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Troubleshooting Activity Log: Why User Roles and Activities Are Missing

41 threads Sep 16, 2025 Plugin → Activity log – monitor & record user changes

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If you've installed the Activity Log plugin and found that activities for certain users—like Editors, Subscribers, or custom roles—are not appearing, you're not alone. This is a common issue reported by many users. This guide will explain why it happens and walk you through the most effective solutions.

Why This Happens

The Activity Log plugin uses a capability-based system to control which user roles can view the log and, by extension, which roles have their activities recorded and displayed. By default, the plugin's visibility settings are often optimized for administrative roles. This means activities performed by users with lower-level default roles (like Subscriber) or custom roles created by plugins like User Role Editor or Members may not be logged or visible in the dashboard.

Common Solutions

1. Use the Provided Filter for Custom Roles

If your site uses custom user roles, you must explicitly add them to the plugin's allowed list using a WordPress filter. This is the most common solution, as referenced in multiple support threads.

How to do it: Add the following code to your theme's functions.php file or a custom functionality plugin. Replace 'your_custom_role' with the slug of your specific user role (e.g., 'shop_manager', 'recruiter').

function aal_custom_init_caps( $caps ) {
    // Add your custom role to the list of viewable roles for administrators
    $caps['administrator'][] = 'your_custom_role';
    // You can also add it for other default roles if needed
    // $caps['editor'][] = 'your_custom_role';
    return $caps;
}
add_filter( 'aal_init_caps', 'aal_custom_init_caps' );

This code tells the plugin that users with the 'administrator' role should be able to see logs for activities performed by users with your custom role.

2. Check for Plugin Conflicts

Several threads indicate that other role and capability management plugins can sometimes interfere with Activity Log. If you are using a plugin like PublishPress Capabilities or WPFront User Role Editor, try temporarily deactivating it to see if the missing activities appear. If they do, you know there is a conflict, and you may need to adjust settings within that plugin or use the filter method above.

3. Ensure You Are on the Latest Version

Historically, an update to version 2.6.0 specifically addressed an issue with logging for custom roles. Always ensure your plugin is updated to the latest version to benefit from bug fixes and performance improvements.

4. Verify the User's Role

In some cases, simply changing a user's role to another one and then changing it back can resolve the issue. This can help reset the user's capability assignment within WordPress.

What If the Activity is Recorded But Not Displayed?

An interesting scenario, noted in one thread, is that an email notification might be triggered for an activity, yet that activity does not appear in the log. This usually points to a viewing permissions issue, not a logging issue. The activity is likely being recorded in the database but is hidden from view because the current user's role does not have permission to see the role of the user who performed the action. Applying the filter solution above is the correct fix for this.

Conclusion

The inability to see activities for certain user roles is almost always a configuration issue related to WordPress's role and capability system. By using the aal_init_caps filter, you can explicitly define which roles should be visible in the activity log. If problems persist after trying these steps, consider checking the plugin's GitHub repository for further insights or similar reported issues.

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