Troubleshooting Common WordPress Issues for New Users

Learning how to troubleshoot WordPress issues can be difficult for beginners, but with a systematic approach to troubleshooting combined with the right WordPress hosting support, most of the time, they tend to have fairly simple solutions. This article will take you through the causes of common issues and how you can fix them including slow loading times, plugin conflicts, or connection errors. By the end, you’ll have a better understanding of the basics of WordPress troubleshooting to help you maintain a healthy website and resolve problems quickly with this step-by-step guide.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Following a basic troubleshooting process can fix common issues and help identify the root cause of most WordPress problems quickly.
• Website performance issues usually stem from improper optimization, and most can be resolved through basic maintenance and optimization techniques.
• Plugin and theme conflicts are among the most common WordPress issues, but they can be easily diagnosed through systematic testing and resolved through proper maintenance.
• Understanding the most common WordPress errors helps users identify and troubleshoot issues quickly by themselves or by getting assistance from their WordPress hosting provider.
• Preventing WordPress issues is easier than fixing them, and a good maintenance routine can prevent common problems.

Basic WordPress Issue Troubleshooting Steps

Before getting into specific issues and how to solve them, following these basic troubleshooting steps can help you identify and fix WordPress website problems quickly and easily. This will help you maintain performance and give a positive user experience. Use a WordPress maintenance mode plugin to prevent users from accessing your site while you’re making changes.

Check WordPress Version

Your WordPress CMS (Content Management System) version is critical for your site’s health. Outdated versions can lead to compatibility issues meaning your themes and plugins might not work correctly with older core software. Additionally, it can expose your site to potential attacks as hackers often target outdated versions with security gaps. Here’s how to check and update your WordPress core safely:

Log in to your WordPress admin area and navigate to the “Updates” section in the menu. This page will show the current version you’re running and let you know if a newer version is available.

Alternatively, scroll down to the bottom left corner of any webpage in your admin area. You should see a message like “Thank you for creating with WordPress. Version X.X” or similar and compare your version with the latest release on the official WordPress.org website.

If your version is outdated, navigate to your dashboard, followed by “Updates” and click “Update Now” if an update is available. Make sure you have a stable internet connection to avoid file corruption.

Only update through the WordPress dashboard, and never download updates from third-party sources. Update one version at a time as skipping major updates can lead to further problems. If you’re far behind, upgrade in stages through available versions.

Always back up your site before WordPress updates so you can restore your website to its previous state in case of unforeseen issues.

Disabling Plugins and Themes

Plugin and theme conflicts are common causes of issues for WordPress beginners. Here is how you can troubleshoot both:

Go to Plugins and select “Installed Plugins”. Select “Deactivate” under Bulk Actions and click “Apply”. Go back to your site to check if the issue persists. If it is resolved, reactivate your plugins one by one to find the problematic one.

For themes go to Appearance in your WP admin menu, followed by Themes.

Deactivate your current theme and switch to a default theme like Twenty Twenty-Three. Check if the issue persists, if it does, you’ll most likely have to update or change to a new theme.

Once again, back up your site in case something goes wrong, and only make one change at a time to help isolate the cause.

If you make any modifications to plugins or settings, keep track of them and test after each change to help identify the specific change that resolves the issue. The best way to do this is by testing in a staging environment before publishing them to your live site.

Common WordPress Issues

Understanding the most common errors and WordPress terminology will help you identify and resolve them faster, minimizing potential downtime and bounce rates. Remember, always back up your site before attempting any fixes, and if you’re unsure about any steps, your host’s support team or consult with WordPress experts.

Internal Server Error (500 Error)

1. A generic error code showing that something has gone wrong on your web server which doesn’t tell you the exact reason. The most common reasons for this error are:
2. The .htaccess file that controls how your server processes requests might be corrupted.
3. PHP memory limit exceeded meaning your website requires more PHP memory to function properly.
4. Corrupted WordPress core files can happen due to incomplete updates or file transfer errors.
5. Conflicts between incompatible or poorly coded plugins or themes.

