ChatGPT Plus and Codex used to debug WordPress plugin; host caching required escalation

A ZDNET writer used the $20-per-month ChatGPT Plus plan together with GPT-5.2-Codex inside VS Code to diagnose and patch a bug in an open-source WordPress privacy plugin, but the final resolution required the hosting provider to disable host-level caching. The writer said Codex asked for a settings export, inspected the plugin code and identified a usage pattern that caused a blocking setting not to persist on sites with a certain robots.txt-related configuration.

Codex rewrote the code, the writer recreated the user’s configuration locally, and the revised code made the setting stick in tests. The writer also noted they had previously used a $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro plan but found the $20 Plus plan sufficient for this work. Despite the code fix, some pages remained unprotected because cached pages were being served outside the plugin’s control.

Using a test parameter (for example, ?mps_hide=1) confirmed that host-level caching was feeding old pages. Because the hosting environment prevented direct server access, Codex drafted a technical support request—including a “proof of diagnosis”—that the non-technical user sent to the hosting provider; the user reported everything was working a day later and left a five-star review.

Key Topics

Tech, Chatgpt Plus, Codex, Wordpress Plugin, Vs Code, Robots.txt