BBA Custom Types

BBA Custom Types stores your definitions in WordPress options and registers them using core WordPress APIs. Generated internal keys such as bbact_project identify content types in the database and remain stable across edits. Public URLs can be adjusted independently with the Frontend URL base setting.

Custom fields are saved directly to native WordPress postmeta with exact-row ownership and bounded tombstones to protect historical data integrity.

The plugin is dependency-free at runtime, does not send data to external services, and does not require an account.

Getting Started

Create a custom post type

1. 01Go to BBA Custom Types and select New Custom Post Type .
2. 02Enter a singular name, for example Project . The plugin fills related labels for you; you can adjust any of them before saving.
3. 03Review the URL slug . This is used to generate the internal key on the first save.
4. 04Optionally set a different Frontend URL base . For example, leave the key based on project but use projects for public URLs.
5. 05Configure public visibility, archive support, REST API support, menu position, and supported post features.
6. 06Save the custom post type, then use its new menu in WordPress admin to add content.

Create a taxonomy

1. 07Select New taxonomy from the BBA Custom Types dashboard.
2. 08Enter a singular name, for example Project Type .
3. 09Choose whether it is hierarchical. Hierarchical taxonomies behave like categories; non-hierarchical ones behave like tags.
4. 10Select the custom post types that should use this taxonomy.
5. 11Save the taxonomy. The new taxonomy appears with the selected post types immediately.

Create a custom field group

1. 12In WordPress admin, navigate to BBA Custom Types > Field Groups (or the Field Groups submenu).
2. 13Click the New Field Group button (or Create Field Group if no groups exist yet) in the toolbar to open the full-screen modal field group editor.
3. 14Enter a group title and select the target post types (custom post types, Posts, or Pages).
4. 15Configure group position context (Normal, Side, Advanced), priority, order, and optional instructions.
5. 16In the Fields section, click + Add Field to add dynamic field rows.
6. 17For each field, configure label, field key, field type (from 10 available types), placeholder, default value, required toggle, and REST API exposure. Choice-based fields (Select, Radio, Checkbox Group) include a Choices list.
7. 18Click Save Field Group in the modal footer. The modal remains open with in-flight state protections, syncing the assigned group ID and revision token without full page reload.
8. 19Fields render immediately in post edit screens for assigned post types.
9. 20For comprehensive documentation, see the Custom Fields User Guide .

Display custom fields in PHP and Gutenberg

After creating a Field Group and adding values to a post, you can display those values in a theme or plugin using the global PHP helper, or in post content using the [bcf] shortcode.

PHP template example (field key: client_name):

`php

$client = bcf_get( ‘client_name’ ); if ( null !== $client ) { echo esc_html( (string) $client ); }

$website = bcf_get( ‘project_website’, 123 ); if ( $website ) { echo ‘ Visit website ‘; } `

bcf_get( 'field_name', $post_id ) returns raw typed PHP data, not HTML. The optional post ID defaults to the current post context. Use WordPress escaping appropriate to your output context (for example `esc_html()` for text or `esc_url()` for links).

Gutenberg Shortcode block example:

1. 21In BBA Custom Types > Field Groups, edit the field you want to display.
2. 22Enable Allow in Shortcodes for that field and save the group. This setting is off by default.
3. 23Edit a published post or page, insert the native Shortcode block, and paste one of these: text [bcf field="client_name"] [bcf field="client_name" post_id="123"] [bcf field="services_offered" separator=", "]

The shortcode renders escaped plain text. It only displays opted-in fields on publicly viewable, non-password-protected posts; invalid IDs and inaccessible content produce no output. Fields with multiple choices are joined using the optional separator . Unlike the shortcode, the PHP helper returns raw typed data for developers to handle with their own access and escaping logic.

For detailed examples, supported field return types, default behavior, and security restrictions, see the Custom Fields User Guide .

Change a public URL base safely

Once a post type has been saved and contains posts, its internal database key is permanently locked and protected against alteration. To change the public URL path without affecting existing posts or the internal key, edit the Frontend URL base setting. Do not attempt to re-key existing content types.

After changing a rewrite base, go to Settings > Permalinks and select Save Changes once to refresh WordPress rewrite rules.