Fixed

Watermark Batch Processing: Batch watermark operations handle failures more reliably and keep their progress feedback in sync.Fixed

Settings Feedback: Save and reset notifications now identify the affected feature more clearly.Fixed

Special Thanks

This release got better because people shared practical feature requests:

Alexandre Dumas de Rauly: Taxonomy Ordering and Filtering in Admin Lists.
Emmanuel SOYER: Role-Based Admin Menu Management.
Aleksa Piljevic: Admin Columns Manager, Role-Based Admin Menu, and Top Bar Menu.
Schrander: Enhanced Menu Customization Options for Classic Monks.
RIČARD JUNGIĆ: Image Watermark, Taxonomy Term Reordering, Auto-Resize Filename Exclusions, and Wider Admin Sidebar.