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How to Manage and Delete Flamingo Contact Form Entries

32 threads Sep 10, 2025 Plugin → Flamingo

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If you use the Flamingo plugin to store Contact Form 7 submissions, you've likely encountered a common challenge: managing and deleting a large number of messages. This is especially important for site performance and adhering to data retention policies like GDPR. This guide explains how Flamingo stores data and provides the safest methods for bulk deletion.

How Flamingo Stores Your Data

Flamingo uses the WordPress database structure. Each inbound message and contact is stored as a custom post type. This means your submissions are primarily located in two tables:

  • wp_posts (with post_type values like flamingo_inbound or flamingo_contact)
  • wp_postmeta (which stores additional metadata for each entry)

Understanding this is key to managing your data effectively.

Common Issues with Bulk Deletion

Users often report two main problems when trying to clean up their Flamingo data:

  1. Missing "Empty Trash" Button: The user interface within the WordPress admin may not always show the bulk action options, making it impossible to delete large numbers of messages at once.
  2. Server Timeouts: Attempting to delete thousands of entries through the admin screen can overload your server, causing the process to fail or drastically slow down your site.

Automatic Deletion Behavior

It's important to note that Flamingo itself does not automatically delete messages. However, messages that have been moved to Trash may be subject to WordPress's built-in automatic trash emptying schedule, which typically purges items after 30 days. Spam messages handled by Akismet may also have their own automatic deletion schedule.

Safe Methods for Deleting Flamingo Data

Method 1: Using the Flamingo Admin Interface (For Small Batches)

For a smaller number of entries, you can delete them directly from the WordPress admin area.

  1. Navigate to Flamingo in your admin menu.
  2. Go to Inbound Messages or Address Book.
  3. Select the items you want to remove.
  4. Choose Move to Trash from the "Bulk Actions" dropdown and click Apply.
  5. Navigate to the Trash section.
  6. Select the items again and choose Delete Permanently from the bulk actions menu.

Note: If the "Empty Trash" or "Delete Permanently" options are not visible, you may need to use one of the methods below.

Method 2: Using a Database Query (Advanced - USE WITH CAUTION)

Warning: This method involves directly accessing your website's database. Always create a complete backup of your database before proceeding. An incorrect query can break your site.

For massive data sets (e.g., tens of thousands of entries from a spam attack), a direct SQL query may be the only feasible solution. You can run this in a tool like phpMyAdmin, provided by your web host.

To delete all Flamingo inbound messages and their associated metadata, you can run these two queries. First, find your database prefix (often wp_) and replace it in the queries below if necessary.

Query 1: Delete entries from the posts table

DELETE FROM wp_posts WHERE post_type LIKE '%flamingo%';

Query 2: Clean up orphaned metadata

DELETE FROM wp_postmeta WHERE post_id NOT IN (SELECT ID FROM wp_posts);

This will remove all data associated with Flamingo, including messages and contacts.

Method 3: Using the WordPress Personal Data Eraser Tool

For GDPR compliance, Flamingo version 1.9+ integrated with the WordPress personal data erasure tool. This is designed for removing an individual's personal data upon request.

  1. Navigate to Tools > Erase Personal Data in your WordPress admin.
  2. Enter the email address of the person whose data you want to remove.
  3. Send the request and then confirm the erasure.

This is a targeted approach, not meant for mass deletion of all records.

Deleting Flamingo Channels

A frequently asked question is how to delete a channel (the folder a form's submissions are stored in) after deleting a Contact Form 7 form. Channels are also stored as taxonomy terms in the database. The most reliable way to remove an unwanted channel is to use the database deletion method outlined above, which will remove all Flamingo data, including the channel structure. Afterwards, when you reinstall Flamingo and create new forms, new channels will be generated.

Conclusion

While Flamingo is an excellent tool for capturing form submissions, managing large volumes of data requires moving beyond the standard admin interface. For routine cleanup of smaller amounts of data, use the built-in trash functionality. For major data purges, a carefully executed direct database query after a full backup is the most effective solution. Always ensure your data management practices align with your privacy policy and regulations like GDPR.

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