Project brief:

On a FreelanceEngine-based site, users who register as freelancers are able to access Dokan but do not receive the full vendor capabilities/rights. The client requested that the role freelancer be given all Dokan vendor rights while remaining a freelancer; and that the opposite also work — when a vendor registers they should also receive freelancer rights.

Why CnEL India was the right team

• WordPress & Marketplace expertise — deep experience integrating themes (FreelanceEngine) with marketplace plugins (Dokan/WooCommerce) and resolving role/capability mismatches safely.
• Security-first approach — we treat capabilities as a security boundary and perform changes so they are auditable and reversible.
• Reliable delivery — we provide both a production-safe implementation and a developer-friendly rollback/testing plan.
• Clear documentation & support — every code change is delivered as a small plugin or mu-plugin with comments and an uninstall/rollback path.

Challenge

The site uses two distinct user flows and roles: freelancer (from FreelanceEngine) and Dokan’s vendor. By default these roles have different capabilities. The requirement was to ensure both roles have the capabilities necessary to act as a Dokan vendor and to remain functional as a freelancer — and that the mapping works both ways without elevating privileges for unexpected roles (least privilege principle).

Objectives

1. Grant the freelancer role the capabilities required by Dokan vendors (product management, store management, order management, etc.) while preserving freelancer-specific capabilities.
2. Grant the Dokan vendor role the capabilities needed for freelancers (profile/portfolio, access to freelance-specific pages or custom post types) so vendors may also use freelance features.
3. Make the change reversible, testable, and safe for production (no direct theme edits).

Solution overview

CnEL India implemented a small, self-contained plugin (or mu-plugin) that:

• Reads the capability sets on both roles at runtime (so the solution adapts to Dokan / site variations).
• Copies Dokan vendor capabilities to the freelancer role (if it exists) and copies freelancer capabilities to the Dokan vendor role.
• Performs the change only if the roles are present and logs the operations for audit/rollback.
• Includes a safe uninstall/rollback routine and a short test checklist for administrators.

Technical implementation (code)

Install as a small plugin (recommended) or drop into wp-content/mu-plugins/. The code below safely attempts to locate common Dokan role slugs and copies capabilities bi-directionally. Place in a file such as cnel-sync-dokan-freelancer.php.

<?php

Notes about the code

• The plugin looks for the most common Dokan role slugs and common freelancer slugs — update the candidate arrays to match your site if you use custom slugs.
• It adds capabilities only (non-destructive) and writes an audit log into a WordPress option (cnel_dokan_freelancer_sync_log), so you can inspect exactly what changed before making any rollback decisions.
• If your site uses a Dokan Pro module or other plugins that add capabilities later, re-run the sync (visit ?cnel_sync=1 as an admin) so newly added caps are copied.
• We intentionally avoid removing caps automatically to prevent accidental privilege removal; if you want full reversible automation we provide a tested rollback script as part of delivery.

Testing & QA checklist (recommended)

1. Create two staging users: one with the freelancer role, one with the Dokan vendor role.
2. Activate the plugin on staging and either re-register or run the sync using ?cnel_sync=1 while logged in as an admin.
3. From the freelancer account: verify vendor dashboard access, create a product, edit product, view/manage orders, and access Dokan store settings (store name, store settings, withdrawal request page if applicable).
4. From the vendor account: verify freelancer-specific pages are accessible (profile, portfolio, or any custom freelance post types), can apply to freelance projects or create freelance listings if your theme uses them.
5. Confirm that capabilities required only for admins are NOT added to these roles (e.g., manage_options, full plugin/theme editing capabilities).
6. Review the log stored at cnel_dokan_freelancer_sync_log via get_option() or a small admin page for audit.

Security & maintenance considerations

• Only grant the capabilities that Dokan actually needs. Our sync copies capabilities declared on the roles; review the capability list in the log and remove any capability you consider too privileged.
• Perform these changes on staging first and back up the database before running on production.
• Consider scheduling a re-sync after major plugin updates (Dokan releases new capabilities or modules).
• Track capability changes in a site-change log or within a staging/CI process.

Deliverables provided by CnEL India

• Small plugin file with commented code (as above) and activation/administration instructions.
• Rollback guidance and optional rollback script (manual verification step required before removal of caps).
• Test plan and a short QA report after running on staging.
• One week of post-deployment support to resolve edge cases or adjust capability lists.

Outcome & benefits

• Freelancers can now use Dokan vendor features (sell products, manage store settings, manage orders) without losing freelancer functionality.
• Sellers who register can access freelancer-specific flows, enabling a flexible hybrid marketplace (products + freelance services).
• Change is auditable, reversible, and implemented without modifying theme files — safe for future updates.

Favourable client review

“CnEL India delivered exactly what we needed: a secure, tested solution that allowed our freelancers to become full Dokan sellers while keeping their freelancer features intact. The team provided clear documentation, a neat plugin we could install on staging, and step-by-step testing guidance. Deployment on production was smooth and backed by responsive support. Highly recommended.”

Next steps (recommended)

1. Run the plugin on staging and verify with the QA checklist above.
2. Review the capability log and confirm no admin-level caps were copied accidentally.
3. Push to production during a maintenance window and keep a DB backup handy.
4. Optionally schedule a monthly sync after Dokan/plugin updates or enable a small admin UI to re-run the sync.

If you would like, CnEL India can deliver the plugin file, run the staging tests, and perform the production rollout with rollback safeguards included.