W3 Total Cache causing Mobile Usability issues in Search Console

Hello @hemptationsuk

Thank you for reaching out and I am happy to assist you with this.
The most likely problem is with the modification. I’ve checked your website and I can see that you have multiple layers of caching.
This is why when you disable the settings and purge the cache you cannot see any difference.
You should make sure to clear the proxy cache as well once you make any changes as I can see in the header:
x-proxy-cache: HIT
If you check the website with the query string which actually disables page cache, you can see the difference https://www.hemptations-cbd.com/?asdg

I hope this helps!

Hi Marko thanks for coming back so promptly. I emptied the Siteground NGINX and memcached caches along with Cloudflare flush and the changes were live on the website which is great however the search console errors are still there in abundance and only disappear when I deactivate the plugin.

I have tried seemingly every configuration combination under the sun over the past few days but unfortunately nothing resolves it. I believe the only option is to run without a caching plugin or else switch to a different one as our traffic has plummeted over the past few months and even more so over the past few days. My trial and error will continue.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by Stephen Surgenor.

Hello @hemptationsuk

I would recommend completely removing and re-installing W3 Total cache
1. Check .htaccess/nginx.conf File (make backup)
W3TC will create many directives in the .htaccess file to control the caching behavior. Each section will start and end with comments like “#BEGIN W3TC Page Cache core” and “#END W3TC Page Cache core”.
Ensure that no residual entries are leftover in your .htaccess file after deleting the plugin.
2. Delete wp-content files and folders
– cache folder
– w3tc-config folder
– object-cache.php (if exists)
– advanced-cache.php (if exists)
– db.php (if exists)
– upgrade folder
– delete w3-total-cache folder in wp-content/plugins/ (if exists)
3. Delete Cached Files from CDN (if using CDN)
Besides deleting all the relevant files, if you use CDN then ensure to purge the cached content from your CDN. This is necessary when you enabled minify option in W3TC settings. You should delete the minified and combined scripts and CSS files from your CDN server to avoid the site breaking on the browser.
4. Go to your wp dashboard and re-install W3 Total Cache

Once re-installed, start with Browser Cache and Page Cache. Make sure to save all settings and purge the cache once the options are enabled and also purge the Sitegrounds dynamic cache.
If you don’t see any issues after that, enable Minify and repeat the procedure.

Let me know if this helps!
Thank you!

Where would I find the .htaccess/nginx.conf File? I have had a good look in file manager and cannot see it. Also how do I delete the minified and combined scripts and CSS files from your CDN server (Cloudflare)? I cannot find any information on how to do this. I have completed all the rest of that and there are still some errors.

Thanks
Stephen

Hello @hemptationsuk

If you are using Cloudflare there is no need to delete files from it. This is related to the CDN option if enabled and serving static files from the CDN like Stackpath or AWS.
I’ve checked your website and I am not seeing any errors in the console. Can you please confirm this?
By default, the configuration file is named nginx.conf and placed in the directory /usr/local/nginx/conf, /etc/nginx, or /usr/local/etc/nginx. Most likely the rules have been removed when W3TC was removed.
Thanks!

No activity for a week.
Marking topic as resolved