bbPress.org

long answer I’m afraid and in two parts

part 1 – setting the user permission to allow delete topic and delete reply

delete is easy, making it only trash is in part 2 !

Basically you’ll need to change a couple of capabilities of the participant role

see

https://codex.bbpress.org/bbpress-user-roles-and-capabilities/

you see the abilities delete topics and delete replies (as distinct from delete others topics and delete others replies)

Whilst you could amend the participant role, I haven’t documented that, so easiest is just for you to create a new role and give it the participant capabilities plus the ‘delete topics’ and ‘delete replies’. This article explains how

Custom Capabilities

add this code to your functions file – see

Functions files and child themes – explained !

part 2 – changing the function, so that delete is only shown for keymasters

This code will only allow a keymaster to permanently delete a topic

add the following to your functions file

add_filter ('bbp_get_topic_trash_link', 'topic_dont_delete');
add_filter ('bbp_get_reply_trash_link', 'reply_dont_delete');

function topic_dont_delete( $args = '') {

		// Parse arguments against default values
		$r = bbp_parse_args( $args, array(
			'id'           => 0,
			'link_before'  => '',
			'link_after'   => '',
			'sep'          => ' | ',
			'trash_text'   => esc_html__( 'Trash',   'bbpress' ),
			'restore_text' => esc_html__( 'Restore', 'bbpress' ),
			'delete_text'  => esc_html__( 'Delete',  'bbpress' )
		), 'get_topic_trash_link' );

		$actions = array();
		$topic   = bbp_get_topic( bbp_get_topic_id( (int) $r['id'] ) );

		if ( empty( $topic ) || !current_user_can( 'delete_topic', $topic->ID ) ) {
			return;
		}

		if ( bbp_is_topic_trash( $topic->ID ) ) {
			$actions['untrash'] = '<a title="' . esc_attr__( 'Restore this item from the Trash', 'bbpress' ) . '" href="' . esc_url( wp_nonce_url( add_query_arg( array( 'action' => 'bbp_toggle_topic_trash', 'sub_action' => 'untrash', 'topic_id' => $topic->ID ) ), 'untrash-' . $topic->post_type . '_' . $topic->ID ) ) . '" class="bbp-topic-restore-link">' . $r['restore_text'] . '</a>';
		} elseif ( EMPTY_TRASH_DAYS ) {
			$actions['trash']   = '<a title="' . esc_attr__( 'Move this item to the Trash',      'bbpress' ) . '" href="' . esc_url( wp_nonce_url( add_query_arg( array( 'action' => 'bbp_toggle_topic_trash', 'sub_action' => 'trash',   'topic_id' => $topic->ID ) ), 'trash-'   . $topic->post_type . '_' . $topic->ID ) ) . '" class="bbp-topic-trash-link">'   . $r['trash_text']   . '</a>';
		}
		
		if ( bbp_is_topic_trash( $topic->ID ) || !EMPTY_TRASH_DAYS ) {
		if ( bbp_is_user_keymaster()) {
		$actions['delete']  = '<a title="' . esc_attr__( 'Delete this item permanently',     'bbpress' ) . '" href="' . esc_url( wp_nonce_url( add_query_arg( array( 'action' => 'bbp_toggle_topic_trash', 'sub_action' => 'delete',  'topic_id' => $topic->ID ) ), 'delete-'  . $topic->post_type . '_' . $topic->ID ) ) . '" onclick="return confirm(\'' . esc_js( __( 'Are you sure you want to delete that permanently?', 'bbpress' ) ) . '\' );" class="bbp-topic-delete-link">' . $r['delete_text'] . '</a>';
		}
		}

				// Process the admin links
		$retval = $r['link_before'] . implode( $r['sep'], $actions ) . $r['link_after'];

		return $retval ;
	}
	
	function reply_dont_delete( $args = '' ) {

		// Parse arguments against default values
		$r = bbp_parse_args( $args, array(
			'id'           => 0,
			'link_before'  => '',
			'link_after'   => '',
			'sep'          => ' | ',
			'trash_text'   => esc_html__( 'Trash',   'bbpress' ),
			'restore_text' => esc_html__( 'Restore', 'bbpress' ),
			'delete_text'  => esc_html__( 'Delete',  'bbpress' )
		), 'get_reply_trash_link' );

