Custom database table for plugin not creating on activation

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Here’s an updated version of pf_rb_install().

In the table creation SQL, $table_name should not be in quotes. The quotes should have triggered an error which would appear in PHP’s error.log file. Also, there should be two spaces after the PRIMARY KEY (id) portion of the SQL statement.

register_activation_hook( __FILE__, 'pf_rb_install' );
function pf_rb_install() {
    global $wpdb;
    $table_name = $wpdb->prefix . 'pf_parts';
    $pf_parts_db_version = '1.0.0';
    $charset_collate = $wpdb->get_charset_collate();

    if ( $wpdb->get_var( "SHOW TABLES LIKE '{$table_name}'" ) != $table_name ) {

        $sql = "CREATE TABLE $table_name (
                        id mediumint(9) NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
                        PRIMARY KEY  (id)
                        ) $charset_collate;";

        require_once( ABSPATH . 'wp-admin/includes/upgrade.php' );
        dbDelta( $sql );
        add_option( 'pf_parts_db_version', $pf_parts_db_version );
    }
}

The code also has a version number added which will help if modifications are made to the database schema in the future. Finally, a check was added so that the database creation code is only run if the table does not exist. More on creating custom tables can be found in the Codex article Creating Tables with Plugins.

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