500 error

Just delete the root .htaccess file. When you see a 500 error that usually means there is invalid .htaccess code somewhere in the file. Then log back into your site and make sure AutoLock is turned Off, then click the Create secure.htaccess File AutoMagic button and activate Root folder BulletProof Mode. Then update W3TC settings so W3TC can write its .htaccess code to the root .htaccess file.

Some hosts will allow you to use 444 permissions instead of 404 permissions for the root .htaccess file. This still locks the file. You will have to do that manually via FTP.

Just an FYI/General Info for anyone else who sees this thread:
W3TC needs to be able to write to 2 files – the wp-config.php file ONLY when you are first installing and activating W3TC so that W3TC can add the WP Cache Constant and of course the root .htaccess file has to be writable anytime you update your W3TC settings.

I deleted the root .htaccess file but i still couldn’t get in. I backed up my WP-content,admin and includes files last week, so i uploaded the old .htaccess file from the backed up WP-content file. Now i can log in and access pages and posts, but i still receive a 500 error whenever i try to access the BPS tab, the plugins tab or the W3TC tab.

I tried to deactivate BPS and now the tab no longer appears, but i still receive 500 errors when trying to access the plugins tab, so i’m unable to reactivate.

Is there anyway i can manually uninstall and re-install a fresh version?

Yes, you can manually delete the /bulletproof-security plugin folder and then reinstall BPS, but I think that whatever is causing the 500 error will just happen again. Give it a try and let me know what happens. If the 500 error occurs again after removing and reinstalling BPS then check your Server logs and post one of the 500 errors.

I updated to 49.1 which re-activated the BPS tab in my sidebar and stopped the 500 error when you click on the BPS tab.

So, as per the instructions above, I deleted the root .htaccess file via FTP and then logged back in to my site. Made sure AutoLock was turned Off, then clicked the Create secure.htaccess File AutoMagic button and activated Root folder BulletProof Mode. This did create a new .htaccess file, but when i went to ‘redeploy W3TC’ from the menu bar that appears with that command in, it goes to what looks like a ‘safe mode’ then causes a 500 error when you try and click on anything else on the page.

This is the error, not sure if it’s from server log:

[10-Sep-2013 12:43:36] PHP Warning: file_get_contents(/home/xxxxxx/public_html/.htaccess) [function.file-get-contents]: failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/xxxx/public_html/wp-content/plugins/bulletproof-security/admin/options.php on line 1706

Very interesting. The file_get_contents check at code line 1706 in the options.php file is a check for whether or not Security Error Logging is turned On or Off on the Security Log page, which will display the “Security Log Status”.

Basically what appears to be happening is the root .htaccess file is either being deleted by something is no longer accessible to the file_get_contents function.

So what I need for you to do to is isolate exactly where the problem is occuring by doing these steps:

1. Delete the root .htaccess file and log into your site and clear your Browser cache and plugin cache.
2. Go to BPS Custom Code and double check all of the Custom Code text boxes for invalid code saved in them. If you are not sure about any code in any of the Custom Code text boxes then post that code here.
3. Does your website have/use php/php.ini handler .htaccess code? If so, save the php/php.ini handler code to top php/php.ini handler Custom Code text box.
4. After ensuring that all Custom Code text boxes have valid code and a php/php.ini handler (ONLY if your website uses a php/php.ini handler) then resave your Custom Code if you made any changes to any of the Custom Code in any Custom Code text boxes, go to the Security Modes page, click the Create secure.htaccess File button and activate root folder BulletProof Mode again. DO NOT do anything with W3TC at this point. Click all around your site – frontend and backend and wait at least 10 minutes then post back here after that 10 minutes of testing has gone by – If the same probem did not already occur again.

Also check your wp-config.php file for the WP_CACHE Constant that W3TC adds at the top of the wp-config.php file.

set it to false if it is set to true during testing before attempting to save/redeploy W3TC again.

define('WP_CACHE', false);

The results from each step are:

1) I deleted the root .htaccess file. I couldn’t clear the plugin cache as i can’t access either the W3TC tab or my plugins tab without getting a 500 error.

2) The only custom code that i have saved is a by pass for Google analytics for Worpdress, which is saved under the “wp-admin htaccess custom code” for “Plugin Fixes”:

# GAW admin-ajax.php skip/bypass rule
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} (admin-ajax\.php) [NC]
RewriteRule . – [S=2]

3) My site doesn’t use php/php.ini handler code, although on checking the php configuration on my cpanel, it’s set to 5.2 (not single php.ini or fast cgi version). Has options for 5.3 and 5.4

4)The only custom code i have is the #GAW bypass rule above, so i created a new secure .htaccess and activated the root folder bulletproof mode.

Frontend is showing and backend is working ok when you click on “dashboard, Post, Pages, etc” Haven’t clicked on the “plugins” menu as that usually breaks it.

Have set the WP_Cache constant that W3TC adds to the wp-config.php file to false.

Ok so your site is working correctly with the a BPS root .htaccess file in use correct?

I think the problem is actually with another plugin or you have corrupt transient cache in your DB.

Do these steps:
1. FTP to your website and rename the /plugins folder to /plugins-hold.
2. Go the WordPress Plugins page. All of your plugins will be deactivated and you should not see a 500 error at this point.

Let me know what happens at this point.

i renamed the plugins folder and then as soon as i click anywhere else in wordpress i get a white screen and the following error message:

W3 Total Cache Error: some files appear to be missing or out of place. Please re-install plugin or remove /home/xxxxxxxxx/public_html/wp-content/db.php.W3 Total Cache Error: some files appear to be missing or out of place. Please re-install plugin or remove /home/xxxxxxxxxx/public_html/wp-content/object-cache.php.

Ok you have isolated the cause of these problems to W3TC. Do what the error message is saying to do except make a backup copy of these files/save them to your computer before deleting them from your website. Then delete them from your website.

Next rename your /plugins-hold folder back to /plugins.
rename the w3tc plugin folder to /w3tc-hold.
Go to your WordPress Plugins page and activate all of your plugins except for W3TC.

Let me know what happens at this point.

Oh I just remembered something. If you have the wp-config.php Cache Constant set to false instead of true then I believe this will cause these errors in W3TC. I believe the files are dependent files without a “if Constant is defined check” or “if Constant = this or = something else”. In any case, do the steps above and let me know what happens.

I backed up the two files, then renamed the plugins and W3TC folders and now i can access the plugins page again – a small error message appears at the top of the plugins page saying:
“The plugin w3-total-cache/w3-total-cache.php has been deactivated due to an error.plugin file does not exist.”

Ok great! Now to figure out what the heck is going on with W3TC. ??

Try doing these steps so that any W3TC settings in your DB are still saved.

1. Delete the w3tc plugin folder.
2. Reinstall w3tc and activate it. Check the wp-config.php file and make sure that the define(‘WP_CACHE’, true); Constant has been created in the wp-config.php file correctly.
3. Redeploy/save w3tc settings.

Let me know what happens at this point.

So close! Deleted the plugin folder, then re-installed and soon as i activated it, got a 500 internal server error. Wp-config.php has set the WP_Cache to true though.

is it worth saving the WP-content/w3tc-config folder, then uninstalling W3TC completely, then reinstall W3TC and overwrite the config folder?