Depending on the cause, you can fix it by:

1. Check and restore the .htaccess file through your hosting provider’s file manager or control panel.
2. Ask your hosting company to increase the PHP memory limit allocated to your WordPress site.
3. Re-upload WordPress core files to replace the corrupted files.
4. Disable all plugins to help identify if a plugin is causing the issue and reactivate them one at a time to find the problematic one.

Additionally, check server error logs (if your host can give you access) which may contain more specific details.

Error Establishing a Database Connection

If your WordPress website displays this error, it means that the core software isn’t communicating with the database that contains your site’s content, settings, and user information. This prevents the website from taking you to the right place and loading any content, effectively bringing it down and making it inaccessible to visitors.

Several factors can lead to this error:

1. Incorrect Credentials: If the database name, username, or password specified in the wp-config.php file is wrong, WordPress can’t authenticate and access the database.
2. Server Issues: Problems with the database server itself, such as downtime or overload, can prevent WordPress from connecting.
3. Database Corruption: Corrupted files in the database can make them inaccessible to WordPress.
4. Resource Limitations: Not having enough server resources, like disk space or memory, can interfere with database functionality.
5. Conflicts: Faulty plugins or themes and conflicts can interrupt or prevent database connections.

To fix this error, you can try the following:

1. Double-check that the database credentials in the wp-config.php are correct and match your web host’s settings.
2. Contact your hosting provider to check the database server status and inquire about any hardware or software issues on their side.
3. Repair the database using the built-in repair tool to fix corrupted files. You can find it in your WordPress admin dashboard under Repair Database.
4. If your hosting plan is too limited in terms of server resource allocation, it may be worth upgrading to a package that gives you more CPU, RAM, and disk storage.

You can optimize your database to help prevent errors. Regularly clean up your database to remove old data and use caching plugins to reduce the load on your database and improve site speed. Backup your database regularly to restore it in case of corruption or accidental deletion, especially important for enterprise WordPress sites.

Memory Exhausted Error

PHP is a programming language used to build WordPress sites. When a PHP script runs, it needs memory. A Memory Exhausted Error happens when a script tries to use more memory than is available on the server. This can cause it can crash or fail, potentially affecting your site’s performance or leading to downtime.

Your hosting service provider may have set a low memory limit for your site. Plugins that handle large amounts of data or complex operations like website builders, can use up large amounts of memory. The same goes for complex themes and uploading large images or video files which can strain your server’s memory.

The easiest way to fix this is to increase the PHP Memory Limit allocated to your WordPress site by contacting your host. You can also edit the wp-config.php file to increase the limit, but this is often best done by advanced WordPress users due to the risk of errors.

The next step is to deactivate resource-heavy or unnecessary plugins and find more efficient alternatives. Similarly, If your theme is complex or poorly coded look for a lightweight version or optimize your current theme’s code.

It’s a good idea to compress images and videos to reduce their file size and look at using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) to offload content delivery and reduce resource usage.

White Screen of Death (WSoD)

The dreaded WSoD shows up as a completely blank white screen with no error message, making it particularly difficult to diagnose, especially for beginner WordPress users setting up their first site. The most likely causes usually are:

• PHP errors caused by poor quality badly coded themes and plugins can trigger fatal errors.
• If a script on your site exceeds the memory limit set by your hosting provider Your website may require more memory to function properly.
• Incompatible or corrupted plugins and themes can cause conflicts and errors.
• Corrupted WordPress installation files or syntax errors can prevent your site from functioning and loading correctly.
• Incompatible PHP versions can cause unexpected behavior like the WSoD.
• Problems with your WordPress hosting server like configuration issues or server crashes, can also cause the WSoD.

You can fix this critical error in a few ways, once again depending on the cause:

Enable WordPress Debug Mode by adding the following code define(‘WP_DEBUG’, true); to your wp-config.php file. This will display detailed error messages in your browser such as Google Chrome or the error logs.

Rename the plugin folder via FTP to deactivate all plugins. Switch to a default WordPress theme through your FTP. Reactivate plugins and themes one by one to find the culprit. Lastly, check for any incorrect file permissions and ask your hosting provider to increase the memory limit allocated to your WordPress site.

