Pro Reports - MainWP Documentation

What You’ll Learn

Setting up the Pro Reports extension and Child Reports plugin
Creating recurring and one-time reports
Customizing report templates with tokens
Managing client information and branding

Extension Add-on - This add-on provides standalone functionality within MainWP Dashboard. No third-party plugins required.

The MainWP Pro Reports Extension combines the free MainWP Child Reports plugin with a customizable reporting engine. The Child Reports plugin tracks changes on your child sites, while the Pro Reports Extension on your Dashboard gathers that information and converts it to PDF reports. Key features:

Generate professional reports in seconds
Pre-made templates to get you started
Automatic PDF attachment to emails
Include or exclude specific content
Customizable template system
Custom branding options

Setting up the Pro Reports Extension

Installation

Install MainWP Child Reports

Install the MainWP Child Reports plugin on all child sites. This free plugin records logging events that appear in your reports. Records are kept for 100 days.

Install Pro Reports Extension

Install the MainWP Pro Reports Extension on your Dashboard.

Sync your sites

Sync your sites so the Dashboard can detect which sites have the Child Reports plugin installed.

Reports require recorded activity. The MainWP Child Reports plugin must collect site data before reports can show meaningful content. After installation, allow several days for the plugin to record events such as updates, posts, and changes. Reports generated immediately after installation will display empty sections.

To test Pro Reports with default settings, skip to Create a One-Time Report. Client information and custom branding can be configured later.

MainWP Child Reports Plugin

The MainWP Child Reports plugin records changes on your child sites and communicates them to the Pro Reports Extension. Built on the Stream Plugin, it currently requires PHP 7.4 or higher.

Viewing Recorded Data

By default, go to WP Admin > Settings > MainWP Child > Child Reports on your child site to see recorded activity. If you have customized MainWP Child branding, these labels can differ.

Child Reports Settings

By default, navigate to WP Admin > Settings > MainWP Child > Child Reports Settings to configure the plugin. If you have customized MainWP Child branding, these labels can differ.

Setting	Description
Keep Records for	Maximum days to retain activity records (default: 100)
Keep Records Indefinitely	Retains all records (not recommended for performance)
Comment Flood Tracking	Track duplicate comments blocked by WordPress (not recommended)
Akismet Tracking	Track comment spam attempts blocked by Akismet when Akismet is active
WP Cron Tracking	Track WordPress cron event activity when WP-Cron is enabled
Reset MainWP Child Reports Database	Delete all activity reports from the database

Client Information

Pro Reports uses tokens to personalize reports without creating separate versions for each client. Tokens are placeholders like [client.email] and [client.name] that get replaced with actual values when reports generate. You can define client information in two ways:

Method	Description	Best For
Client Feature	Define information once, assign multiple sites to a client	Managing many sites per client
Per-Site Settings	Set information individually on each site’s Edit page	Maximum flexibility

When the same token is defined in both locations, the per-site value takes priority.

Setting Per-Site Client Information

Navigate to site settings

Go to MainWP Dashboard > Sites > Manage Sites and click Edit on the desired site.

Configure tokens

Locate the Pro Reports Tokens section and enter values for tokens you plan to use.

Save settings

Click Save Settings.

Token Configuration

Client vs Site Tokens

Understand token priority and when to use each level.

Report Types

Pro Reports offers two report formats. Recurring reports run on a schedule you define. One-time reports cover a specific date range you select manually.

Aspect	Recurring	One-Time
Schedule	Daily, Weekly, or Monthly	None (manual send)
Date Range	Automatic based on schedule	Custom start and end dates
Action	Schedule Report	Send Now
Use Case	Ongoing client updates	Project completion, audits

Create a Recurring Report

Open Create Report

Go to MainWP Dashboard > Add-ons > Pro Reports > Create Report.

