fix: sync posts to Elasticsearch when Post Search is disabled

[faisalahammad]

Summary

Move the Post indexable activation out of the Post Search feature setup() so posts continue to sync to Elasticsearch even when the Post Search feature is disabled.

Previously, disabling Post Search prevented Post::setup() from being called, which meant the SyncManager was never instantiated and wp_insert_post / delete_post / meta / term hooks were never attached.

Fixes #4158

Changes

includes/classes/Features.php

Before:

do_action( 'ep_setup_features' );

foreach ( $this->registered_features as $feature ) {

After:

do_action( 'ep_setup_features' );

/**
 * Activate the post indexable regardless of whether the Post Search
 * feature is enabled, so posts continue to sync to Elasticsearch.
 */
Indexables::factory()->activate( 'post' );

foreach ( $this->registered_features as $feature ) {

Why: setup_features() runs on init priority 0 for every request. Activating the post indexable here ensures it is always set up, independent of whether the Search feature is active.

includes/classes/Feature/Search/Search.php

Before:

public function setup() {
    Indexables::factory()->activate( 'post' );

    add_action( 'init', [ $this, 'search_setup' ] );
    // ...
}

After:

public function setup() {
    add_action( 'init', [ $this, 'search_setup' ] );
    // ...
}

Why: The Search feature no longer needs to activate the post indexable. Its setup() still loads weighting, synonyms, and registers search_setup for query integration.

Testing

Test 1: Post sync with Post Search disabled

1. Activate ElasticPress and connect to Elasticsearch.
2. Go to ElasticPress → Features and disable Post Search.
3. Edit any post and save.
4. Verify the document in Elasticsearch reflects the updated content.

Result: works as expected.

Test 2: Post sync with Post Search enabled (regression)

1. Enable Post Search.
2. Edit and save a post.
3. Verify the document in Elasticsearch updates.

Result: works as expected.

Test 3: Automated regression test
Added tests/php/indexables/TestPostSyncWithoutSearch.php with testPostSyncWithSearchDisabled() — disables the Search feature, creates a post, and asserts the sync hook fires and the document exists in Elasticsearch. Passes on single-site and multisite test suites.

[burhandodhy]

Hi @faisalahammad,

Thank you for taking the time to open this pull request.

However, this issue is a bit more complex than it appears. If we simply make the post indexable, ElasticPress will start using Elasticsearch for post queries even when the Post Search feature is disabled.

This requires some discussion and a decision. For example, should posts still be indexed during sync when the Post Search feature is disabled, or should they be excluded from indexing altogether?

I would love to hear your thoughts on this before we move forward.

Regards,
Burhan

[faisalahammad]

Hi @burhandodhy, good question. Checked this in the code.

Activating the post indexable only wires up SyncManager and QueryIntegration. QueryIntegration does not automatically take over WP_Query for posts, it only does that when elasticpress_enabled() returns true. That check reads the ep_elasticpress_enabled filter, and that filter is added only inside Search::search_setup(), which only runs when the Post Search feature is active.

So with this change:

• Post Search disabled: posts still sync to ES (the actual bug fix), but WP_Query for posts does not go through ES. Same behavior as before this PR for query integration.
• Post Search enabled: no change at all.

Added a second test, testPostQueryNotIntegratedWithSearchDisabled, that runs a normal WP_Query search with Post Search disabled and asserts elasticsearch_success is not set. This should cover the concern directly.

To answer your question directly: posts should keep syncing during indexing even when Post Search is disabled. Other features (WooCommerce, Autosuggest, RelatedPosts, Facets, SearchOrdering, Documents) all depend on the post indexable being populated, and none of them currently activate it themselves. If we exclude posts from sync when Search is off, those features silently break for any site that has Search disabled but still uses them.

[faisalahammad]

@burhandodhy pushed the added test and updated branch against develop. Ready for another look when you have time.