		$actions = array();
		$reply   = bbp_get_reply( bbp_get_reply_id( (int) $r['id'] ) );

		if ( empty( $reply ) || !current_user_can( 'delete_reply', $reply->ID ) ) {
			return;
		}

		if ( bbp_is_reply_trash( $reply->ID ) ) {
			$actions['untrash'] = '<a title="' . esc_attr__( 'Restore this item from the Trash', 'bbpress' ) . '" href="' . esc_url( wp_nonce_url( add_query_arg( array( 'action' => 'bbp_toggle_reply_trash', 'sub_action' => 'untrash', 'reply_id' => $reply->ID ) ), 'untrash-' . $reply->post_type . '_' . $reply->ID ) ) . '" class="bbp-reply-restore-link">' . $r['restore_text'] . '</a>';
		} elseif ( EMPTY_TRASH_DAYS ) {
			$actions['trash']   = '<a title="' . esc_attr__( 'Move this item to the Trash',      'bbpress' ) . '" href="' . esc_url( wp_nonce_url( add_query_arg( array( 'action' => 'bbp_toggle_reply_trash', 'sub_action' => 'trash',   'reply_id' => $reply->ID ) ), 'trash-'   . $reply->post_type . '_' . $reply->ID ) ) . '" class="bbp-reply-trash-link">'   . $r['trash_text']   . '</a>';
		}

		if ( bbp_is_reply_trash( $reply->ID ) || !EMPTY_TRASH_DAYS ) {
		if ( bbp_is_user_keymaster()) {
		$actions['delete']  = '<a title="' . esc_attr__( 'Delete this item permanently',     'bbpress' ) . '" href="' . esc_url( wp_nonce_url( add_query_arg( array( 'action' => 'bbp_toggle_reply_trash', 'sub_action' => 'delete',  'reply_id' => $reply->ID ) ), 'delete-'  . $reply->post_type . '_' . $reply->ID ) ) . '" onclick="return confirm(\'' . esc_js( __( 'Are you sure you want to delete that permanently?', 'bbpress' ) ) . '\' );" class="bbp-reply-delete-link">' . $r['delete_text'] . '</a>';
		}
		}

		// Process the admin links
		$retval = $r['link_before'] . implode( $r['sep'], $actions ) . $r['link_after'];

		return $retval ;
	}

I haven’t fully tested this code as my test site is in some disarray whilst I test something else, so you’ll need to check that it works

you shouldn’t be changing directly !

can you come back and post your code for 2, you’ve just missed a “‘” somewhere I expect.

can you come back and post your code for 2

that’s why I need your to post your code, so that I can work out where it’s wrong 🙂

[ignore this post]

Robin, I’ve followed these steps (and several other of your support responses on this issue), and I’ve successfully created new roles using both methods, but I have a strange symptom: No matter what capabilities I allow, only the ‘Edit’ link shows on topics and replies. I simplified it to a new role, modeled after a keymaster. The role shows up, the database capabilities shows correctly, and now keymaster-only data shows under user profile images (like IP address), but still no admin links such as move, trash, etc. If I switch the user back to a regular moderator role, the links show just fine:

function add_custom_role( $bbp_roles ) {
  
$bbp_roles['villager'] = array(
'name' => 'Villager',
'capabilities' => bbp_get_caps_for_role( bbp_get_keymaster_role() ) // the same capabilities as participants
);
return $bbp_roles;
}
add_filter( 'bbp_get_dynamic_roles', 'add_custom_role', 1 );

can you humour me and try

Plugins

Deactivate all but bbpress and see if this fixes. if it does, re-enable one at a time to see which is causing the error.

Themes

If plugins don’t pinpoint the problem, as a test switch to a default theme such as twentytwelve, and see if this fixes.

Ok, no don’t bother – I was not really expecting it to change anything, just wanted to eliminate before jumping into lots of code, but since it will be a hassle, we’ll leave that for the moment and I’ve now looked at the raw code !!

ok, the template it is using is loop-single-reply which then callsbbp_reply_admin_links . this then checks whether it is a topic or reply and for a reply continues and then calls each of the elements in turn

so for trash it calls

bbp_get_reply_trash_link and checks that the user can ‘delete_reply’ before posting that link.

For a topic it jumps to

bbp_get_topic_admin_links and checks that the user can ‘delete_topic’ before posting that link.

NOW I guessing (and probably wrongly, but am short of time tonight so will get you to do more work!) that the codex or this function might be wrong and you should be giving a delete_topic singular rather than delete_topics so give that go.

If that works (and I’ll be very surprise if it does!), then you’ll need the filter much earlier to prevent permanent deletion.

Otherwise I’ll take another look tomorrow !

My role no longer displayed as ‘villager’ but instead switched back to ‘participant’, and the ‘trash’ links were never present

That’ll be because the code you’ve changed is in the functions file of your theme?!, so goes when you switch to a another theme.

That looks suspiciously like the problem and the solution! and as it’s recent it’s not in the core.

I’d suggest you change the core and see if it works.

If it does, then make a note, and check on the next update that it’s been incorporated.

Changing the core of a plugin is only a problem because it will probably be overwritten on next upgrade. You could write a couple of filters (the capability is there) if you’re worried about changing core.

great – hopefully it will be a permanent fix soon !