Media Reference Inspector

Media Reference Inspector is a read-only WordPress admin tool for checking where Media Library items are referenced.

The plugin does not delete files, modify content, create database tables, track users, or send analytics. Scan results are advisory: “No supported references found” does not prove that a file is unused.

Scanner

Inspect one media item at a time with a professional WordPress-native workflow. Supported checks include:

• Post, page, custom post type, synced/reusable block, and other post content or excerpts containing the primary URL, generated image-size URLs, or the WordPress wp-image-ID class.
• Core Image, Gallery, Cover, Media & Text, File, Audio, and Video blocks that store attachment IDs.
• Featured images stored in _thumbnail_id metadata.
• Navigation menu custom URLs.
• WordPress Site Icon and Site Logo.
• Active theme Custom Logo, Header Image, and Background Image settings.
• Core media widgets and block widgets.
• WooCommerce product gallery and product-category thumbnail attachment IDs.
• Elementor saved media-control references when the saved JSON confirms the attachment ID.
• Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) Image, File, and Gallery fields when ACF confirms the field type and saved attachment ID.
• Reference evidence details including confidence, source category, and context for supported results.

Bulk Scan

Bulk Scan processes media items one at a time through bounded AJAX requests. It supports media type, upload-age, search, maximum-item filters, selected attachment IDs, live progress, potential-unused review filtering, reference evidence and file-health filtering, result sorting, CSV export, and a printable HTML audit report.

Broken URLs

Run a bounded, read-only scan for local WordPress uploads URLs saved in post content or excerpts where the corresponding local file no longer exists. The scanner checks local uploads paths only and does not make external network requests.

Page & Post Audit

Audit a post or page to list supported media attachment IDs, flag broken attachment IDs, and review local file health without modifying content.

Duplicate Finder

Run an on-demand, bounded exact-file hash scan of recent local Media Library files. The tool reports exact matches only and never deletes files.

Integration Coverage

The admin interface reports supported coverage for WordPress Core, WooCommerce, Elementor, and ACF so administrators can see which integration-aware checks are active on the site.

Media Library Status

Reference checks store a short-lived local scan-status cache for inspected attachments. Media Library workflows can show a recent reference count/status and offer an explicit re-scan without running a heavy scan on every page load.

Media Impact Preview

Single-item scans summarize supported reference categories that could be affected before a media item is replaced or removed. The preview is advisory and read-only.

Extended Metadata and Builder Coverage

2.4 adds bounded validation for media-like post meta, term meta, selected option values, known SEO/social image metadata, and supported Bricks, Divi, and Beaver Builder saved data. Candidate values are validated before a reference is reported.

Site Audit Summary

Run an explicit bounded audit of up to 100 recent Media Library items to review referenced items, potential-unused review results, file-health issues, broken local uploads URLs, and exact duplicate groups.

Support

The Help tab includes an explicit support form for bug reports, feature requests, and questions. Nothing is sent until an administrator submits the form. The message and reply email are sent through the site’s configured WordPress mail system to plugin support.

Privacy

Media Reference Inspector does not send media or site data to analytics or telemetry services and stores no scan history. Short-lived scan-status cache data stays in WordPress. The Help support form sends a message only after an administrator explicitly submits it.