Contents
Plugixa Exam - User Documentation
Welcome to the official documentation for Plugixa Exam, a WordPress plugin that turns a site into somewhere people can actually sit an exam: a question bank organised by subject, exams built from fixed lists or random pools, a runner with a server-owned clock, and marking that happens the moment a paper is handed in.
Plugixa Exam ships in two editions:
- Free - the question bank, seven question types, sections and pools, the runner, automatic and manual marking, four access modes, the learner portal, roles, notifications, and import/export.
- Pro PRO - seven more question types, the certificate designer, live invigilation, analytics, a gradebook, cohorts, prerequisites, custom fields, version history, practice mode, multilingual content, AI drafting, LMS bridges, LTI 1.3, webhooks and API tokens.
The free edition is not a trial. Nothing in it is disabled, and it contains no premium code to unlock. See the complete Free vs Pro feature matrix.
What makes it different
Three decisions shape everything else, and they are worth knowing before you build your first exam.
| Decision | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| The clock is the server’s | The deadline is computed and stored when the attempt starts, and every write checks it. The countdown in the browser is decoration, so changing the clock on the candidate’s machine does nothing. |
| The paper is frozen at the start | Questions, order, points and settings are captured into the attempt. Editing an exam half way through applies to the next person, never the one already answering. |
| JavaScript is an enhancement | The runner degrades to an ordinary form post. A candidate on a locked-down machine still finishes their paper. |
Key concepts
| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| Subject | A node in a nestable tree. Questions belong to one, and results break down by it. |
| Question | One item in the bank, written once and reusable in any exam. |
| Exam | A published paper, made of sections. |
| Section | Either a fixed list of questions or a pool with rules. |
| Pool rule | Subject, tag, difficulty, type and how many to draw. Evaluated when an attempt starts. |
| Attempt | One person’s sitting of one exam, carrying its own frozen question set and deadline. |
| Access mode | How somebody is let in: open, by role, by code, as a named guest, or by cohort PRO. |
| Release policy | When a score becomes visible: immediately, on close, on a date, or by hand. |
| Role | One of five seeded roles across twelve permissions, optionally scoped to a person’s own work. |
| App | A capability you can switch off in the App Manager. Off means blocked at the endpoint, not hidden from the menu. |
Getting started
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Getting Started | Install, activate, and publish your first exam |
| Dashboard | What is in the bank, what is open, what needs marking |
| Free vs Pro | The complete feature matrix |
The question bank
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Subjects | The subject tree, and how results break down by it |
| Tags | Free-form tags, and how pools select on them |
| Questions | Writing, editing and organising the bank |
| Question Types | All fourteen types, and how each one is marked |
| Images in Questions | Uploading, alt text, and what is rejected |
| Version History PRO | What a paper asked at the time somebody sat it |
| Custom Fields PRO | Your own data on questions and exams |
| Maths and LaTeX PRO | Formulae in stems, options and answers |
| AI Drafting PRO | Draft questions from a syllabus with your own API key |
Building exams
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Exams | Creating, publishing and organising exams |
| Sections and Pools | Fixed lists, pool rules, shuffling and points |
| Access and Enrollment | Who can sit it, attempt caps and cooldowns |
| Cohorts PRO | Exams that belong to a class, not a site |
| Prerequisites PRO | Requiring another exam first |
| Calendar | The schedule view of open and upcoming exams |
Sitting an exam
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Exam Runner | Timing, freezing, autosave, pause and resume |
| Practice Mode PRO | Untimed attempts with per-question feedback |
| Integrity Signals PRO | What is recorded, and what it does not conclude |
| Live Monitoring PRO | The invigilation board and interventions |
Marking and results
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Grading | Automatic marking, partial credit, negative marking |
| Manual Marking | The queue, the rubric, and releasing a result |
| Results and Reports | What candidates see, and when |
| Gradebook PRO | Letter grades and weighted transcripts |
| Certificates | Issuing, the design, and QR verification |
| Certificate designer PRO | The canvas, many designs, one per exam |
| Analytics PRO | Item analysis and scheduled reports |
| Leaderboards PRO | Opt-in public rankings |
Putting it on the site
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Blocks | The five blocks, and the one Pro adds |
| Shortcodes | Every shortcode and its attributes |
| Learner Portal | /my-exams/ and the three lists |
| Templates and Overrides | Making the exam pages match your theme |
Configuration
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Settings | Formatting, colours, pages and the App Manager |
| Roles and Permissions | Five roles, twelve permissions, “edit own” |
| Notifications | The seeded email templates and the sending queue |
| Alerts | The in-app feed for admins and learners |
| Multilingual PRO | One exam in several languages |
Data
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Import and Export | CSV, Aiken, GIFT, Moodle XML and QTI |
| Demo Data PRO | A realistic dataset to explore |
| Privacy and GDPR | What is stored, exported and erased |
Integrations
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Tutor LMS PRO | Course enrollment and completion |
| LearnDash PRO | Course enrollment and completion |
| LifterLMS PRO | Course enrollment and completion |
| LTI 1.3 PRO | Launching from Moodle, Canvas and others |
| Webhooks PRO | Signed outbound notifications |
| API Tokens PRO | Scoped bearer tokens for automation |
For developers
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Hooks Reference | Every action and filter, with examples |
| REST API | The plugixa-exam/v1 namespace |
Support
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Troubleshooting | Common problems and their causes |
System requirements
- WordPress: 6.5 or higher
- PHP: 8.1 or higher
- MySQL: 5.7+ / MariaDB 10.3+, InnoDB
- Browsers: current Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge. The runner also works with JavaScript disabled.
The plugin creates its own database tables on activation and removes them on uninstall.
Getting help
- Check Troubleshooting first.
- Read the page for the specific feature you are using.
- Contact support through your Plugixa account.
License
Plugixa Exam is licensed under the GPL v2 or later. Pro features require a valid Plugixa license, managed through Freemius.