MDL Local Geo Lookup

MDL Local Geo Lookup automatically downloads an IP geolocation database to your own server. All lookups happen locally — no external API calls on every page load.

No sign-up required for the default DB-IP source.

By default the plugin uses the free DB-IP City Lite database (CC BY 4.0), which requires no account or license key. Users who prefer MaxMind GeoLite2 can switch to it in Settings by entering a free license key.

Features:

• DB-IP default source with one-click first-run setup after activation (no account needed)
• Optional MaxMind GeoLite2 support (free license key required)
• GeoIP2 PHP reader library bundled with the plugin — no external download required
• Scheduled auto-updates keep the database current (configurable: 1–30 days)
• [mdlgeo_visitor_info] shortcode to display visitor location on any page or post
• mdlgeo_get_visitor_geo_data() PHP function for use in themes and custom plugins
• Visitor location log with paginated view in the admin panel
• Tracks the installed MMDB source and warns if it does not match the selected source
• Requires a manual MMDB refresh when the installed database source is unknown or out of alignment
• Cloudflare-compatible — prefers CF-Connecting-IP when Cloudflare headers are present
• Log files protected from public web access

Requirements:

• PHP 7.4+
• PHP extensions: zlib, phar
• WordPress 5.8+
• MaxMind license key only required if you choose the MaxMind source option

Privacy:

Visitor location logging is disabled by default and must be explicitly enabled by the site admin in Settings. When enabled, visitor IP addresses and approximate locations are logged to a local file on your server. No data is sent to third-party services. Because these log entries are stored only against IP addresses and not durable user identifiers such as email addresses, the plugin does not integrate this log with WordPress personal data export or erasure tools. You are responsible for disclosing this in your site’s privacy policy.

External Services

This plugin connects to the following third-party services to download geolocation databases and libraries. No visitor data is transmitted to these services.

DB-IP (default)

• What: Downloads the free DB-IP City Lite database (.mmdb format).
• When: On first-run setup (triggered by the admin) and on the configured auto-update schedule.
• URL: https://download.db-ip.com/free/dbip-city-lite-{year}-{month}.mmdb.gz
• Website: https://db-ip.com
• Terms of Use: https://db-ip.com/db/lite.php — licensed under CC BY 4.0
• Privacy Policy: https://db-ip.com/privacy.php

MaxMind GeoLite2 (optional)

• What: Downloads the MaxMind GeoLite2 City database (.mmdb format). Only used if the admin selects MaxMind as the database source and provides a license key.
• When: On source change or license key update, and on the configured auto-update schedule.
• URL: https://download.maxmind.com/app/geoip_download?...
• Website: https://www.maxmind.com
• Terms of Use: https://www.maxmind.com/en/geolite2/eula
• Privacy Policy: https://www.maxmind.com/en/privacy-policy

Privacy Policy

When visitor logging is enabled, this plugin logs visitor IP addresses and approximate geographic locations to a local file on your server. Logging is disabled by default and must be explicitly enabled by the site admin. No data is transmitted to external services by the plugin itself. Because the log is stored only against IP addresses and approximate location data, it is not connected to WordPress personal data export or erasure tools. You must disclose this data collection in your site’s privacy policy in accordance with applicable law (GDPR, CCPA, etc.).

This plugin uses the GeoLite2 database created by MaxMind, available from https://www.maxmind.com.