Quick Recovery

Access the site via FTP to make any necessary changes directly to the WordPress files. Restore your site from a recent backup to revert to a previous working state. Clear your browser cache and check if your hosting provider offers a way to clear the server-side cache.

Additionally, regular core software, theme, and plugin updates to the latest versions can often fix bugs and compatibility issues. Using a child theme can help isolate theme-related issues.

If you’re still unable to resolve the issue, it’s best to consult your managed WordPress host’s customer support. They can also help you access and review the PHP error logs and custom code snippets for more specific information.

404 Page Not Found Error

A 404 Page Not Found Error happens when a user tries to access a web page that doesn’t exist or is no longer available on your site. This is usually caused by:

• Broken permalinks with incorrect settings.
• If a page or post is missing or deleted, accessing its old URL will result in a 404 error.
• Incorrect site URL structure containing typos or the wrong URLs.
• Issues with the .htaccess file can interfere with URL redirection.

A similar issue is the 403 Forbidden error code which is shown when your domain name server permissions don’t allow access to a specific page or post.

You can most often fix a 404 error by resetting your permalink structure in the WP admin menu. Go to “Settings” then “Permalinks”, choose a different one, and save the changes. You can also regenerate the .htaccess file here by saving recent changes without making any modifications.

Check for deleted content or pages in the Trash and restore any you need. Make sure your URLs are correctly formatted and match the content hierarchy of your site’s navigation. If you’re using a redirection plugin, check their settings to see that you haven’t created a redirect loop by accident.

Maximum Execution Time Exceeded

A Maximum Execution Time Exceeded error occurs when a script takes longer to run than the server’s allotted time limit. This can happen due to various reasons, such as resource-intensive plugins, inefficient code, or server overload.

Not having enough resources can slow down processing along with complex database queries slowing down the script. Alternatively, the default PHP execution time limit may be too short for more complex tasks.

This can generally be fixed by increasing the PHP execution time limit via your hosting provider. Monitor your server’s resource usage and upgrade your hosting plan if necessary.

You can optimize your database by using efficient SQL queries and indexing to reduce query execution time and using a caching plugin to reduce database load. Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to identify bottlenecks.

Adding the following line of code php_value max_execution_time 60 to your .htaccess file can potentially fix the error. This tells the server to allow PHP scripts to run for up to 60 seconds. However, it’s important to note that increasing execution time is often a temporary fix that doesn’t address the underlying issue.

WordPress Not Sending Emails

WordPress fails to send notifications to your email address, such as links to reset passwords, submitted contact forms, or comments on new WordPress fails to send notifications to your professional email address, such as links to reset passwords, submitted contact forms, or comments on new posts. This email issue happens when:

• The PHP mail function is disabled on your server, or it has restrictions on outgoing mail, such as IP address blacklisting or rate limiting.
• Incorrectly configured email or SMTP settings in WordPress like incorrect credentials or server settings, can cause email delivery failures.WordPress fails to send notifications to your email address, such as links to reset passwords, submitted contact forms, or comments.

Install an SMTP plugin like WP Mail SMTP and configure it with your email provider’s SMTP settings, including the hostname, port, username, password, and authentication.

Check with your host to ensure that there are no outgoing mail server restrictions and that the PHP mail function is on. Send a test email to yourself to verify if emails are being sent successfully.

How to Help Prevent WordPress Issues

Maintaining a healthy, secure WordPress website helps prevent issues before they happen. Ensure your theme and plugins are compatible with your WordPress version. Schedule automatic updates and test them in a staging environment to avoid unexpected issues.

Choose the perfect-fit plan that can handle your traffic needs with enough storage, and performance for your website. Monitor your server’s resource usage to identify potential bottlenecks and optimize your site accordingly.

Many hosts also offer automatic backups to keep your files and data safe with easy restoration options. Managed WordPress hosting providers offer optimized hosting environments and expert support with years of experience.

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Other Articles of Interest

– Choosing a WordPress Hosting Provider: Factors to Consider

– WordPress Recovery Mode: Everything You Need to Know

– 403 Forbidden Error Explained: Easy Fixes for Your Website

– The Role of PHP Web Hosting for WordPress

– WordPress Hosting Performance Optimization Strategies