This document provides guidance on troubleshooting common WordPress problems. It begins by emphasizing the importance of backing up websites before making changes. Potential areas of trouble include databases, plugins, themes, and content. Basic troubleshooting steps include disabling all plugins, switching to the default theme, and then re-enabling plugins and themes individually. Common issues covered include the white screen of death, syntax errors, out of memory errors, 500 internal server errors, missing sidebars, maintenance mode issues, and database connection errors. The document recommends searching online resources and forums if initial troubleshooting does not resolve the problem and hiring an expert if issues remain unsolved.

1. Troubleshooting
WordPress
Nile Flores
@blondishnet
http://blondish.net

2. Objective
To make you more
aware of what to do
when things seem to
go wrong with
WordPress.

3. Always Backup Your Site
Before upgrading plugins or themes, backup
your website.
Schedule backups regularly.

4. Areas of Possible Troubleshooting WordPress
1. Database
2. Plugins
3. Themes
4. Content

5. Basic Steps to Troubleshooting WordPress
❏ Disable All Plugins
❏ Disable your theme and revert to Default Theme
(example: Twenty Fifteen)
❏ Check the site
❏ Enable your plugins one by one to find the issue
❏ Enable your theme

6. Okay, so those steps didn’t work...
Now
what?

7. Google is your friend
Search Google to find
out if someone has had
a similar problem.

8. Google didn’t help...
What now?

9. Seek out forums
❏ https://wordpress.org/support
❏ https://facebook.com/groups/AllAboutWP
❏ http://wordpress.stackexchange.com/
❏ http://wpquestions.com (paid)

10. So… now that you know basics
Let’s go over some
common WordPress
problems that may pop
up.

11. Common WordPress Problems
❏ White Screen of Death
❏ Syntax Error
❏ Out of Memory
❏ 500 Internal Server Error
❏ Missing Sidebar
❏ Stubborn Maintenance Mode
❏ Error Establishing Database Connection

12. White Screen of Death
❏ Memory exceeded on PHP
❏ Error with a plugin (in some cases, you may get an actual error
output message, and this would be different from the white
screen of death)
❏ Failed installation or upgrade in /wp-admin folder
❏ Error with caching in the case you run a cache plugin
http://bit.ly/1EjHC5E

13. Syntax
Usually means there’s either something extra,
something missing, or just something wrong
with your HTML, or even PHP.

14. Out of Memory
You either ran through your database resources quickly or
you didn’t have much to work with.
Try increasing the memory by placing the following in your
wp-config.php -
define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '64M');

15. 500 Internal Server Error
❏ Could come up from a code error in a plugin
or theme
❏ Could be the web host, and not always a
WordPress related issue

16. Missing Sidebar
Odd enough, a lot of people who dabble in
code, forget to close their HTML tags when in
the text editor while creating a post or page.

17. Stubborn Site Maintenance
Sometimes after upgrading a plugin or theme,
the temporary maintenance gets stuck.
Remove the .maintenance file from the root of
your WordPress install via FTP or your web
host’s File Manager.

18. Error Establishing Database Connection
Could be a crashed PHP table. Have your web
host reset it. Go in an repair and optimize it.
Don’t want to fool around with code. No problem!
Try WP-Optimize.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-optimize/

19. Not savvy enough to troubleshoot?
Don’t give up!
Hire someone to do it for you. There are plenty
of people out there that can help solve your
issue.

20. Any Questions?
Nile Flores
http://blondish.net
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