Working with Image Optimizers

Desktop Media Uploader works alongside installed image optimization plugins, but uploads are processed differently. Files uploaded through Desktop Media Uploader are not handled by WordPress’s normal upload pipeline, so active image optimizers generally will not detect or auto-optimize those files during upload.

When creating modern image formats such as WebP and AVIF, Desktop Media Uploader uses a common “mixed mode” approach. The additional format files are stored in the same upload directory as the main image. For example:

flowers.jpg
flowers.jpg.webp
flowers.jpg.avif

 

Some image optimization or image delivery plugins use different file naming, storage, or rewrite conventions. Those plugins may not recognize or serve images created by Desktop Media Uploader as expected.