ActivityPub Integrations

This skill provides guidance on integrating the ActivityPub plugin with other WordPress plugins.

Quick Reference

Integration Location

All integrations live in the integration/ directory.

File naming: class-{plugin-name}.php (following PHP conventions in AGENTS.md)

Namespace: Activitypub\Integration

How Integrations Load

Integrations are wired up in integration/load.php inside plugin_init(). Each one is guarded by a detection check and then calls its class's static init():

// integration/load.php
if ( \defined( 'JETPACK__VERSION' ) ) {
    Jetpack::init();
}

Existing Integrations

The real integrations shipped today (see integration/):

akismet, buddypress, classic-editor, enable-mastodon-apps, jetpack, litespeed-cache, multisite-language-switcher, nodeinfo, opengraph, podlove-podcast-publisher, seriously-simple-podcasting, surge, webfinger, wpml, yoast-seo.

A few examples:

• Akismet — runs inbound comments/interactions through Akismet spam checks.
• OpenGraph — adds fediverse:creator and related metadata via the OpenGraph plugin.
• Enable Mastodon Apps — lets Mastodon client apps talk to the site.
• Caches (LiteSpeed Cache, Surge) — keep ActivityPub responses cacheable/uncached correctly.
• Multilingual (WPML, Multisite Language Switcher) — language-aware actor and content handling.

For complete directory structure and naming conventions, see docs/php-class-structure.md.

Creating New Integration

Basic Integration Class

<?php
namespace Activitypub\Integration;

class Plugin_Name {
    /**
     * Initialize the class, registering WordPress hooks.
     */
    public static function init() {
        // Enable federation for the plugin's post type.
        \add_post_type_support( 'plugin_post_type', 'activitypub' );

        // Provide a custom transformer if the default Post transformer is not enough.
        \add_filter( 'activitypub_transformer', array( self::class, 'transformer' ), 10, 3 );
    }

    /**
     * Return a custom transformer for the plugin's objects.
     *
     * @param mixed  $transformer  The transformer to use. Default null.
     * @param mixed  $data         The object to transform.
     * @param string $object_class The class of the object to transform.
     * @return mixed
     */
    public static function transformer( $transformer, $data, $object_class ) {
        if ( 'WP_Post' === $object_class && 'plugin_post_type' === $data->post_type ) {
            require_once __DIR__ . '/class-custom-transformer.php';
            return new Custom_Transformer( $data );
        }
        return $transformer;
    }
}

Then register it in integration/load.php:

if ( \defined( 'PLUGIN_VERSION' ) ) {
    Plugin_Name::init();
}

Integration Patterns

Enabling Federation for a Post Type

Post-type support drives which content federates. Use add_post_type_support() — there is no activitypub_post_types filter:

\add_post_type_support( 'event', 'activitypub' );
\add_post_type_support( 'product', 'activitypub' );

The enabled post types are stored in the activitypub_support_post_types option (read with \get_option( 'activitypub_support_post_types', array( 'post' ) )).

Custom Transformers

The activitypub_transformer filter takes three arguments — ( $transformer, $data, $object_class ) — and is registered with priority 10, 3:

\add_filter( 'activitypub_transformer', function ( $transformer, $data, $object_class ) {
    if ( 'WP_Post' === $object_class && 'event' === $data->post_type ) {
        return new Event_Transformer( $data );
    }
    return $transformer;
}, 10, 3 );

Modifying the Activity Object

To tweak the final ActivityStreams array, hook activitypub_activity_object_array — ( $array, $class, $id, $object ):

\add_filter( 'activitypub_activity_object_array', function ( $array, $class, $id, $object ) {
    if ( isset( $array['type'] ) && 'Note' === $array['type'] ) {
        // Adjust the outgoing object array here.
    }
    return $array;
}, 10, 4 );

Testing Integrations

Verify Integration Loading

// Check if integration is active.
if ( \class_exists( '\Activitypub\Integration\Plugin_Name' ) ) {
    // Integration loaded.
}

Test Compatibility

1. Install target plugin
2. Activate ActivityPub
3. Check for conflicts
4. Verify custom post types federate
5. Test federation of plugin content

Common Integration Issues

Plugin Detection

// Multiple detection methods (match how integration/load.php guards each one).
if ( \defined( 'PLUGIN_VERSION' ) ) { }
if ( \function_exists( 'plugin_function' ) ) { }
if ( \class_exists( 'Plugin_Class' ) ) { }

Hook Priority

// Use appropriate priority.
\add_filter( 'hook', 'callback', 20 ); // After plugin's filter.

Namespace Conflicts

// Use fully qualified names.
$object = new \Plugin\Namespace\Class();

Best Practices

1. Always guard the integration with a detection check in integration/load.php before calling init().
2. Use late priority for filters when you need to override another plugin's defaults.
3. Test with multiple plugin versions.
4. Document compatibility requirements.
5. Handle plugin deactivation gracefully.