ACF field group not saving changes

In some cases, you may encounter an issue where changes made to an Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) field group are not being saved. This can be frustrating, but there are a few steps you can take to troubleshoot and resolve this issue.

First, make sure that you have properly defined and registered your ACF field group using the acf_add_local_field_group() function. This function allows you to define the fields and settings for your field group. Here’s an example of how to use this function:

function wpsnippets_register_acf_field_group() {
    acf_add_local_field_group(array(
        'key' => 'group_123456789',
        'title' => 'My Field Group',
        'fields' => array(
            // Define your fields here
        ),
        'location' => array(
            // Define the location rules for your field group
        ),
    ));
}
add_action('acf/init', 'wpsnippets_register_acf_field_group');

Next, ensure that you have properly set up the location rules for your field group. These rules determine where the field group should be displayed. You can use functions like acf_location() or acf_location_rule() to define these rules. Here’s an example:

function wpsnippets_acf_location_rules($rules) {
    $rules[] = acf_location('post_type', '==', 'page');
    return $rules;
}
add_filter('acf/location/rule_types', 'wpsnippets_acf_location_rules');

If you have already defined and registered your field group correctly, but changes are still not being saved, it could be due to a conflict with another plugin or theme. To troubleshoot this, try disabling other plugins or switching to a default WordPress theme to see if the issue persists.

If the issue still persists, you can try resetting the ACF cache by going to the “Custom Fields” page in your WordPress admin dashboard and clicking on the “Sync” button. This will refresh the ACF cache and may resolve any caching-related issues.

Lastly, if none of the above steps resolve the issue, you can try updating your ACF version to the latest release. ACF regularly releases updates that include bug fixes and improvements, so updating to the latest version may resolve any known issues.

Remember to always backup your website before making any changes to your code or updating plugins.

I hope these steps help you resolve the issue with your ACF field group not saving changes.

Examples

Example #1: ACF field group not saving changes – Troubleshooting

This example demonstrates how to troubleshoot and fix an issue where an ACF (Advanced Custom Fields) field group is not saving changes.

function wpsnippets_acf_save_post( $post_id ) {
    // Check if this is an ACF field group
    if ( get_post_type( $post_id ) === 'acf-field-group' ) {
        // Save the field group
        acf_update_field_group( $post_id );
    }
}
add_action( 'acf/save_post', 'wpsnippets_acf_save_post', 20 );

In this code example, we are using the acf/save_post action hook to save the ACF field group when changes are made. The wpsnippets_acf_save_post function checks if the post type is acf-field-group and then calls the acf_update_field_group function to save the changes.

Example #2: ACF field group not saving changes – Database conflict

This example demonstrates how to resolve a conflict with the database that may prevent an ACF field group from saving changes.

function wpsnippets_acf_save_post( $post_id ) {
    // Check if this is an ACF field group
    if ( get_post_type( $post_id ) === 'acf-field-group' ) {
        // Save the field group
        acf_update_field_group( $post_id );

        // Clear the ACF cache
        acf_reset_cache( 'field_groups' );
    }
}
add_action( 'acf/save_post', 'wpsnippets_acf_save_post', 20 );

In this code example, we are adding an additional step to clear the ACF cache using the acf_reset_cache function. This can help resolve any conflicts with the database that may prevent the field group from saving changes.

Example #3: ACF field group not saving changes – Plugin conflict

This example demonstrates how to troubleshoot and fix a conflict with another plugin that may prevent an ACF field group from saving changes.

function wpsnippets_acf_save_post( $post_id ) {
    // Check if this is an ACF field group
    if ( get_post_type( $post_id ) === 'acf-field-group' ) {
        // Save the field group
        acf_update_field_group( $post_id );

        // Disable conflicting plugin
        deactivate_plugins( 'conflicting-plugin/conflicting-plugin.php' );
    }
}
add_action( 'acf/save_post', 'wpsnippets_acf_save_post', 20 );

In this code example, we are deactivating a conflicting plugin using the deactivate_plugins function. This can help identify and resolve any conflicts that may prevent the ACF field group from saving changes.