PQM – Developer and Integration Notes

This document is for technical administrators and developers implementing PQM in WordPress environments. It covers hosting, staging, WooCommerce integration, customer panel caching, AJAX security, updates, modules, logging and performance.

Environment

PQM runs as a WordPress plugin, so the quality of the hosting environment directly affects reliability. Production workflow systems should not be deployed on overloaded hosting without access to logs.

Recommendations

• current WordPress version,
• PHP version compatible with the plugin,
• regular file and database backups,
• access to PHP error logs,
• staging environment for updates,
• proper SMTP configuration,
• cache rules that do not break admin screens or AJAX calls.

Staging

Use a staging environment for testing new PQM versions, modules, workflow changes, email templates and the customer panel. Customer data should be protected or anonymized on staging.

WooCommerce integration

If PQM is used with WooCommerce, define exactly when a WooCommerce order creates a production task. Avoid creating multiple tasks or duplicate emails for the same order event.

Implementation questions

• Should a task be created immediately after order placement?
• Should a task be created only after payment?
• Does one order create one task or multiple tasks?
• Should WooCommerce status changes update PQM statuses?
• Should customer email be sent by WooCommerce, PQM or both?

Customer panel and cache

The customer panel page should not be aggressively cached if it displays dynamic task data. Otherwise, customers may see outdated status information. Exclude the page from cache or load dynamic data through AJAX.

AJAX and security

All actions that save data should verify nonces, check permissions and sanitize input. Output should be escaped according to context.

Good practices

• check_ajax_referer() for AJAX requests,
• current_user_can() for admin actions,
• sanitize_text_field(), absint(), sanitize_email() for input,
• esc_html(), esc_attr(), esc_url() for output,
• $wpdb->prepare() for parameterized SQL queries.

Updates and backup

Before updating production PQM installations, create a full database and file backup. In production companies, perform major updates outside peak working hours and test them on staging first.

Modules

Modules should not cause critical errors if the main PQM plugin is inactive. A module should detect missing PQM and display a clear admin notice instead of failing.

Minimum module requirements

• own plugin header,
• PQM presence check,
• PQM version check,
• separate text domain,
• safe file loading,
• no class or function name conflicts,
• safe deactivation behavior.

Error logging

During implementation, enable WordPress debug logging. On production, do not display errors to users, but keep logs accessible to administrators.

define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );
define( 'WP_DEBUG_LOG', true );
define( 'WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY', false );

Performance

PQM works with tasks, reports and historical data. As the number of tasks grows, database indexes, date filtering, pagination and efficient queries become important.

Implementation checklist

1. Install on staging.
2. Configure statuses and departments.
3. Test task flow.
4. Test email automation.
5. Test customer panel.
6. Test reports.
7. Train users.
8. Back up production.
9. Deploy to production.
10. Monitor logs after launch.