Plugin kills performance
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Hello,
investigating the loosing of performance of my site I fond that some plugins are using this plugin inside to work around the normal wp-cron system. So, every minute wp_cron execute task to activate this workaroud system to bereave all available memory and processor resource from good actions to do nothing useful. (I have been never using woocomerce).
So, it’s acting as a malware.
I found that since I stopped it’s everyminute task in wp_cron system the performance of my site increased in times !!! and google, yandex and others moved my site from red to green performance rating.
So, during the years this hidden plugin kept my site extremely slow but very busy.
But now I see notification of “Action Scheduler” all the time on all admin screens. It annoying but even more, it means that it’s still alive and keeps trying to slow down the site.How can I clean this malware out or at lease stop it completely?
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Hello there,
Could you share a copy of your site’s System Status Report with us?
You’ll find it at the top of the page under WooCommerce > Status > Get system report > Download for support (after you scroll down a bit). Once you have the System Status Report file, please attach it to your reply.Also, can you provide a screenshot of this error? You can paste it here, https://snipboard.io/, then send me the URL it provides so I can view the screenshot.
Hello Chris,
I’d be happy to provide requested information but I never have been having WooCommerce installed. So, I made some screenshorts to explain what do I menture:
- https://snipboard.io/IWafQC.jpg the list of the hidden by your plugin actions. How I noticed, the scheduled data doesn’t mean a lot because it changes dynamically. Even more, I uninstalled all plugins that use Scheduled Action malware software except ALL-IN-ONCE-SEO that I have been using more than 10 years but this list hasn’t changed.
- https://snipboard.io/s3jWlx.jpg – wp_cron events. Awfully, this task in unkillable: I tried to remove it but it returns. So, only way to flee is to change period. When I changed from “every minute” to “once a month” “server response time” for pages of my site changed from 7-8s to 1s
- https://snipboard.io/0qB7PN.jpg – this is piece of code that execute every minute. So, it’s clear that It doesn’t dive a chance for site to do it’s job.
Scheduled Action works as malware: hidden from site owner, uncontrollable (the schedule page is not accessible from menu, I found it by chance), unstopped, doing something that not announced by plugin author.
I’m sorry for the expression the emotion but this hidden functionality had been slowing down my site for years until I found this malware by change and costed my full lost of any positions in google/yandex search results and lost of the customers.
I believe that such software as Scheduled Actions goes against moral and community trust and call crime questions.
Can I provide some other information for you?
Hello @forcesail,
Thank you for providing the screenshots and information.
From the screenshots you shared, I see some scheduled actions are running correctly. Other failed actions are due to scheduled tasks not being properly registered in the system.
To address this issue, I recommend taking the following steps:
1. Make sure your plugins are up-to-date and Review the list of scheduled actions: The screenshot you provided shows a list of scheduled actions performed by different plugins. It’s important to identify which plugins are responsible for these actions. You mentioned that you have uninstalled all plugins except for ALL-IN-ONE-SEO. If you notice that some of the uninstalled plugins left behind scheduled actions, I recommend reaching out to the developers of the uninstalled plugins and seek their assistance in removing any residual actions.
2. Optimize your website’s performance: If you’re experiencing slow server response times, there might be other factors contributing to it as well. I suggest optimizing your website by using caching plugins, optimizing images, and using a performance optimization tool like the one provided by Jetpack. These steps can help improve your site’s speed and overall performance.
3. Consider seeking professional assistance: If you’re still experiencing performance issues after optimizing your website, it might be helpful to consult with a professional developer who specializes in WordPress performance optimization. They can provide tailored guidance and solutions based on your specific setup and requirements.
Regarding your concerns about the hidden functionality of Scheduled Actions, I understand your frustration. WordPress plugins are designed to provide features and functions that help enhance your website’s functionality. However, if you believe that certain actions are behaving in a way that goes against the intended functionality, I recommend reaching out to the plugin authors using the feature directly to express your concerns and seek their guidance.
I hope this helps improve your site performance.
Hi B.C.
it seems that you joking: I asked how to remove Scheduled Actions plugin that acts behind the curtain or stop it’s cron task, that recreates again by itself, when I remove it but you reply that your malware plugin is running correctly squeezing all resources from useful processes. The experiment with changing Scheduled Actions cron period showed that it’s the cause.
I just don’t want it’s running on my site at all! How to uninstall it?You advice me to ask plugin’s developers that use Scheduled actions to ask how to clean out after them using Jetpack, but it was Jetpack’s plugins that I uninstalled because they brought this malware! Never ever any Jetpack’s plugins anymore!
The only issue that breaks productivity of the site is Scheduled Actions, sorry, but I understand the subject, but you refuse to share the information hoe to stop the unwashed activity of your plugin.
Are you kidding me?
Hey Alexander,
Apologies if there was any misunderstanding. You mentioned earlier that:
investigating the loosing of performance of my site I fond that some plugins are using this plugin inside to work around the normal wp-cron system.
That is why I suggested reaching out to those plugins developers.
If you have already removed the Scheduled Actions plugin, it is not expected for the cron tasks to recreate.
Did you contact your host for this to know how they are running the server side cron jobs and if they have any clue on how to stop any actions from the removed plugin?
Hello B C,
thank you for the nice conversation where you pretend that don’t understand me and answer on other questions grounding on the common words. Google search and AI actually are acting this way.