Configure report settings

Setting	Description
Report title	Name for identifying this report
Report type	Select Recurring
Schedule	Daily, Weekly, or Monthly
Send report on	Day of week or month (for Weekly/Monthly schedules)
Report PDF file name	Optional custom filename for the PDF attachment
Report Template	Select from available templates

Customize content and design

Tab	Purpose
Custom Content	Set the report heading shown on the first page and write the introduction and closing message. All three fields support tokens, and the introduction and closing message use the visual editor so you can add formatted client-facing copy.
Report Data	Control which sections appear in the report and whether each one is set to Show, Hide, or Hide if empty. This includes core report areas such as WordPress, plugin and theme updates, posts, pages, users, comments, and uptime, plus any compatible add-on data currently active on your Dashboard such as backups, analytics, monitoring, security, performance, and maintenance sections. The Backups section appears when at least one selected site uses API Backups or has a supported backup extension active (BackWPup, BackupWordPress, Solid Backups, or UpdraftPlus).
Custom Branding	Upload your logo and an optional first-page header image, then set the first-page background, page background, text, accent, link, and table colors. Use this tab to match the PDF layout to your brand.
Custom Titles	Rename or translate report titles, subtitles, and table headings for the sections included in the report. These overrides are saved per report, which lets you keep different client-facing wording or language versions. It changes the labels in the report, but not the actual data values returned by WordPress, themes, plugins, or other integrations.

Configure email settings

Field	Description
Send email from	Your email address and name
Send email to	Client email and name (supports tokens like `[client.email]`)
Reply-to	Optional reply address
Email subject	Subject line (supports tokens)
Email message	Email body (supports tokens)
Email template	Select template style
BCC email address	Optional blind copy recipient
Additional attachments	Optional extra files

Select sites and schedule

Select sites in the right-hand metabox. Preview as HTML or download the PDF for review. Click Save Draft to save without scheduling, or Schedule Report when ready.

Create a One-Time Report

Open Create Report

Go to MainWP Dashboard > Add-ons > Pro Reports > Create Report.

Configure report settings

Setting	Description
Report title	Name for identifying this report
Report type	Select One-time
Report date range	Starting and ending dates
Report PDF file name	Optional custom filename
Report Template	Select from available templates

Customize content and design

Tab	Purpose
Custom Content	Set the report heading shown on the first page and write the introduction and closing message. All three fields support tokens, and the introduction and closing message use the visual editor so you can add formatted client-facing copy.
Report Data	Control which sections appear in the report and whether each one is set to Show, Hide, or Hide if empty. This includes core report areas such as WordPress, plugin and theme updates, posts, pages, users, comments, and uptime, plus any compatible add-on data currently active on your Dashboard such as backups, analytics, monitoring, security, performance, and maintenance sections. The Backups section appears when at least one selected site uses API Backups or has a supported backup extension active (BackWPup, BackupWordPress, Solid Backups, or UpdraftPlus).
Custom Branding	Upload your logo and an optional first-page header image, then set the first-page background, page background, text, accent, link, and table colors. Use this tab to match the PDF layout to your brand.
Custom Titles	Rename or translate report titles, subtitles, and table headings for the sections included in the report. These overrides are saved per report, which lets you keep different client-facing wording or language versions. It changes the labels in the report, but not the actual data values returned by WordPress, themes, plugins, or other integrations.

Configure email settings

Field	Description
Send email from	Your email address and name
Send email to	Client email and name (supports tokens)
Reply-to	Optional reply address
Email subject	Subject line (supports tokens)
Email message	Email body (supports tokens)
Email template	Select template style
BCC email address	Optional blind copy recipient
Additional attachments	Optional extra files

Select sites and send

Select sites in the right-hand metabox. Preview as HTML or download the PDF for review. Click Save Draft to save without sending, or Send Now when ready.

Email Customization

Custom Email Logo

Use a different logo in email body versus PDF attachment.

Custom Email Template

Copy a built-in email template, edit it, upload it, and use it in your report.

HTML-Only Reports

Send reports as HTML email without PDF attachments.

Pro Reports Dashboard

The MainWP > Add-ons > Pro Reports > Child Reports Dashboard page monitors all child sites with the MainWP Child Reports plugin installed.

Status Indicators

Row Color	Meaning	Available Action
Red	Plugin not activated	Activate
Yellow	Update available	Update
Normal	Plugin active and current	Hide/Unhide

Dashboard Columns

Column	Description
Version	MainWP Child Reports plugin version
Last Report	When the last report was sent
Reports DB Size	Database space used by reports

Bulk actions for Activate, Update, Hide, and Unhide are available at the top of the page. If a site with the plugin installed does not appear, re-sync your sites.

Create Custom Report Templates

Pro Reports uses PHP templates that you can customize with HTML. The process involves copying a built-in template and modifying it to suit your needs.

