Plugin to restrict non-admin user to existing tags

4 comments

1. If you do not already have your tags created, you can use the “Bulk Add Tags” plugin – http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/bulk-add-tags/

   Then to restrict all users except admins from adding new tags via the “New Post” screen, add this code to your theme’s functions.php file:

   //Hide Post Page Options from all except Administrator
   if (!current_user_can('administrator')){
   function hide_post_page_options() {
   global $post;
   $hide_post_options = "<style type="text/css"> .jaxtag { display: none; }</style>";
   print($hide_post_options);
   }
   add_action( 'admin_head', 'hide_post_page_options'  );
   }
   

   This will simply hide the box for entering new tags from all users except administrators.

   I actually use this method to hide many areas of the “New Post” page. Simply find and add the element’s div class or id before { display: none; } and separated by commas. If you’re unfamiliar, you can use the Firebug plugin with Firefox, or simply right-click and select “Inspect Element” in Chrome.

   I prefer this method over many plugins because it does not remove functionality completely from WordPress, the functionality is simply hidden from users who do not need it.

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2. None of these solutions did exactly what I needed to allow non-admin users to use existing tags on a post, but not create new tags. So I created the following solution, which works great – although it does not provide any feedback to the user that their tags weren’t added (it really just undoes the tag creation immediately):

   add_action('create_term','undo_create_term',10, 3);
   
   function undo_create_term ($term_id, $tt_id, $taxonomy) {
       if ( !current_user_can( 'administrator' ) )  {
           if($taxonomy == 'post_tag') {
           wp_delete_term($term_id,$taxonomy);
           }
       }
   }
   

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3. Your question has really intrigued me. I can see a huge use for this situation, so I will do whatever I can to help you find the answer.

   Here is another solution, not exactly what you mentioned in your comment on the other answer, but it does make it a little easier for users to find the tags they want, as the tags are listed alphabetically.

   Manage Tags Capability plugin – http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/manage-tags-capability/

   Also, should note: This method allows users to select from ALL available tags. I just realized, the other method only allows users to select from the “most used” tags.

   WordPress already does an auto-predict when typing tags, so essentially, we need to find a way to allow users to type the tag they want, but not add a new one if they cannot find it.

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4. This is how I solve same problem (in functions.php of your theme):

   /* Removing Tags for users */
   if (is_admin()) :
   function my_remove_meta_boxes() {
    if(!current_user_can('publish_posts')) { 
      remove_meta_box('tagsdiv-post_tag', 'post', 'normal');
    }
   }
   add_action( 'admin_menu', 'my_remove_meta_boxes' );
   endif;
   

   First we check if it’s admin area, then we check if user can publish posts (usually it’s admins and editors), than we do our magic with remove_meta_box.

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