Description
WordPress 7.0 changed the default admin color scheme to “Modern”, renaming the long-standing classic palette to “Fresh” and migrated existing users over to the new default. This plugin restores the classic Fresh scheme for users who are still on the Modern default or have no saved preference, without taking away anyone’s freedom to switch back later.
- Sets the color scheme to Fresh for newly registered users.
- Migrates each existing user from “Modern” (or no preference) back to “Fresh” the next time they visit the dashboard, exactly once.
- Leaves users who already chose another scheme (Light, Blue, Midnight, Ocean, Coffee, Ectoplasm, Sunrise, etc.) alone.
- Restores the classic “Fresh” look on the login screen too: the blue WordPress logo, the classic blue submit button, and the classic blue input focus ring.
- Records when each user has been processed, and records the previous color value only when the plugin changes that user.
- Adds a GoalPrevail admin dashboard/overview page. The plugin has no configurable settings page because it works automatically.
- No public front-end assets, no scheduled jobs, and no mass updates on activation. The login styles are printed only while the plugin is active and disappear the moment it is deactivated or deleted.
Installation
- Upload the
restore-old-admin-colorsfolder to/wp-content/plugins/, or install the plugin through the WordPress Plugins screen. - Activate the plugin through the Plugins screen.
- Visit any admin page – users on the Modern default will be moved back to the classic Fresh color scheme.
To uninstall, deactivate the plugin from the Plugins screen. The plugin removes its own metadata automatically; users it changed are restored to their recorded previous color if they are still using Fresh.
FAQ
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Will this change custom colors I (or my users) have already picked?
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No. The plugin only changes users whose admin color scheme is empty or set to the new 7.0 “Modern” default. Any explicit choice – Light, Blue, Midnight, Ocean, Coffee, Ectoplasm, Sunrise, etc. – is preserved as-is. After the one-time restore, users can pick any scheme on their profile page and the plugin will not interfere again.
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The plugin adds a GoalPrevail dashboard/overview entry in wp-admin so site owners can see it with other GoalPrevail plugins. It does not add configurable settings because the behavior is automatic.
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Does this slow down my site?
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No. There are no front-end assets, scheduled jobs, or expensive database loops on activation. The plugin checks the current logged-in admin user during admin requests, and after a user is restored or skipped, later requests short-circuit quickly.
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What happens when I deactivate the plugin?
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Version 1.0.2 records the previous color value before it changes a user. On deactivation, if that user is still using Fresh, the plugin restores the recorded previous value and removes its own metadata. If the user changed to another scheme after the plugin ran, their newer choice is kept.
For users migrated by older versions before previous-color tracking existed, the plugin removes its metadata without guessing an unknown previous value.
Reviews
Contributors & Developers
“Restore Old Admin Colors” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.
Contributors
Translate “Restore Old Admin Colors” into your language.
Interested in development?
Browse the code, check out the SVN repository, or subscribe to the development log by RSS.
Changelog
1.0.2
- Fixed: only marks a user as restored when the plugin actually changes their admin color.
- Fixed: records the previous color value before changing a user to Fresh, then restores that recorded value on deactivation when safe.
- Added: separate processed-user tracking so custom-color users are skipped once and not treated as migrated users.
- Changed: legacy restored users without a recorded previous color are no longer guessed back to Modern on deactivation.
- Improved: GoalPrevail dashboard strings, button wrapping, and Plugin Checker compatibility.
- Updated: readme text now clearly states that the plugin adds a GoalPrevail dashboard/overview entry but no configurable settings page.
1.0.1
- Added: restores the classic “Fresh” styling on the login screen (wp-login.php): the classic blue WordPress logo, the classic blue submit button (with hover/focus/active states), and the classic blue input focus ring.
- The login styles are output via the
login_enqueue_scriptshook only while the plugin is active; nothing is persisted, so they disappear immediately on deactivation or deletion with no cleanup required.
1.0.0
- Initial release.
- Restores the classic “Fresh” admin color scheme for users on the new WordPress 7.0 “Modern” default, exactly once per user.
- Sets “Fresh” as the default color scheme for newly registered users.
- Preserves all explicit user color-scheme choices.
- On deactivation, removes the plugin’s own user metadata.