ManageWP is great.
Here is our path to replacing it.
ManageWP defined multi-site WordPress management for a decade, and many of us ran our agencies on it. But paying recurring per-site fees and managing sites detached from your actual hosting infrastructure isn't where modern agencies want to be. Clockwork Control is our mission to build a 100% self-hosted replacement. We're doing our best to replace each feature step-by-step — we're not quite at full parity yet, but we give you complete data ownership, zero per-site tax, and direct hosting integration from day one.
The reality of moving away from ManageWP
ManageWP is a battle-tested commercial platform that paved the way for WordPress maintenance. We respect what it built. Our goal with Clockwork Control isn't to pretend we built everything overnight, but to give agency owners an open-source, sovereign foundation that you can run on your own hardware without paying a per-site tax.
Ready in Clockwork Control Today
Production-Ready Core Features
Dual-Layout: Command Center & Modern Studio
Runtime switching between high-density Command Center operations rail (with 3-tier status borders and Linear-style user menu) and human-centric Modern Studio with instant client-side live search.
Visual Fleet Grid & Site Screenshots
Toggleable 16:10 website preview card grid powered by an automated background capture engine using Automattic mShots, health-colored accent bars, and real-time live search.
Master Agency Palette & White-Label Hub
Centralized master palette cascading across wp-admin Companion metadata and menus, automated PDF/web Client Reports, and branded outbound CVE alert emails with live test sending and full-page preview.
Automated Executive Client Reports
Built-in ClientReports module generating white-labeled PDF/HTML maintenance reports aggregating updates, uptime, security scans, backups, performance scores, and contact form tests — at $0.
4-Layer Threat Intel & Web Risk
Commercial-standard Google Cloud Web Risk API domain reputation, remote Sucuri malware scanning, on-disk WP core checksum audits, and in-WP Companion malware scans bypassing Cloudflare.
Code Snippets Execution Workbench
Run sandboxed PHP code snippets across one or multiple client sites with execution time, memory usage tracking, and full audit logging via the Companion bridge.
1-Click Site Maintenance Mode
Toggle 503 maintenance mode on or off instantly across any client site with custom headline, message, and secret bypass key without needing SSH access.
Comment Moderation & Spam Cleanup
Browse, filter, and moderate comments (approve, hold, spam, trash, delete) across sites, plus automated weekly scheduled cron cleanup of old spam and trash.
Spaces Backups & S3 Archival
Direct S3 snapshot verification against DigitalOcean Spaces with cadence history modal, plus offsite backup relay directly into your AWS S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval for 90-day retention.
Direct Hosting & Cloud Integration
Connect SpinupWP, Pressable, WP Engine, Kinsta, Cloudways, and cloud hypervisors (DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Vultr, Linode, Azure) in a single unified dashboard.
Zero Per-Site Tax ($0 Licensing)
100% Free and open-source under the MIT License. Run 20 sites or 500+ without monthly add-on invoices or tier cliffs.
1-Click Passwordless SSO
Jump directly into any client wp-admin dashboard with cryptographically signed, one-time nonces without storing shared passwords.
Full-Stack Server Telemetry
Track CPU and RAM spikes, memory exhaustion, Ubuntu apt package updates, and real service availability across your hosting fleet.
Multi-Layer Security & Checksums
Sucuri SiteCheck API, core WordPress checksum verification, Gatekeeper native brute-force defense, and fail2ban Linux firewall jail management.
Emergency SMS & ChatOps Alerts
Instant Twilio SMS text messages to on-call developers when a site drops, combined with Slack or Mattermost notification webhooks.
Client Management & Care Plan Billing
Organize sites by client with contact info, notes, and native Bill.com care plan invoice verification before performing out-of-scope work.
Where We're Still Catching Up
Transparent Roadmap & Gaps
Automated Visual Regression Diffs
Capturing before-and-after screenshots to detect visual layout shifts when updating plugins and themes. (Planned).
1-Click Staging Clone Deployments
Automated cross-host database and media cloning for staging and sandbox testing before production rollouts. (Planned).
Granular Role-Based Team Permissions
Fine-grained access control scoping junior developers or contractors to specific client site subsets. (Planned).
How to Transition Safely
You don't need to cut ManageWP cold-turkey. Most agencies install Clockwork Control on their local Mac Studio or office server, connect their hosting accounts, and run both side-by-side. Use Clockwork Control for daily multi-host oversight, server telemetry, and SSO while we continue building toward complete feature parity.
Open-Source Means You Can Help Close Gaps
Because Clockwork Control is a clean Laravel codebase with modular contracts, agencies can easily implement custom modules and open pull requests for missing integrations.
How Clockwork Control compares to ManageWP
A side-by-side evaluation of commercial SaaS constraints versus modern self-hosted fleet management.
