W3 Total Cache Error blocking wp-admin login

  • Resolved Kat Medina

    (@krountre)


    5 months, 1 week ago

    Hi there,

    We have been having some trouble with our site following an upgrade to a new theme (Issue.) Initially we believed it to be the white screen of death so we deactivated all plugins and tripped our security plugin Really Simple SSL. I went in to the host via FileZilla and was able to move that plugin but am now receiving the following error when I access the /wp-admin page.

    “W3 Total Cache Error: some files appear to be missing or out of place. Please re-install plugin or remove /home1/waebb20abuoi/public_html/wp-content/advanced-cache.php.” Believing it is from the deactivated plugin W3 Total Cache.

    I am unsure of how to remove this plugin without simply deleting it from FileZilla and worry that will continue to block the access. Any next steps are appreciated as I would love to just be able to log back on and reactivate everything at this point.

    The blog I need help with is: scadradioorg.wordpress.com

    The page I need help with: [log in to see the link]

Viewing 9 replies - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)
  • wanju

    (@wanju)

    Same issue, Im sitill have, did you fix ?

    wanju

    (@wanju)

    remove or remane

    advanced-cache.php

    and all other files related to w3cache

    Plugin Contributor Marko Vasiljevic

    (@vmarko)

    Hello @krountre

    Thank you for reaching out and I am happy to assist you with this!

    You can safely manualy delete the /wp-content/advanced-cache.php file. This is a W3 Total cache drop-in file needed for the Page Caching functionality.
    Once deleted, it will be aumaticaly added once the Page Cache is enabled in the General settings.
    Let me know if this helps!

    Thanks!

    Thread Starter Kat Medina

    (@krountre)

    Hi @vmarko,

    Unfortunately we have deleted the w3-total-cache folder under our plugins in FileZilla but are still receiving the same error. We are unable to access anything through WordPress admin as that is what is directing to the error message on the site itself. Any additional guesses on what to remove in FileZilla in order to fully deactivate and gain access back to the /wp-admin portion of our site?

    Plugin Contributor Marko Vasiljevic

    (@vmarko)

    Hello @krountre

    Have you also deleted the ?/wp-content/advanced-cache.php file?

    Thanks!

    wanju

    (@wanju)

    Yes, after delete it, admin dachboard will block. then there is a file named object cache and i deleted it also. then I contact hosting provider (hostinger) and a suport agent turned on dubeg mode and he removed php lines from w3 cache and cleanded foles from w3 totle cache. then site worked fine.

    Thread Starter Kat Medina

    (@krountre)

    @vmarko and @wanju, It looks like as of now everything from w3-cache has been removed. vmarko, I couldn’t find the /wp-content/advanced-cache.php file but the cache listed by wanju I did see and deleted. I am still seeing the error as of now on site. This is our FTP as of now https://imgur.com/7oTa4xR.

    If next steps are the same as the recommendation from wanju then I would need to be contacting our hosting platform to “turned on debug mode and he removed php lines from w3 cache and cleaned files from w3 totle cache?”

    Plugin Contributor Marko Vasiljevic

    (@vmarko)

    Hello @krountre

    1. Check .htaccess File (make backup)
      W3TC will create many directives in .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 left over 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)
    1. 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.
    2. Go to your wp dashboard and re-install W3 Total Cache

    Let me know if this helps!

    Thread Starter Kat Medina

    (@krountre)

    @vmarko that worked perfectly! Thank you.

    For anyone who might look back at this for reference, the problem ended up being a hidden advanced-cache.php folder. On FileZilla to find the hidden folders choose Server from the toolbar and then select Force showing hidden files from the drop-down menu. Once those hidden files were revealed I was able to find any of the folders mentioned above and delete. Once all the folders were deleted I gained access back and things seem to be running smoothly.

Viewing 9 replies - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)
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