Title: /plugins directory
Author: WordPress VIP Documentation
Published: September 14, 2020
Last modified: August 8, 2024

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 1. [WordPress VIP skeleton](https://docs.wpvip.com/wordpress-skeleton/)
 2. /plugins directory

#  /plugins directory

The `/plugins` directory is mapped to `/wp-content/plugins/` ; this directory works
similarly to `WP_CONTENT_DIR . '/plugins/'` in a self-hosted WordPress installation.

**Plugin files and directories can only be added or removed via code commits to 
GitHub**; not from within the WordPress Admin dashboard.

 * [**Third-party plugins**](https://docs.wpvip.com/plugins/third-party-plugins/)
   should load from the `/plugins`_ _directory to allow for better compatibility
   with VIP security features such as [Codebase Manager](https://docs.wpvip.com/codebase-manager/).
 * **Custom plugins** can be loaded from either the `/plugins` directory, or the
   [`/client-mu-plugins` directory](https://docs.wpvip.com/wordpress-skeleton/client-mu-plugins-directory/),
   depending on the preferred loading behavior.

 Plugins can also be [code activated](https://docs.wpvip.com/activate-plugins-through-code/)
to ensure control and consistency across all environments.

Last updated: August 08, 2024