10 WordPress Critical Error and Fix

Abdur Rashid

2 years ago

Critical Error in WordPress

The critical error in WordPress can vary, but it often leads to the infamous “White Screen of Death” (WSOD). This occurs when your site displays a blank white screen instead of its content. Common causes include plugin conflicts, memory issues, or PHP errors. To troubleshoot, try disabling plugins, switching to a default theme, and increasing memory if needed.

WordPress is a powerful platform, but it’s not immune to errors. We’ll walk you through fixing the WordPress critical error in this guide. We will also discuss how to prevent this error and what causes it.

1. Internal Server Error (500)

This confusing error can occur due to a corrupted .htaccess file, incompatible plugins, or memory issues. To fix it, check your .htaccess, deactivate plugins, and increase PHP memory. A 500 Internal Server Error is an HTTP status code that indicates the server encountered an unexpected condition, preventing it from fulfilling a request. When you encounter this error, it’s not due to your browser, computer, or internet connection—it’s an issue with the website you’re trying to access.

Common Causes of 500 Errors:

Server Misconfigurations: Incorrect server settings, permissions, or misconfigured files can trigger this error.
Scripting Errors: Faulty code within scripts (e.g., PHP, Python) can lead to 500 errors.
Plugin or Theme Conflicts: Incompatible plugins or themes may cause server disruptions.
Resource Exhaustion: Insufficient memory, CPU overload, or disk space limitations.
Database Issues: Problems connecting to the database or incorrect credentials.

How to Address It:

Reload the Page: Sometimes it’s a temporary glitch. Click the “Reload” button or press F5.
Wait and Retry: If many users are accessing the site simultaneously, wait a few minutes and try again.
Check Plugins and Themes: Deactivate recently installed plugins or switch to a default theme.
Increase PHP Memory: Edit wp-config.php and add: define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘256M’);.
Review .htaccess and Server Logs: Look for errors in the .htaccess file or server logs.
Contact the Website Owner: If the issue persists, the site administrator needs to investigate further.

2. Error Establishing a Database Connection

The Error Establishing a Database Connection is a common issue in WordPress that occurs when your site cannot connect to its database. This error makes your website inaccessible to users. It typically displays a message like “Error establishing a database connection.”

Causes of the Error:

Incorrect Database Credentials: If your database name, username, or password is incorrect in the wp-config.php file, WordPress won’t connect to the database.
Database Server Issues: The database server might be down or experiencing problems.
Corrupted Database Files: If the database files are corrupted, it can lead to this error.

How to Fix It:

Check Your Database Credentials: Open your wp-config.php file. Verify the database name, username, password, and host settings. Correct any inaccuracies.
Test the Database Server: Ensure your database server is running. Contact your hosting provider if needed.
Repair Corrupted Files: Use tools like phpMyAdmin to repair database tables. Backup your database before making any changes.

3. White Screen of Death (WSOD)

The White Screen of Death (WSOD) is a common WordPress Critical Error that can leave you scratching your head. When you encounter it, your website displays a blank white screen instead of its usual content. It’s like staring at a blank canvas, wondering where everything went.\

Why Does It Happen?

Memory Exhaustion: Often, a script on your site exceeds the memory limit set by your hosting server. The server either kills the unresponsive script or lets it time out, resulting in the white screen.
Poorly Coded Themes or Plugins: Faulty code in themes or plugins can trigger the WSOD.
Server Issues: Sometimes, the problem lies with your web hosting server.

How to Fix It:

Check Other Sites: If you have multiple WordPress sites, see if the issue affects them too. If it does, contact your hosting provider.
WordPress Recovery Mode: Use recovery mode to deactivate the plugin causing trouble.
Increase Memory Limit: Edit wp-config.php and add: define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘256M’);.
Disable All Plugins: Temporarily deactivate all plugins and reactivate them one by one.
Activate Default Theme: Switch to a default theme (like Twenty Twenty-One).
Enable Debug Mode: Add debug mode to wp-config.php to catch errors.
Clear Cache: Clear both browser and WordPress cache.
Long Articles: If it happens on specific posts, check lengthy articles for issues.

4. 404 Page Not Found

A 404 error, also known as “Page Not Found,” occurs when a web server cannot locate a specific resource (such as a webpage) at a given URL. Here are some common reasons behind this elusive error:

Incorrect URL: Users might have mistyped the page URL or followed a broken link.
Resource Deletion: Website owners may have deleted the resource, rendering it unavailable on the server.
URL Changes: If the website owner modifies the URL linking to the resource, old URLs may lead to 404 errors.

Impact of 404 Errors

Encountering a 404 error can leave a negative impression on visitors and affect your website in several ways:

User Experience: Frustrated visitors may bounce off your site, impacting engagement.
SEO: Search engines struggle to crawl your site properly, affecting your ranking.
Broken Links: Broken links harm your site’s credibility and user trust.

How to Fix 404 Errors

Here are five effective methods to tackle this issue:

Hostinger AI Troubleshooter: Use Hostinger’s AI tool to diagnose and resolve the error.
Check DNS Settings: Ensure your domain points correctly to your hosting.
Fix File Permissions: Verify file permissions to prevent access issues.
Disable .htaccess File: Temporarily disable the .htaccess code to troubleshoot.
Restore Backup: If all else fails, restore a backup of your site

5. WordPress Keeps Logging Out

It is the most common WordPress Critical Error. The most common reason for this pesky problem is a mismatch between the URL you’re accessing and the one stored in your WordPress settings. When you log in, WordPress sets a cookie in your browser to authenticate the session. If the site URL and the WordPress URL don’t match, you’ll get logged out.

