When something goes wrong on your website — a page changes unexpectedly, a form stops working, or your site behaves strangely — the first question our support team asks is: "What changed recently?" The free Simple History plugin answers that question automatically by keeping a running log of activity on your WordPress site. Installing it now means that if a problem ever comes up, we can pinpoint the cause much faster.
What Simple History Does
Simple History quietly records important events on your site, including:
- Plugin installs, updates, and deactivations
- Theme changes
- Page and post edits (including who made them and when)
- User logins and failed login attempts
- WordPress core updates
It starts logging immediately after activation with no configuration required.
How to Install It
- Log in to your WordPress admin dashboard (usually yoursite.com/wp-admin).
- In the left sidebar, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin.
- In the search box in the upper right, type: Simple History.
- Find "Simple History" (green clock-style icon, 100,000+ active installations).
- Click Install Now, then click Activate.
That's it — the plugin begins logging right away.
How to View Your Site's Activity Log
After activation, you can view the log two ways: go to Dashboard > Simple History in the left sidebar, or look at the Simple History widget on your main Dashboard screen. Each entry shows the date and time, the user who made the change, and a description of what happened. You can click any entry for more detail, and use the search and filter options to narrow results by date, user, or type of event.
When You Contact Support
If your site is having issues, please check Simple History before reaching out and let us know about any recent changes you see (for example, a plugin that updated right before the problem started). You can also take a screenshot of the recent log entries and attach it to your support ticket. This context helps us resolve your issue significantly faster.
Notes
Simple History is free and does not slow down your site. By default it keeps 60 days of history, which is plenty for troubleshooting. If you have questions about installing it, open a support ticket and we're happy to help.