This is to troubleshoot a website that IS NOT DOWN, but displaying incorrectly. This could be anything from an individual component not showing up, or not being interactive to the site looking like a basic word document only displaying text and no styling.

Find the source of the issue: (Recommended)

  1. Login the site as an administrator at yourdomain.com/wp-admin/ (replace yourdomain.com with your own web address)
  2. View the front end of the site by clicking the title of the site in the top left corner.
    • If viewing the site while logged in as an admin (black admin bar up top) fixes the issue, you know that caching is the most likely culprit. Proceed to step 3.
    • If the site was not fixed when logging in as an admin, try editing a page with the primary builder the site was constructed with. (Avada Live, Elementor, Divi, etc)
      • If viewing the site while within the editor fixes the issue, take note of this as caching could be the culprit but there could be a larger issue.
      • If the editor doesn’t load, proceed to step 5.
  3. Disable all caching or site optimization related plugins while keeping all plugins vital to the site function active. Repeat step 2 to confirm if there is a change.
    • If disabling the caching plugins fixed the issue while logged in, try viewing the site in an incognito window or new browser to confirm viewers will see the fix too.
      • Leave the plugins disabled but contact your web host or designer to inform of the optimization issue.
    • If this did not fix the issue proceed to step 4. 
  4. Update all themes, and plugins that are outdated. Repeat step 2

Beyond this point, troubleshooting is more complex. Contact help if you are not comfortable disabling all plugins or swapping themes to continue testing. 

  1. Search for errors withing Chrome Web Console or enable site logging and review logs for php errors.
    • These will often point toward a file failing to load or a file with a syntax error. The file path will show a plugin or theme name which is the most likely culprit.
    • If you find a plugin that is the culprit, try disabling it, and Repeat step 2. 
      • If this fixed it, make sure the plugin version the site is using is fully up to date by checking the developer changelog (wordpress dashboard doesnt always show an update option if the plugin is too outdated) If the plugin is up to date but the last change was over a year ago, the project may have been abandoned. Finding a new plugin to do the same task is recommended.
    • If no fix, proceed to step 6.
  2. During off hours disable all plugins except the plugins required by the theme and builder. Repeat step 2.
    • If this fixed the issue, you have a plugin conflict. Re-enable plugins 1 or a few at a time and test the site until it breaks again to find the culprit.
      • We recommend enabling the plugins you run on many other sites that aren’t having issues or use a lot as they are the lease likely to be the cause.
    • If this did not fix the issue, proceed to step 6. 
  3. If you have made it here, the issue is likely with the theme or builder itself. You will need to decide if disabling it or switching themes will make the site better or worse for viewers. Here are some options:
    1. Stop and contact the designer or web host and share your findings.
    2. If the builder and theme are independent from each other (Like Elementor), you could try enabling a default WordPress theme.
      • If the site still works well after the switch and no code is showing, decide if you want to switch themes permanently and work with a new theme to rebuild the header and footer.
    3. Contact the Theme or builder developers via support ticket.

 

Quick Fixes:

These may resolve the issue quickly but it may also be a temporary fix. We recommend working through the process above to find the source of the issue.

  1. Clear Website Cache
  2. Run all available updates
  3. Disable all caching and optimization plugins. (contact your web host or developer if you disable these and inform them of the issue)
    • Examples of relevant plugins:
      • LiteSpeed Cache
      • Perfmatters
      • WP Rocket
      • Breeze
      • FlyingPress

 

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