How to remove theme from wordpress
Deleting vs Uninstalling a Theme
In theory, remove theme from wordpress and deleting it should be the same thing. In both cases, the theme code files will be deleted from the server. Both cases, all data should be deleted. But in some cases, simply uninstalling a theme may not remove all the related content. We’ll see how to do this later in this guide.
It is also useful to understand the difference between remove theme from wordpress and disabling a theme.
A theme is disabled if you activate another theme instead. Unlike plugins, where you have to manually disable any plugin you don’t want to run, the process is automatic. Indeed, only one theme can be active on a site.
So when you turn off the current theme by activating a new theme, the new theme becomes active, but nothing in the old theme is deleted from the system. All settings you have configured are stored in the database, in case you need to reactivate the theme (which saves you from redoing the job). Any widgets you’ve added to your theme’s widget areas are saved but moved to the Inactive Widgets section of the Widgets screen. And all the menus you’ve added to the theme are kept, but you need to specify where in the new theme you want to appear.
If you want to remove theme from wordpress and all its settings, etc., you need to delete it. To find out how, read on!
When Not to Delete a WordPress Theme
Sometimes a topic is inactive on your site, but you still do not need to delete it. These include:
1. The topic is a parent topic for the currently active topic.
2. Your site is on a multisite network and the theme is active on another site on the web.
3. You must keep the topic for testing or reactivation after testing the current topic
WordPress Multi-site
If your site is part of a WordPress multisite network and you only have administrator privileges for the site, you won’t be able to remove (or install) themes. Indeed, the only user who can manage the themes is the network administrator.
You can check if your site is part of a network by looking at the admin bar above. If it’s a My Sites item, it’s a network instead of a stand-alone site:
You cannot install or remove themes, but you can activate themes that are already installed on the network administration network.
If you are a network administrator and you have disabled a topic on one of your own websites, be sure to delete topics that you no longer use. Other users may have activated this theme on their site.
That doesn’t mean that there’s no point in cleaning up your theme (and plugins) every once in a while and removing the ones you don’t use on the web. To see how the theme is being used on your network, you can install the Multisite Enhancement plugin and enable networking. It adds a column to the themes and plugins screen in the network administrator and tells you which themes and plugins are active on various sites on your network.
Backing Up
Before removing anything from your site, first make a backup, just like you did before running the update.
Kinsta includes a one-click backup option in its hosting plans, so you can quickly take a backup before deleting the theme, and then quickly restore it if it turns out to be a problem.
If you don’t have one-click backup in your hosting plan, you can install a backup plugin and use it.
However, do not skip this step.
How to Delete a WordPress Theme
So you have checked if your theme is safe to delete and made a backup. Now is the time to delete this theme.
You can do this in three ways:
1. Via the WordPress dashboard
2. Using FTP / SFTP
3. Using WP-CLI
Let’s take a look at each in turn.
1. Deleting a WordPress Theme via the WordPress Dashboard
Deleting a theme through the WordPress dashboard is the easiest way to do it. If you have access to the administration screen, this is the recommended method.
On your WordPress site, go to Appearance> Themes. You will see all your installed themes displayed with the active theme first in the list.
From the list, click on the theme you need to delete to outlook its details.
The Twenty Seventeen theme
In the lesser right-hand corner, there’s a Delete link. Click on that and WordPress will check you surely want to delete the theme. Click the OK key in the popup and the subject will be deleted.
2. Deleting a WordPress Theme via FTP/SFTP
If you don’t have access to the WordPress dashboard, but access the site via FTP / SFTP, you can delete the folder containing the content (here is the difference between FTP and SFTP).
You can do this through your FTP users. Open your FTP client and point to the wp-content / content directory on your site.
You will see all the details are installed. You have no way of knowing which ones are active, so this can be a risky way to remove content and why it is important to do a backup first. But if the theme itself has been cracked and prevented you from accessing the admin screens, this could be your choice.
Hover your mouse over the folder containing the content you want to remove and click it on it to access the menu (most FTP users will allow you to do this, but you’re probably done may be slightly different).
Click on Delete in the shortcut menu. Your FTP client will ask you to check that you indeed want to delete the file. Choice Yes or OK. The theme will then be deleted.
3. Deleting a Theme via WP-CLI
You will see that all the points are installed. You have no way of knowing which ones are active, so it can be risky to delete content and why it is important to back up first. But if the theme itself is cracked and prevents it from entering the administrator screens, this may be your choice.
Place your mouse over the folder containing the content you want to delete and click on it to access the menu (most FTP users allow you to do this, but you can how) it can be slightly different).
To delete the theme, type in the following:
$ wp theme delete twentyseventeen
Note that the final parameter is the name of the theme’s folder, not the name of the theme as you would see it in the admin screens.
You will then see a message telling you the theme has been deleted:
Deleted ‘twentytwelve’ theme.
Success: Deleted 1 of 1 themes.
If you are aware with using WP-CLI, this is a quick way to remove content, but there are risks involved. Because you don’t have the content you received on the control screens, it’s easier to delete the content incorrectly. So be careful, try your site first and make sure you have a backup.
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Testing Your Site After Deleting a Theme
Once you have remove theme from wordpress, it is important to rate your site. Visit your browser and clear your cache to make sure everything is working properly.
If you deliberately remove the theme that is older than the active content, you will find that all or part of the CSS is missing, which means your site looks like its default site. You deliberately delete a theme frequently, WordPress has found other themes to use (assuming you have another setting).
If you intentionally destroy the theme, you might want to reinstall it. You can do this on basic themes if you get the theme from content first or re-enter the theme from the backup you got before you started.
Deleting Theme-related Content
After you delete the content, you’ll see that your site still has unique content for the content you’ve disabled.
This may include:
1. Large objects
2. Meals
3. Illegal content, such as notifications, pages or notifications of any kind, if the subject is registered.
4. Photos
To clean the site and make it as good as possible, you need to remove this content or reactivate it in your new content.