LW LMS Abilities API

Use this when an AI agent, MCP client, REST consumer, or reviewer works with the machine-callable lw-lms/* abilities. This is not the learner-facing /wp-json/lms/v1 REST API and not the companion-plugin extension hook map; it is the admin/agent-facing ability surface.

When to use this skill

Trigger this skill when ANY of the following is true:

• The request mentions lw-lms/list-courses, lw-lms/get-course, lw-lms/get-progress, lw-lms/set-progress, or lw-lms/get-options.
• Code calls /wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/lw-lms/.../run.
• A user asks how Claude, ChatGPT, MCP, or another AI agent can inspect or mutate LMS course/progress data.
• A diff touches includes/SiteManager/Integration.php, includes/SiteManager/Abilities/, OutputSchemas, or the ability service classes.
• You need to decide whether to call Abilities API vs /wp-json/lms/v1.

Verified registration model

LW LMS v1.6.0 registers abilities in two modes. The v1.4.0 WP-CLI/settings work, v1.5.0 WooCommerce Memberships access, and v1.6.0 access-filter/source-revocation changes did not add or change any lw-lms/* ability.

1. Site Manager bridge: hooks lw_site_manager_register_categories and lw_site_manager_register_abilities, receives the Site Manager PermissionManager, and registers into category lms.
2. Standalone fallback: hooks wp_abilities_api_categories_init and wp_abilities_api_init at priority 20. did_action() guards prevent duplicate registration when Site Manager is active.

Do not claim Site Manager is required for LMS abilities. Since v1.2.16, WordPress 6.9+ Abilities API or the feature plugin is enough.

Ability catalog

Ability	Type	Permission key	Input	Output
lw-lms/list-courses	readonly	can_edit_posts	per_page, page	success, courses, total, total_pages, page, per_page
lw-lms/get-course	readonly	can_edit_posts	required course_id	success, course with sections and lessons
lw-lms/get-progress	readonly	can_edit_posts	required user_id, course_id	summary plus lesson status map
lw-lms/set-progress	write	can_edit_posts	required user_id, course_id, lesson_id, status	success, message
lw-lms/get-options	readonly	can_manage_options	empty object	success, options

set-progress accepts only completed, in_progress, or not_started. Reverting from completed is a write that loses the completion timestamp for that row; do not treat it as harmless even though AbilityMeta::write() marks writes idempotent.

Calling pattern

Abilities use the core Abilities API route, not the LMS REST namespace:

curl -X POST "https://site.example/wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/lw-lms/get-progress/run" \
  -u 'admin:xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"input":{"user_id":7,"course_id":42}}'

The request body must wrap arguments in input. Direct PHP is also valid:

$ability = wp_get_ability( 'lw-lms/set-progress' );
$result  = $ability->execute(
    [
        'user_id'   => 7,
        'course_id' => 42,
        'lesson_id' => 55,
        'status'    => 'completed',
    ]
);

Critical rules

• Use Abilities API for admin/agent operations; use /wp-json/lms/v1 for learner-facing frontend data.
• Feature-detect with function_exists( 'wp_register_ability' ) or wp_get_ability( 'lw-lms/list-courses' ); the plugin silently skips abilities when the API is unavailable.
• Permission keys map through Site Manager when present. Standalone fallback maps can_edit_posts to edit_posts, can_manage_options to manage_options, and can_edit_users to edit_users.
• lw-lms/get-course returns admin/agent data, not access-gated learner content. Do not expose it directly to public learners.
• lw-lms/set-progress calls ProgressRepository::upsert(), so completion hooks and snapshots still run. Do not replace it with raw SQL.
• Trust OutputSchemas over the older prose docs when shape details differ; v1.2.16 added total_pages, page, and per_page to list-courses.

Common mistakes

# WRONG: LMS learner REST namespace, not an ability run route.
curl -X POST https://site.example/wp-json/lms/v1/get-progress

# RIGHT:
curl -X POST https://site.example/wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/lw-lms/get-progress/run \
  -d '{"input":{"user_id":7,"course_id":42}}'

// WRONG: assume Site Manager must be active.
if ( ! class_exists( '\LightweightPlugins\SiteManager\Plugin' ) ) {
    return;
}

// RIGHT: check the ability/API you actually need.
if ( function_exists( 'wp_get_ability' ) && wp_get_ability( 'lw-lms/list-courses' ) ) {
    // Call it.
}

Cross-references

• Run lw-lms-backend-extend when adding companion hooks around enrollment, access, or progress.
• Run lw-site-manager-overview when consuming the broader site-manager/* ability surface.
• Run wp-abilities-api for the underlying WordPress Abilities API mechanics.

What this skill does NOT cover

• Public learner UI and course rendering. Use lw-lms-rest-frontend for the core REST API contract.
• Registering arbitrary third-party Site Manager abilities. Use lw-site-manager-extend-abilities.
• LearnDash migration. Use lw-lms-learndash-migration.

References

• Registration bridge and fallback: includes/SiteManager/Integration.php.
• Ability definitions: includes/SiteManager/Abilities/CourseAbilities.php, ProgressAbilities.php, OptionsAbilities.php.
• Permission fallback: includes/SiteManager/Abilities/AbilityPermissions.php.
• Output schemas: includes/SiteManager/Schema/OutputSchemas.php.
• Service behavior and WP_Error codes: includes/SiteManager/Service/.
• Official documentation: https://github.com/lwplugins/lw-lms
• Official documentation: https://developer.wordpress.org/apis/abilities-api/
• Verified source paths:
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-lms/includes/SiteManager/Abilities/AbilityMeta.php
  • wp-content/plugins/lw-lms/docs/site-manager-abilities.md