WPKernelStart with one config file

What is WPKernel? ​

Building with WPKernel feels less like coding by hand and more like running a precision factory, you design the entire product on a single blueprint (wpk.config.ts). The factory floor (the CLI) then produces every component: PHP, JavaScript, UI, security, to exact specifications through a strict assembly line.

And if that isn't enough and you need something more customised, just build an extension.

This is WPKernel: a meta-framework that brings determinism and predictability to WordPress development, transforming an often-chaotic process into a streamlined and reliable one.

Solving WordPress Developer Pain Points ​

WordPress's flexibility is its strength, but with it comes complexity and maintenance headaches. WPKernel directly addresses these critical pain points:

• No More Spaghetti Code or Plugin Bloat: It enforces a clear separation of concerns. Your wpk.config.ts defines your application's intent, and the CLI generates clean, structured code. This eliminates the need for dozens of conflicting plugins and reduces the "spaghetti PHP" often found in custom solutions.
• Robust Security and Reliability: By generating server-side permission checks and client-side utilities from a single source of truth, it drastically reduces security vulnerabilities. Updates become less fragile, as the generated code adheres to consistent standards, minimizing unexpected breaks.
• Streamlined Tooling and Workflow: It simplifies dependency management, custom routing, and meta-field definitions. It provides a consistent development experience, moving away from global state reliance and making your logic easier to test and understand.
• Predictable Client Interactions: With a deterministic generation process, what you define is what you get. This reduces layout breaks from client "tweaks" and helps manage expectations by providing a clear, consistent foundation for your application.

Actions-First: The Guardrail for Reliability ​

Our core architectural discipline is the Actions-First Philosophy. UI components never modify data directly. Instead, they invoke an Action, which acts as a central orchestrator for all write operations. This ensures:

• Consistent Side Effects: Every data modification follows a predictable lifecycle, including cache invalidation, event emission, and background job queuing.
• Deterministic Logic: By centralizing side effects, you create a robust system where critical operations are never forgotten or inconsistently applied.
• Enhanced Testability: Actions become isolated units of business logic, making them easier to test independently of the UI.

This "Actions-First" approach is a non-negotiable core of WPKernel, providing the guardrails necessary for building truly reliable and maintainable WordPress applications.

The three-minute path ​

1. Create a plugin workspace ​

# In the wp-content/plugins folder, or develop in isolation using @wordpress/* peer dependencies
npm create @wpkernel/wpk my-plugin
cd my-plugin

2. Open wpk.config.ts ​

Declare your first resource.

import type { WPKernelConfigV1 } from '@wpkernel/cli/config';

const config: WPKernelConfigV1 = {
	version: 1,
	namespace: 'MyOrg\\Demo',

	resources: {
		myPost: {
			name: 'myPost', // resource name
			routes: {
				list: {
					path: '/wpk/v1/post',
					method: 'GET',
					capability: 'post.list', // or anything you want to call it
				},
				get: {
					path: '/wpk/v1/post/:id',
					method: 'GET',
					capability: 'post.get',
				},
				create: {
					path: '/wpk/v1/post',
					method: 'POST',
					capability: 'post.create',
				},
			},
			// map each key to a wp cap
			capabilities: {
				'post.list': 'read',
				'post.get': 'read',
				'post.create': 'edit_posts',
			},

			ui: {
				admin: {
					view: 'dataviews',
					dataviews: { search: true },
				},
			},
		},
	},

	adapters: {},
};

export default config;

3. Run generate, then apply ​

wpk generate   # build PHP controllers, JS hooks, types, and UI shims
wpk apply      # transactional write (commit / rollback)

4 · Activate in WordPress ​

Enable your plugin and open its admin screen (it’s already capability-gated.)

Next steps ​

• Edit the config → /guide/config
• Understand the workflow → /guide
• CLI reference → /packages/cli

Philosophy ​

WPKernel follows a config-first principle:

• Describe intent once. The CLI derives artefacts deterministically.
• Generate, don’t scaffold. Each run syncs code, types, and enforcement from your config.
• Stay reversible. Every apply is transactional, safe to rerun, easy to roll back.