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How the TrueCommander navigator works

The navigator is the command bar at the center of TrueCommander. Learn to open it, the two typing modes, and how commands, macros, and variables fit together.

4 min read Core concept

Almost everything in TrueCommander happens through the navigator: a search-and-run bar that opens over the WordPress admin. You type what you want, and it either takes you somewhere or runs the action for you. This page explains how it behaves so the rest of the docs make sense.

Opening the navigator

Press ++W anywhere in wp-admin. The bar opens with the cursor ready, so you can start typing immediately. Press Esc to close it. The shortcut is shown for your operating system automatically.

Easy mode and advanced mode

The navigator has two ways to type a command, and new installs start in easy mode.

  • Easy mode — type the command by name, with no prefix. For example, create backup.
  • Advanced mode — type the same command with a tp prefix, for example tp create backup. AI commands use a tp ai prefix, like tp ai summarize.

Both run the same commands. Advanced mode is for people who like a consistent, typeable syntax; easy mode is friendlier for everyone else. You can switch modes anytime in the plugin settings. Throughout these docs, command examples that show a tp prefix are in advanced mode; drop the prefix if you are in easy mode.

Searching versus running

The navigator does two jobs at once. As you type, it searches everything it knows about: commands, your saved macros, plugin features, and admin pages. Pick a result to jump to it. When a result is a command, selecting it runs that command, sometimes after asking for a detail or two (a backup label, an email recipient).

This is also how you run a macro: type the macro's name and select it from the results. There is no separate command for running macros, you search for them like anything else.

Commands, macros, and variables

Three building blocks show up across the plugin. Knowing how they relate makes everything else click.

Commands Single actions you run from the navigator: back up the site, send a templated email, optimize images, lock down logins. The full set lives in the command reference.
Macros Several commands chained into one named flow, built in the Macro Builder. Run a macro by searching its name in the navigator.
Variables Reusable values you save once, like an API token or a piece of standard text, then reference from commands and macros instead of retyping them. See the Variables module.

Where module settings live

The navigator runs the actions, but each module has its own settings screen in the WordPress admin, under the TrueCommander menu. That is where you schedule commands (Scheduled Commands), set commands to run on startup (Startup Commands), design email templates (Email Builder), register external APIs, and so on. The navigator is the front door; the module screens are where you configure the details. The modules overview walks through each one.

Frequently asked questions

Next

Put it to work.

You know how the navigator behaves. Now explore what it can run.

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