Javascript error when link_manager_enabled ( WP_Widget_Links) and theme supports customize-selective-refresh-widgets

[nikeo]

The error occurs in the customizer when a user uses the WP_Widget_Links widget has enabled support for customize-selective-refresh-widgets.

The WP_Widget_Links is now deprecated, but it is retro-compatible if user had it already installed.

The error message in the browser js console looks like this :

customize-preview-widgets.js?ver=4.7:63 Uncaught Error: Illegal id for widget partial.
    at child.initialize (customize-preview-widgets.js?ver=4.7:63)
    at child.api.Class (customize-base.js?ver=4.7:93)
    at child [as constructor] (customize-base.js?ver=4.7:34)
    at new child (customize-base.js?ver=4.7:34)
    at HTMLDivElement.<anonymous> (customize-selective-refresh.js?ver=4.7:863)
    at Function.each (jquery.js?ver=1.12.4:2)
    at jQuery.fn.init.each (jquery.js?ver=1.12.4:2)
    at Object.wp.customize.selectiveRefresh.self.addPartials (customize-selective-refresh.js?ver=4.7:850)
    at Function.<anonymous> (customize-selective-refresh.js?ver=4.7:961)
    at i (jquery.js?ver=1.12.4:2)

Theme or plugin developers can fix the problem by removing the support for customize-selective-refresh-widgets if link_manager_enabled is set to true. But a core fix would be better of course.

Temporary solution :

if ( ! get_option( 'link_manager_enabled' ) ) {
   add_theme_support( 'customize-selective-refresh-widgets' );
}

[nikeo]

There's a typo in my description. I meant : The error occurs in the customizer when a user uses the WP_Widget_Links widget and has enabled support for customize-selective-refresh-widgets.

[westonruter]

Coincidentally I also ran across this issue myself in working on the ​JS Widgets plugin for #33507 and #35574.

[nikeo]

OK.
The bug was reported by two different users for my theme Hueman.
The latest topic is this one : ​https://wordpress.org/support/topic/customizer-never-loads-in-chrome-with-hueman-addon-plugin-enables/
cheers

[greenshady]

I've run into this problem too with users. I've also seen it within a plugin of mine that creates a more robust links widget.

I think this is because the links widget creates "fake" widgets on output. Each category of links is wrapped into its own widget markup. And, the customizer JS is looking to match actual widgets.

Even disabling the customize_selective_refresh for the Links widget doesn't address the issue.

[dlh]

WP_Widget_Links::widget() contains a preg_replace() for the id attribute that also seems to be affecting the data-customize-partial-id attribute, creating the "illegal id." The fix might be as straightforward as adjusting the regex pattern, which I've tried in 39451.diff​.

[rayfusci]

This 39451.diff patch is not present in v4.9.8. Any plans to include it? It does resolve this problem, at least in some cases; it resolved this problem in my case.

[dlh]

#45314 was marked as a duplicate.