Creating a Custom Template

Download the extension

Download the MainWP Pro Reports Extension from your MainWP Account.

Extract and locate templates

Extract the plugin files and find the default templates in /mainwp-pro-reports-extension/templates/reports/.

Copy and customize

Copy a PHP file, rename it, and edit with your preferred code editor.

Upload the template

Upload your customized PHP file to /wp-content/uploads/mainwp/report-templates/ on your Dashboard site.

Select the template

Your template appears in the Report template dropdown.

Template Resources

Custom Templates Guide

Build custom PHP templates from scratch with detailed token placement.

Add Images to Templates

Insert custom images and graphics into your report templates.

Limit Table Entries

Control how many rows appear in report sections using CSS.

Token Types

Pro Reports uses four token types that you can add directly to PHP templates or through the visual editor.

Type	Description	Example
Client Tokens	Display data from Individual Child site settings	`[client.email]`, `[client.name]`
Section Tokens	Loop through database records within a date range	`[section.plugins.installed]...[/section.plugins.installed]`
Data Tokens	Display specific values inside section tokens	`[plugin.name]`, `[plugin.installed.date]`
Counter Tokens	Display counts outside section tokens	`[plugin.installed.count]`

See all available tokens: Available Pro Reports Tokens

Client Tokens

Client tokens display data set in the Individual Child site Edit tab. Set values for tokens you plan to use in reports.

Use [client.email] in the Send email to field to send reports to multiple clients automatically.

Click Insert tokens to see available options.

How Tokens Work Together

The following example demonstrates all three token types working together in a template:

Plugins installed: [plugin.installed.count]

[section.plugins.installed]
  Plugin: [plugin.name]
  Installed: [plugin.installed.date]
[/section.plugins.installed]

Counter tokens display totals and must appear outside section tags. They end with .count. Section tokens loop through database records within the report date range. They require opening and closing tags. Data tokens display specific values and must appear between section token tags.

Token Reference

Available Tokens

Complete reference of 100+ tokens for plugins, themes, posts, users, and more.

Conditional Messages

Use PHP filters to display dynamic messages based on data values.

Delete Reports

Navigate to reports

Go to MainWP > Add-ons > Pro Reports > Reports.

Delete the report

Click the Actions Menu on the report you want to delete, select Delete, and confirm.

Duplicate Reports

Navigate to reports

Go to MainWP > Add-ons > Pro Reports > Reports.

Duplicate the report

Click the Actions Menu, select Duplicate, enter a new title, configure Send To and Send From fields, and click Save Draft.

PDF Storage

PDFs generated by Pro Reports are saved on the Dashboard site in /wp-content/uploads/mainwp_pro_reports/.

Pro Reports REST API

All MainWP REST API calls, including documentation and examples, are available on Postman. See MainWP REST API for details on enabling the API and managing keys.

Create Custom Report Templates - Build custom templates
Create a custom Pro Reports email template - Copy and customize a built-in email template
Available Pro Reports Tokens - Token reference
Agency Add-ons - Browse agency add-ons

​What You’ll Learn

​Setting up the Pro Reports Extension

​Installation

​MainWP Child Reports Plugin

​Viewing Recorded Data

​Child Reports Settings

​Client Information

​Setting Per-Site Client Information

Client vs Site Tokens

​Report Types

​Create a Recurring Report

​Create a One-Time Report

Custom Email Logo

Custom Email Template

HTML-Only Reports

​Pro Reports Dashboard

​Status Indicators

​Dashboard Columns

​Create Custom Report Templates

​Creating a Custom Template

Custom Templates Guide

Add Images to Templates

Limit Table Entries

​Token Types

​Client Tokens

​How Tokens Work Together

Available Tokens

Conditional Messages

​Delete Reports

​Duplicate Reports

​PDF Storage

​Pro Reports REST API

​Related Resources

What You’ll Learn

Setting up the Pro Reports Extension

Installation

MainWP Child Reports Plugin

Viewing Recorded Data

Child Reports Settings

Client Information

Setting Per-Site Client Information

Report Types

Create a Recurring Report

Create a One-Time Report

Pro Reports Dashboard

Status Indicators

Dashboard Columns

Create Custom Report Templates

Creating a Custom Template

Token Types

Client Tokens

How Tokens Work Together

Delete Reports

Duplicate Reports

PDF Storage

Pro Reports REST API

Related Resources