---
title: Many admin-ajax.php requests
canonical: https://wpsecurityninja.com/docs/errors-and-debugging/many-admin-ajax-php-requests/
---
If `admin-ajax.php` traffic jumps suddenly, use the browser Network panel to see which `action` is firing.

1. Log in and open the page where the issue happens.
2. Open developer tools and go to the **Network** tab.
3. Filter to **XHR** (or Fetch/XHR).
4. Trigger the page behavior again.
5. Click an `admin-ajax.php` request and inspect the request parameters.
6. Note the `action` value in the form data.

![Use developer tools to find cause of admin-ajax.php requests](https://wpsecurityninja.com/media/2020/05/2020-05-14_17-19-09.webp)

A common value is `heartbeat`, which is built into WordPress. Other action names often point to a specific plugin. Search that action name in the plugin codebase or docs, or send it to support with [Site Health info](https://wpsecurityninja.com/docs/errors-and-debugging/debug-get-server-and-website-information/).