{"id":1343,"date":"2026-10-03T17:56:18","date_gmt":"2026-10-03T17:56:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/?p=1343"},"modified":"2026-10-03T19:35:59","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T19:35:59","slug":"wordpress-troubleshooting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wordpress-troubleshooting\/","title":{"rendered":"WordPress Troubleshooting: Get Back In and Fix Common Problems"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Most WordPress problems on hosting come down to a handful of causes. Find yours below. Before you change anything, take a backup: see <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/backups-and-restoring-a-site\/\">Backups and Restores<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group yg-toc is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"yg-toc-title wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>On this page<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"#i-cannot-log-in-to-wp-admin\">I cannot log in to wp-admin<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#the-site-opens-on-the-wrong-address\">The site opens on the wrong address<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#error-establishing-a-database-connection\">&#8220;Error establishing a database connection&#8221;<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#only-the-home-page-works-other-pages-show-404\">Only the home page works, other pages show 404<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#a-blank-page-or-there-has-been-a-critical-error\">A blank page or &#8220;There has been a critical error&#8221;<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#other-common-problems\">Other common problems<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"i-cannot-log-in-to-wp-admin\">I cannot log in to wp-admin<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Log in without the password.<\/strong> In your control panel open Softaculous, go to <strong>Installations<\/strong> and click the admin login icon next to your site. See <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/log-in-to-wordpress-using-softaculous\/\">How to Log In to WordPress Using Softaculous<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Set a new password.<\/strong> In Softaculous click the pencil (edit) icon next to the installation, scroll to <strong>Admin Account<\/strong>, type the admin username and a new password, and save.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>A developer needs access.<\/strong> Do not share your password. See <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-to-create-temporary-login-for-wordpress-no-passwords\/\">How to Create a Temporary Login for WordPress<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"384\" height=\"104\" src=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/image-3.png\" alt=\"The Installations button in Softaculous\" class=\"wp-image-577\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/image-3.png 384w, https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/image-3-300x81.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"722\" height=\"216\" src=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/image-4.png\" alt=\"The Login as admin icon next to a WordPress installation in Softaculous\" class=\"wp-image-578\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/image-4.png 722w, https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/image-4-300x90.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 722px) 100vw, 722px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"the-site-opens-on-the-wrong-address\">The site opens on the wrong address<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After a domain change, a move from another host, or switching to https, WordPress can keep sending visitors to the old address. Open <code>wp-config.php<\/code> in File Manager and add these two lines above the line that says &#8220;That&#8217;s all, stop editing&#8221;, with your own domain:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\"><code>define( 'WP_HOME', 'https:\/\/yourdomain.com' );\ndefine( 'WP_SITEURL', 'https:\/\/yourdomain.com' );<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the site opens at <code>yourdomain.com\/wp<\/code>, see <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-to-remove-the-wp-at-the-end-of-my-wordpress-site\/\">How to Remove \u201cwp\u201d from the End of Your WordPress Site Address<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"error-establishing-a-database-connection\">&#8220;Error establishing a database connection&#8221;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is common after a restore or a move. Open <code>wp-config.php<\/code> and check these four values against your control panel:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><code>DB_NAME<\/code> and <code>DB_USER<\/code>: the full names, including the prefix before the underscore.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><code>DB_PASSWORD<\/code>: the password of the database user. If you are not sure, set a new one for that user in the control panel and put the same one here.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><code>DB_HOST<\/code>: <code>localhost<\/code>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More in <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/databases-mysql-and-postgresql\/\">Databases: MySQL and PostgreSQL on Your Hosting<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"only-the-home-page-works-other-pages-show-404\">Only the home page works, other pages show 404<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Log in to wp-admin, go to <strong>Settings<\/strong>, then <strong>Permalinks<\/strong>, and click <strong>Save Changes<\/strong> without changing anything. This rewrites the <code>.htaccess<\/code> file. If it is still broken, check that <code>.htaccess<\/code> exists in the site&#8217;s folder (turn on <strong>Show Hidden Files<\/strong> in File Manager settings) and contains the standard WordPress rules:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\"><code># BEGIN WordPress\n&lt;IfModule mod_rewrite.c&gt;\nRewriteEngine On\nRewriteBase \/\nRewriteRule ^index\\.php$ - [L]\nRewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f\nRewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d\nRewriteRule . \/index.php [L]\n&lt;\/IfModule&gt;\n# END WordPress<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"a-blank-page-or-there-has-been-a-critical-error\">A blank page or &#8220;There has been a critical error&#8221;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A plugin or the theme is failing, often after an update or a PHP version change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In File Manager open <code>wp-content<\/code> and rename the <code>plugins<\/code> folder to <code>plugins-off<\/code>. This switches every plugin off.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If the site comes back, rename the folder to <code>plugins<\/code> again, log in, and turn the plugins on one at a time until you find the one that breaks it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If it does not come back, try another PHP version. See <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/php-settings-version-extensions-limits\/\">PHP Settings<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"196\" height=\"179\" src=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/ScreenShot-Tool-20250227235948.png\" alt=\"The plugins and themes folders inside wp-content in File Manager\" class=\"wp-image-512\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More in <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-to-fixthere-has-been-a-critical-issue-on-this-websiteproblem-in-wordpress\/\">How to Fix \u201cThere Has Been a Critical Error on This Website\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"other-common-problems\">Other common problems<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>&#8220;Not secure&#8221; or a broken padlock:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/ssl-and-https-free-certificate-and-not-secure\/\">SSL and HTTPS<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>&#8220;The uploaded file exceeds the upload_max_filesize&#8221;:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-increase-maximum-upload-file-size-via-cpanel\/\">How to Increase Maximum Upload File Size<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Contact form emails do not arrive:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-to-configure-wordpress-to-use-smtp-for-sending-emails\/\">How to Configure WordPress to Use SMTP<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The site is slow or shows 503:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/optimize-your-website-upto-12x-faster\/\">Optimize Your Website<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/resource-limits-and-stuck-processes\/\">Resource Limits and Stuck Processes<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Strange redirects, adverts or unknown admin users:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/hacked-or-flagged-site\/\">Hacked or Flagged Site<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Starting again from zero:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-to-install-wordpress-in-cpanel-and-direct-admin\/\">How to Install WordPress in One Click<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading yg-related-title\">Related guides<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list yg-related\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/how-to-install-wordpress-in-cpanel-and-direct-admin\/\">How to Install WordPress in One Click<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/log-in-to-wordpress-using-softaculous\/\">How to Log In to WordPress Using Softaculous<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/secure-your-wordpress-website-the-complete-guide\/\">Secure Your WordPress Website: The Complete Guide<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/common-website-errors-403-404-500-503\/\">Common Website Errors: 403, 404, 500 and 503 Explained<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fix the WordPress problems we see most: locked out of wp-admin, the site opening on the wrong address after a domain change, database errors after a restore, broken links and a blank page.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":1347,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-how-to","category-wordpress"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1343"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1343\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1564,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1343\/revisions\/1564"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1347"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yegara.com\/en\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}