Documentation · Release Notes

Known Limitations

This document summarises the known limitations of the ADP Car Market Hub plugin in the current release.

When to use this document

Read this document when planning a deployment, when preparing a customer-facing risk note, or when troubleshooting behaviour that may be a documented limitation rather than a bug.

The detailed technical analysis lives in Known Limitations And Open Risks. This page is a shorter summary intended for release-notes readers.

Overview

The plugin is built on standard WordPress mechanisms (custom post types, taxonomies, custom tables, WP-Cron, REST and AJAX). Most limitations follow from those design choices and from the third-party services the plugin can optionally integrate with.

The information below describes behaviour observed in the current source. Verify each point against the current plugin version before quoting it in a customer contract.

Operational limitations

  • WP-Cron reliance. Scheduled imports, the image queue, the AI Assistant queue and the analytics retention cleanup all rely on WP-Cron firing. WP-Cron is request-driven and may be late or missed entirely on low-traffic sites. Use a real system cron (calling wp-cron.php or the cron-import REST endpoint) for predictable behaviour.
  • Concurrency locks. Import and image-queue runs use transient locks (as24ci_cron_import_running, as24ci_image_queue_running). If a worker dies (PHP fatal error, hosting timeout) the lock can outlive the process. Stale locks are cleared automatically once the TTL expires; manual deletion is only needed if you want to force a new run earlier.
  • Memory and runtime budgets. Very large imports (thousands of vehicles per run, or vehicles with many images) can exceed PHP memory or max_execution_time limits on shared hosts. Tune the cron mode and the per-run vehicle and image caps accordingly.
  • Manual edits to imported fields. Importer-managed fields can be overwritten by the next import. Use the manual-overrides layer or the manual gallery slot for content that must survive re-imports.
  • Single-image inline mode for cron imports. With the image queue enabled (recommended default), only the first image per vehicle is downloaded inline during a cron import. The remaining images are processed by the asynchronous worker. If the worker is not running, those images will not appear until it does.

Security and access limitations

  • Credentials are stored in wp_options. The AutoScout24 Client Secret and the webhook shared secret are stored encrypted at rest, and the cron token is stored as a one-way HMAC hash; other settings and option values are stored as ordinary options. Treat database backups as containing secrets and rotate credentials after any suspected compromise. The managed Gemini API key used by the AI Assistant is not entered or stored as a WordPress option: it is provisioned centrally through the ADP Car Market Hub API Platform and delivered to the site as an encrypted, license-bound credential. Customers never enter or see this key.
  • Capability dependency. Plugin admin pages require the manage_as24_imports capability (granted to administrators by default). Role-management plugins that strip this capability will lock administrators out of the plugin admin.
  • Public REST endpoints are off by default and should only be enabled if their consumers are known. The favorites and analytics endpoints are public by design when the corresponding features are enabled, but apply input validation.

Privacy and compliance limitations

  • Analytics is opt-in but, once enabled, records visitor interactions in a custom table. The require-consent mode is available, but defaults to allow when no consent integration is wired into the as24ci_analytics_consent_check filter. Verify consent handling for your jurisdiction before enabling analytics.
  • Search Alerts store personal data (email and search criteria). The as24ci_search_agents table is dropped on uninstall, but customers must still meet their own deletion-on-request obligations during normal operation.
  • AI Assistant transmits vehicle data to the managed Gemini endpoint. When enabled, prompts and listing context are sent to the managed Google Gemini configuration in ADP Car Market Hub. Review the applicable data processing and contractual terms for the managed AI setup before enabling AI features in production.
  • PDF datasheet QR codes use a third-party service by default. Replace it with a self-hosted generator through the as24ci_pdf_qr_image_url filter if external requests in printable documents are not acceptable.
  • Email delivery uses wp_mail(). Whether a notification reaches the recipient depends on the configured mailer and on external deliverability factors. The plugin records a best-effort flag but does not guarantee delivery.

External dependencies

  • AutoScout24 API availability. Network errors and provider outages are surfaced as failed runs in the import logs; no inbound data means no new vehicles even with WP-Cron firing on schedule.
  • Browser-driven PDF generation. The PDF datasheet relies on the visitor's browser print engine. Layout precision varies between browsers.
  • Managed AI endpoint. Subject to Google Gemini rate limits, model deprecations and pricing changes outside the plugin's control.
  • Webhook receivers. Persistent receiver outages may cause events to be lost; the plugin retries failed deliveries a bounded number of times. Design receivers to be idempotent and to acknowledge quickly.

Documentation caveats

  • This documentation describes behaviour observed in the current source. Where the source did not allow a conclusive answer, the text uses cautious wording such as "verify against the current plugin version before publishing".
  • Default model identifiers, supported locales and option defaults can change between releases. When publishing customer-facing material, copy the values from the current plugin source rather than from this document verbatim.

Mitigations

  • Configure an external system cron to call wp-cron.php or the cron-import REST endpoint to insulate scheduled work from low traffic.
  • Configure off-site database backups with appropriate encryption and access controls.
  • Pair the plugin with an SMTP or transactional-mail integration for reliable lead notifications.
  • Use a staging environment to validate AI prompts, PDF templates and webhook receivers before applying changes to production.
  • Audit which roles hold manage_as24_imports and which third-party services are connected.