Facing a critical error while login my WordPress website
A critical error during login on your WordPress website often indicates issues with the site’s functionality or conflicts with plugins, themes, or server configurations. Here’s a systematic approach to resolve the issue:
1. Understand the Error
- If you see a critical error message, it might provide a specific file or line number causing the issue. Note it down.
- Check your email (associated with WordPress admin) for detailed error messages. WordPress often sends an email with information about the error.
2. Enable Debug Mode
- Enable WordPress debugging to get more details about the issue:
- Access your site’s files via FTP or File Manager in your hosting control panel.
- Open the
wp-config.php
file. - Add or modify the following lines:
define('WP_DEBUG', true); define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true); define('WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY', false);
- Save the file and refresh the login page.
- Check the debug log at
/wp-content/debug.log
for detailed error messages.
3. Check Plugins
- Disable all plugins:
- Navigate to
/wp-content/plugins/
via FTP or File Manager. - Rename the
plugins
folder to something likeplugins_backup
. - Try logging in again. If it works, the issue is with a plugin.
- Rename the folder back to
plugins
and reactivate plugins one by one from the admin panel to identify the culprit.
- Navigate to
4. Check Theme
- Switch to a default theme:
- Navigate to
/wp-content/themes/
. - Rename the active theme folder.
- WordPress will default to a fallback theme like
Twenty Twenty-One
if installed. - Try logging in again. If successful, the issue is with the theme.
- Navigate to
5. Increase PHP Memory Limit
- Low PHP memory can cause critical errors. To increase it:
- Edit the
wp-config.php
file. - Add the following line:
define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');
- Save the file and retry.
- Edit the
6. Check File Permissions
- Ensure the correct file permissions are set:
- Folders:
755
- Files:
644
- Folders:
7. Restore from Backup
- If you have a recent backup, restore it to get your site back to a working state.
8. Contact Hosting Support
- If the issue persists, contact your hosting provider. They can help with server-level issues or conflicts.
9. Advanced Debugging
- Check the server’s error logs via your hosting control panel for more details.
- Update your WordPress core files manually by downloading a fresh copy of WordPress and replacing the core files (except
wp-content
).
Let us know the specific error details or the steps you’ve already tried, and we can guide you further!