---
title: "Installation — SimplifyGuide docs"
description: "What SimplifyGuide needs, how to install it, what activation adds to your admin, and what happens when you remove it."
url: "https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/installation/"
---

# Installation

What SimplifyGuide needs, how to install it, what activation adds to your admin, and what happens when you remove it.

SimplifyGuide is a single plugin with no external service behind it. Guides are stored as WordPress posts, and screenshots and narration go into your Media Library.

## Requirements

| Requirement | Why it matters |
| --- | --- |
| WordPress 6.3 or later | The minimum the plugin supports. |
| PHP 7.4 or later | The minimum the plugin supports. |
| HTTPS (or `localhost`) | Browsers only allow screen capture on secure pages. Without it, steps are still recorded, but without screenshots. |
| Upload limit of 8 MB or more | Enough for screenshots and short narration. Below 8 MB, long narration may not upload; your host can raise `upload_max_filesize`. |
| A writable uploads folder | Screenshots are saved to your Media Library. |
| Chrome, Edge or another Chromium browser for screenshots | Chromium browsers (Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera) share the tab and crop screenshots to your site. Firefox and Safari can only share a whole window, where nothing can be blurred, so they record steps without screenshots. |

Screenshots are saved as WebP by default. If the server cannot resize WebP images, JPEG is used instead. You can switch to JPEG or PNG in the [setup wizard](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/setup-wizard/) or under **SimplifyGuide → Settings → General**.

AI writing is optional and needs no setup to install. See [AI providers](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/ai-providers/).

You do not have to check any of this by hand: the first step of the setup wizard runs these checks on your site and tells you what, if anything, needs attention.

## From the WordPress admin

Once SimplifyGuide is listed in the WordPress plugin directory:

1.  Go to **Plugins → Add New**.
2.  Search for `SimplifyGuide`.
3.  Click **Install Now**, then **Activate**.

## From a zip file

1.  Download the plugin zip.
2.  Go to **Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin**.
3.  Choose the file, click **Install Now**, then **Activate**.

## What activation does

Activation registers the guide post type, stores the default settings and then sends you to the **setup wizard** — once. It only redirects after a single, interactive activation by an administrator who has not been through setup yet. Bulk activations, network admin, AJAX, cron and WP-CLI never redirect.

If you skip the redirect or close the wizard, nothing breaks: the defaults are sensible and you can run it any time. See [Setup wizard](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/setup-wizard/).

The Plugins screen also gets a **Record a guide** link next to **Deactivate**.

## What it adds to the admin menu

A top-level **SimplifyGuide** menu, with:

| Item | What it is | Who sees it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Overview** | The start screen: getting-started checklist and recent guides. Clicking the top-level menu opens it. | People who can record |
| **Guides** | The dashboard of every guide, with search, **Show me**, **View** and edit buttons. | Everyone with a guide to see |
| **Record a Guide** | Opens the recorder. See [Recording](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/recording/). | People who can record |
| **AI agents** (marked **Soon**) | A preview of planned AI-agent (MCP) access. Not functional yet. | Administrators |
| **Settings** | General, Branding, AI writing, Voice narration and Advanced tabs. See [Settings](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/settings/). | Administrators |
| **Setup Wizard** | The first-run setup, available to run again. | Administrators |

“People who can record” means users with the `edit_posts` capability — Authors and above by default.

Users who cannot record see a **Help Center** menu instead, listing the published guides they are allowed to see. If there are no such guides, they see no menu at all.

When **Toolbar button** is on (the default), people who can record also get a **Record guide** button in the WordPress toolbar, on admin screens and on the front end.

## Uninstalling

Deactivating SimplifyGuide keeps everything. Deleting it from the Plugins screen also keeps your guides by default — they are ordinary posts and media, and they will be there if you install the plugin again.

To remove everything on delete, turn on **SimplifyGuide → Settings → Advanced → Delete data on uninstall** before you delete the plugin. Then deleting the plugin removes:

-   every guide, in any status,
-   the screenshots and narration files attached to those guides,
-   the plugin settings and the AI settings, including stored API keys.

Other media in your library is left alone.

## Next

Go through the [setup wizard](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/setup-wizard/), then [record your first guide](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/first-guide/).

[← Previous SimplifyGuide documentation](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/)[Next → Setup wizard](https://simplifybase.com/product/simplifyguide/docs/setup-wizard/)

Last updated 27 September 2026