Your data, your database
Tickets, replies, internal notes, activity entries, custom fields and time entries are stored in your own WordPress database. Replies, notes and activity entries are saved in the WordPress comments table under private types. They are hidden from the Comments screen, from feeds and from the normal comments tools.
Uploaded attachments go into your normal uploads folder and show up in the Media Library. They have a direct web address and no extra access protection.
HelpDesk WP sends data elsewhere only in these cases:
- Licence checks and updates. These send your site address, WordPress version and plugin version, and no ticket data.
- Notification emails. They travel through your site's mail system or SMTP provider.
- The email health check, which looks up DNS records for your From address domain.
- AI requests, only if you turn on the AI assistant.
- Extensions you install, for example Webhooks and Paid Support.
Uninstalling
By default, deleting the plugin keeps your data, so you can reinstall later. Your licence key and the Support Agent role are kept too.
To remove everything:
- Go to Helpdesk > Settings and find the "Uninstall Behavior" section.
- Under "On plugin deletion", tick "Permanently delete all tickets, knowledge base articles, and settings when this plugin is deleted (not just deactivated)". It is off by default.
- Click "Save" in that section.
- Go to Plugins, deactivate HelpDesk WP, then delete it.
What the delete option removes
It removes tickets, knowledge base articles, canned responses, categories and tags, the watcher and message tables, module data and the licence key.
It does not remove:
- Uploaded attachment files. They stay in the Media Library.
- The knowledge base layout and accent colour, guest-submission and rate-limit settings, and the From name and address.
The knowledge base address settings are removed on every uninstall, whether or not you ticked the box.
This cannot be undone. Take a backup first.
Still stuck? Open a ticket on the support page on ABC and a real person will help.
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