How to Fix It

Check URLs: Go to Settings » General in your WordPress admin panel. Ensure that both the Site Address and WordPress Address fields have the same URL (either with or without ‘www’). Click Save Changes to apply the fix.
Manual Edit (if needed): If you can’t access your dashboard, edit your wp-config.php file. Add the following lines above the ‘That’s all, stop editing! Happy publishing’ line:

define(‘WP_HOME’, ‘https://example.com’);
define(‘WP_SITEURL’, ‘https://example.com’);

**Replace https://example.com with your actual URL.

6. WordPress Memory Limit Error

When you encounter a WordPress memory limit error, it means your site has exhausted the allocated PHP memory. This error typically appears as a single line of text on a blank page, like this:

fatal error: allowed memory size of 67108864 bytes exhausted

The error can occur in various situations, such as when:

Installing and activating a new theme or plugin.
Uploading images and other media to your site.

How to Fix It (2 Methods)

1. Increase the PHP Memory Allocated to Your Website Manually:

wp-config.php: Open your wp-config.php file and add the following line to increase the memory limit:

define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘256M’);

.htaccess: Alternatively, modify your .htaccess file with this line:

php_value memory_limit 256M

2. Upgrade Your Website’s Hosting Plan:

Consider upgrading to a hosting plan with more resources to avoid memory constraints.

7. Maximum Execution Time Exceeded

When you encounter this error, it means that your PHP script has exceeded the maximum execution time set by the server. The server terminates the script to prevent resource exhaustion.

Causes of the Error

Complex Operations: Lengthy database queries, loops, or resource-intensive tasks can trigger the error.
Shared Hosting: In shared hosting environments, strict execution time limits prevent one site from monopolizing resources.
Default Settings: By default, PHP sets a maximum execution time (often 30 seconds).

Solutions

Increase Execution Time:

Modify your php.ini file (or use a plugin for CMS like WordPress) to increase the max_execution_time.
For example, set it to 300 seconds (5 minutes) or higher.

Override in .htaccess (for Apache):

Add this line to your .htaccess file:

php_value max_execution_time 300

Adjust the value as needed.

8. Syntax Error

A syntax error is akin to a grammatical mistake in programming languages. It occurs when code violates the rules of the language’s syntax, rendering it impossible for the program to run. These errors are usually easy to spot and fix because they’re caught by the compiler or interpreter during compilation or interpretation.

Common Types of Syntax Errors:

Missing Parentheses or Brackets: Forgetting to include closing parentheses ), square brackets ], or curly braces {} can lead to syntax errors, especially in expressions, function calls, or data structures.
Missing Semicolons: In languages that use semicolons to terminate statements (e.g., C, Java, JavaScript), omitting a semicolon at the end of a statement can result in a syntax error.
Mismatched Quotes: Forgetting to close quotation marks ‘ or ” around strings can lead to errors, as the interpreter/compiler treats everything until the next matching quote as part of the string.
Incorrect Indentation: In languages like Python, incorrect indentation can cause syntax errors, especially within control structures like loops, conditional statements, or function definitions.
Misspelled Keywords or Identifiers: Typos in keywords, variable names, or function names can result in syntax errors.

How to Identify and Solve Syntax Errors:

Compiler or Interpreter Detection: When you compile or execute code with syntax errors, the compiler or interpreter identifies breaches of the language’s rules. It produces an error message pinpointing the exact location and nature of the errors.
Prevents Execution: Unlike runtime errors that occur during program execution, syntax errors prevent the program from running at all.

9. Image Upload Issue

The most common cause of image upload issues is incorrect file permissions. WordPress files on your hosting server require specific permissions to function properly. If these permissions are wrong, you might encounter errors like:

“Unable to create directory wp-content/uploads/2019/04. Is its parent directory writable by the server?”
“The uploaded file could not be moved to wp-content/uploads/.”

How to Fix It:

Connect to your website via FTP.
Navigate to the /wp-content/ folder.
Inside, find the uploads directory (where WordPress stores media uploads).
Right-click on uploads and select “File Permissions.”
Set permissions for the directory and its subdirectories to 744.
Check the box for “Recurse into subdirectories.”
Apply these changes

Additional Troubleshooting Steps:

Check File Size and Type: Ensure your images are in supported formats and within WordPress size limits.
Browser and Cache: Try a different browser and clear your cache.
Plugin and Theme Conflicts: Temporarily disable plugins and switch to a default theme to identify conflicts

10. 403 Forbidden Error

What Is a 403 Forbidden Error? A 403 Forbidden Error occurs when you’re denied access to a web page or resource. It’s like being told, “Sorry, this content is off-limits!” The HTTP status code for this error is 403. Here are some common variations you might encounter:

“403 Forbidden”
“HTTP 403 Forbidden”
“HTTP Error 403 – Forbidden”
“Error 403.14 – Forbidden”
“You don’t have permission to access [directory] on this server”

Possible Causes:

1. Access Permissions:

The webserver may have restricted your access intentionally.
Or, there might be an improper setup of permissions on the server side.

2, Troubleshooting Steps:

Refresh the Page: Sometimes it’s a temporary glitch. Hit that refresh button!
Double Check the Address: Ensure you’re trying to access the correct URL.
Clear Cache and Cookies: Cached data can cause issues.
Verify Your Permissions: Confirm you have the right to access the resource.
Try Again Later: Sometimes servers hiccup; patience pays off.
Contact the Website: If it persists, reach out to the site owner.
Contact Your ISP: Rarely, your internet service provider might be involved.
Disconnect From Your VPN: VPNs can sometimes trigger this error.

Remember to back up your site before making any changes, and if you’re still stuck, consider reaching out to your hosting provider for assistance.

If you’re encountering WordPress Critical Error, don’t worry—I’ve got you covered. “WordPress Developer Documentation” This resource common errors experienced by WordPress users and provides starting points for fixing them.