Another thanks for your confirmation that Scheduled Action is a malware soft.
Hey Alexander,
That wasn’t the intention. I will still investigate this further with the developers and circle back to you if I have any information to share that may help you.
If you have any details from your host or things you tried that may help understand the issue more, do not hesitate to share.
Thanks!
It sounds like you’ve had a frustrating experience, @forcesail—I’m sorry about that. I’d like to address some of the points you’ve raised, though.
Another thanks for your confirmation that Scheduled Action is a malware soft.
In no way is Action Scheduler malware.
Few pieces of software are perfect, and I accept Action Scheduler has its bugs and imperfections but, crucially, it does not seek to do any harm—and we definitely would not stand by if we found it was inadvertently taking down everyone’s websites.
It’s simply a library that exists to help plugin authors work efficiently, and process workloads asynchronously.
I found that some plugins are using this plugin inside to work around the normal wp-cron system.
It’s not really in competition with WP Cron (in some respects it builds on top of WP Cron), and isn’t a ‘workaround’: it just offers a different pathway for processing work outside of regular web requests.
Hidden from site owner, uncontrollable (the schedule page is not accessible from menu, I found it by chance)
I don’t quite understand this feedback. It provides an admin screen, accessible to admin-level users via Tools ▸ Scheduled Actions. Some plugins may choose to hide or remove that screen, and perhaps that is behind the problem in your case, but that is out of our control.
Even more, I uninstalled all plugins that use Scheduled Action malware software except ALL-IN-ONCE-SEO that I have been using more than 10 years but this list hasn’t changed.
Your screenshot shows the sitemap scan task takes quite a long time to complete. Here is the thing: Action Scheduler, by itself, comes with a very low overhead indeed.
The real work are the scheduled actions that various plugins add … and, again, we have no control over that: if a plugin author introduces an exceptionally long-running and resource-intensive task, that is up to them. They could easily do the same thing through WP Cron or some other conduit.
We don’t generally recommend they do this, but Action Scheduler is simply a pipeline through which work is processed. If the only plugin you have retained (that uses Action Scheduler) is AI1SEO and the problems stem from the workloads they are trying to process, it’s really best to speak to them for guidance and support.
Hi Barry,
Thanks for your understanding of the level of my frustratingness being out of google/yandex seararching ranks for years thanks to Action Scheduler.
I agree that few pieces of software are perfect but it’s slowing down software by itself.
In no way is Action Scheduler malware.
There are 5 marks of malware:
1) doing some acting other than announced
2) acting regular without user’s clear wish to start a process
3) acting hidden
4) the activity is unavoidable
5) It’s imposible to stop/kill malware process without destroying the systemYou are great! Schedulled Actions satisfy all these criterias.
t’s not really in competition with WP Cron (in some respects it builds on top of WP Cron), and isn’t a ‘workaround’: it just offers a different pathway for processing work outside of regular web requests.
Yes, it’s not a competition with WP-CRON – Action Scheduler acts inside of one of the WP-CRON’s tasks. So, THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE FOR NORMAl PLUGINS To USE WP-CRON dirrectly OR INDIRRECTLY THROUGH Action Scheduler BUT IT”s HIDDEN FUNCTIONALITY ONLY.
It provides an admin screen, accessible to admin-level users via Tools ▸ Scheduled Actions. Some plugins may choose to hide or remove that screen, and perhaps that is behind the problem in your case, but that is out of our control.
Yes, Action Scheduler provides admin screen with actions list BUT nor with ALL-IN-ONE-SEO neither with WPSCAN (it’s your plugin it’s it?) it’s menu item under Tools. Probably because te only place where you call add_submenu_page() is a class named “depreciated”, but I haven’t investigated it carefully. I declare only the FACT: THERE IS NO MENU ITEM FOR Action Scheduler.
So, FACTS:
1) Action Scheduler allocate all memory every minute cutting off other processes from memory rather has it tasks or not. If site is not as powerful as Amazon it slow down reacting on requests. If site requested in times less than once a minute the Scheduled Actions accumulates for this period and execute all.
2) Action Scheduler acting as wp_cron task and looks after this task the way if to delay this task it revive by it self. This is clear malware behavior.
3) if to remove actions of Action Scheduler they revive. Again, this is clear malware behavior.
4) if to clear out Action Scheduler from a plugin the WP core error appears. It’s probably the only way to shift off Action Scheduler is to uninstall the plugin that brought it, but I didn’t try it, so I’m not sure that it works. Again, this is clear malware behavior.So, I declare that Action Scheduler do nothing that can’t be done by standard WP-core tools except that it slow down sites and execute actions hidden. So, it’s clear malware.
Hi @forcesail,
Yes, Action Scheduler provides admin screen with actions list BUT nor with ALL-IN-ONE-SEO neither with WPSCAN (it’s your plugin it’s it?) it’s menu item under Tools. Probably because te only place where you call add_submenu_page() is a class named “depreciated”, but I haven’t investigated it carefully. I declare only the FACT: THERE IS NO MENU ITEM FOR Action Scheduler.
Please work with the respective plugin authors for these options. We don’t make either of the mentioned plugins. Please feel free to investigate this carefully.
Unlike Malware, the entire plugin is open source and is developed in the open and the entire code can be reviewed here, and the plugin is documented here.
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