| Evaluation Criteria | ManageWP (Commercial SaaS) | Clockwork Control (Self-Hosted) |
|---|---|---|
| Site Command Center Overview | Static legacy tab interface with fixed card layouts and zero customization | ✓Dual-Layout Architecture: switch instantly between dense Command Center operations rail and spacious Modern Studio with live search, plus a modular 3-column per-site overview grid with draggable widgets |
| Visual Fleet Grid & Screenshots | Basic text tables only (no visual preview of client homepages) | ✓Toggleable visual card grid with automated 16:10 website preview thumbnails and health-colored accent strips |
| Agency White-Labeling & Branding | Paid add-on ($1–$2/site/mo) or locked to expensive upper tiers | ✓Master Agency Brand Palette in /settings/companion with 1-click cascade to wp-admin Companion chrome, Client Reports, and notification emails, plus full-page live preview at $0 |
| Hosting & Server Control | None (ManageWP has no connection to your hosting accounts or server hypervisors) | ✓Direct API & SSH integration with SpinupWP, Pressable, WP Engine, Kinsta, Cloudways, & Linux VPS |
| Client Maintenance Reports | Paid add-on ($1/site/mo) for branded client maintenance summaries | ✓Built-in automated white-label executive reports (updates, uptime, security, backups, CWV scores, & forms) at $0 |
| Code Snippets Workbench | Proprietary remote cloud snippet execution | ✓Sandboxed PHP execution workbench with preset/custom snippets run across sites via Companion with duration & RAM logs |
| Site Maintenance Mode | Proprietary worker plugin splash screen | ✓1-click 503 maintenance mode with custom title, message, and secret bypass key without needing SSH |
| Comment Moderation & Spam | Centralized comment inbox | ✓Multi-site comment moderation (approve/hold/spam/trash/delete) plus automated weekly scheduled cleanup of old spam |
| Backups & Air-Gap Archival | Paid cloud add-on ($1–$2/site/mo) locked into proprietary GoDaddy cloud storage | ✓DigitalOcean Spaces S3 verification & snapshot history, paired with automated offsite archival to AWS S3 Glacier and 2-step verified restore for standalone sites at $0 |
| Fleet Telemetry & Health | Basic external HTTP ping (blind to server RAM exhaustion, CPU spikes, or disk space) | ✓Full-stack telemetry: server load, memory usage, apt security updates, and uptime alarms |
| Software Cost & Licensing | Per-site add-ons ($1–$2/site/mo each) that continuously scale up your agency costs | ✓$0 / month (100% Free & Open-Source under the MIT License) |
| Data Privacy & Credential Custody | Proprietary Cloud SaaS (GoDaddy) holding your client credentials & access keys | ✓Self-hosted on your own LAN, Mac Studio, or private VPS — you own 100% of your data |
| 1-Click WP-Admin SSO | Proprietary worker plugin session injection | ✓Cryptographically signed short-lived nonces via lightweight mu-plugin |
| Security & Brute-Force Defense | External HTML regex scan only (Sucuri iframe) | ✓Comprehensive threat defense: Google Cloud Web Risk API + Spamhaus/URLhaus + remote Sucuri + core checksums + fail2ban IP jails + weekly WordPress.org closed plugin audits + daily CISA KEV active zero-day sync |
| Contact Form Synthetic Testing | None (blind to broken client contact forms) | ✓Automated synthetic form submissions verifying deliverability on Gravity Forms & Contact Form 7 |
| Emergency Outage Alerting & SLA | Delayed generic emails or costly third-party notification add-ons | ✓Twilio SMS emergency text dispatch on downtime + Slack & Mattermost channels, with root-cause fault attribution excusing client DNS errors from contractual SLA penalties |
| Care Plan & Billing Verification | None (requires manual spreadsheets or disconnected billing lookups) | ✓Native Bill.com integration matching sites to active care plan invoices |
| Plugin Updates & Vulnerabilities | Remote worker plugin executing updates with proprietary Safe Updates add-on | ✓Synchronous native Plugin_Upgrader via mu-plugin with CVE vulnerability checks |
| Coexistence & Transition | All-or-nothing SaaS lock-in | ✓Runs cleanly alongside ManageWP while you evaluate and transition your fleet |
ManageWP can't see or control your actual servers
ManageWP only connects via a standard WordPress plugin at the CMS layer. When a server runs out of memory, PHP-FPM sockets choke, or an attacker attacks your infrastructure, ManageWP has no insight into the underlying host environment.
Clockwork Control gives agencies real infrastructure integration. It communicates directly with your hosting providers (SpinupWP, Pressable, WP Engine, Kinsta, Cloudways) and cloud hypervisors (DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Vultr, Linode, Azure) while maintaining native command access.
The Clockwork Companion Difference:
Instead of a heavy third-party vendor worker plugin, Clockwork Control deploys an agency-branded mu-plugin (Must-Use) that client admins cannot accidentally deactivate.
Clients can see what their care plan covers: verified backups, clean security audits, and uptime history.
Jump straight into any client's wp-admin dashboard with one-time cryptographically minted nonces — no shared passwords.
Updates plugins synchronously using WordPress core's upgrade engine with automatic reactivation validation.
Execute sandboxed PHP snippets and toggle 503 maintenance mode with custom headlines across your fleet via secure HMAC-SHA256 endpoints.
Zero per-site tax. Completely predictable scale.
Stop paying third-party SaaS vendors extra every time you win a new client. Clockwork Control is self-hosted, unmetered, and built to scale with your agency’s infrastructure — not your credit card.
Unlimited Client Sites
Manage 20 client sites or 500+. Clockwork Control has no per-site fees, no tier cliffs, and zero penalty for growing your agency's retainer client base.
100% Yours • $0 Licensing
Deploy Clockwork Control on your own local Mac Studio, office workstation, or dedicated private server. Your client credentials, tokens, and access logs never leave your infrastructure.
Stack Consolidation
Replace fragmented third-party subscriptions for backups, uptime probes, Twilio SMS text alerts, Slack/Mattermost chatops, Bill.com care plan tracking, and fail2ban active defense with a single cohesive command center.
Take back control of your agency fleet
Install Clockwork Control locally on your Mac Studio or office server. No credit card, no telemetry, no recurring SaaS subscriptions.
