Thinking about error codes may seem overwhelming and maybe even a touch pessimistic. However, we find that proactively cataloging why each one happens and how to fix them saves you a ton of time, money, and brain cells on demystifying the blank or frozen screen in front of you.

After all, how much easier would life be if you came with a message like Error ⒡00ⓓ: Hangry to decode why you’re so snarky over Slack at 3 PM every day? (Guilty!)

Everyone who works with a WordPress website — or has used the internet for that matter — has probably encountered the 504 Gateway Timeout error at some point.

So we put together this guide to explain what you’re looking at, why it happens, lots of solutions for fixing it, and why it even matters that this error occurs in the first place.

From basic checks, all the way through advanced troubleshooting techniques, come along as we wind through everything the savvy website owner or manager should know about fixing the 504 Gateway Timeout error.

How To Identify A 504 Gateway Timeout Error

On the world’s most popular browser, Google Chrome, you’ll often see the familiar “This site can’t be reached” message on a mostly blank screen, with the error code “HTTP ERROR 504” beneath it.

However, there are several different ways this error can be referenced on Chrome, as well as across different browsers, devices, operating systems, server types, and programs.

So, if you see any of these messages, you’re likely dealing with the same 504 Gateway Timeout error we’re talking about today:

• “Gateway Timeout Error”
• “504 Gateway Time-out. The server didn’t respond in time.”
• “Gateway Timeout (504)”
• “Error 504”
• “504 Error”
• “HTTP Error 504”
• “HTTP 504”
• “HTTP Error 504. Gateway Timeout.”
• “504 Gateway Timeout NGINX”
• “NGINX 504 Gateway Timeout”

And sometimes, the error may be a little less descriptive, forgoing the number code for a reference to timing instead, such as:

• “This page isn’t working. Domain took too long to respond.”
• “The page request was canceled because it took too long to complete”
• “There was an issue serving your request, please try again in a few minutes”
• “There was a gateway timeout. You should visit your error log for more information”

Website owners can even customize the page that’s shown if a user encounters a 504 error while using their website, which means you might get a nicely branded page that uses some combination of the codes and content above.

Other times, you might just find yourself staring at a blank screen! Because the 504 error is pretty common, it’s not a bad idea to assume a blank page is due to a server timeout situation and apply the steps we’ll provide later in this guide to correct it.

What The 504 Gateway Timeout Error Means

Technically, 504 Gateway Timeout is a server-side error from a server acting as a gateway or proxy. It means that the server timed out while waiting for a response from the next server that it needed to communicate with, and thus didn’t complete the action it was asked to do.

What does that translate to in less technical terms? (In English, please.)

Here’s how it happened. Let’s dive a bit deeper into the whole process.

When you go to visit a website, the typical process is that the server your browser is using sends a request to the server hosting the website you intend to visit. This request lets the receiving server (often called the “upstream server”) know to start loading the website you want to see. Your server is the gateway in this instance. Your server waits for the upstream server to respond and send it data. If the upstream server doesn’t do so on time, instead of your destination website you’re served a 504 Gateway Timeout error message instead.

Sometimes the error can resolve itself, but other times it may take going into different systems to implement a fix.

Now that you know what you’re looking at, let’s figure out why you’re seeing it.

What Causes The 504 Gateway Timeout?

The reason a 504 error is so common is that server timing issues can occur for a variety of reasons.

Here are many of the most popular underlying troubles:

Server hiccups: Servers go down and slow down all the time for various reasons: increased traffic, maintenance, hardware failure, etc. If any of the servers that you need to work together to load a website are down, you’re likely going to see an error due to timing issues.

Resource limitations: If your website is getting more traffic, even if that traffic is from legitimate sources, it may be more than your current setup is ready to handle.

Other, more general interruptions: There’s a lot more than server uptime that can go wrong when loading websites. Routers can go out, devices can glitch, and so on. Any of these can trip up the server-to-server connection and put you in 504 jail.

Proxy server problems: Proxy servers can add another layer of security, but sometimes they can throw off the steam of communication between the gateway and upstream servers.

Firewall confusion: Firewalls, especially those with extra security measures or custom configurations, might block certain connections by mistake, thinking they’re an attack. This can happen more if you’re using a firewall to restrict certain internet service providers (ISPs) or content delivery networks (CDNs).

DNS issues: Sometimes, domain name system (DNS) servers can’t match the right domain name to the right IP address. This may be caused by recent IP changes, old DNS information being cached, or the DNS configuration being off.

Website code errors: A mistake within your website code may make it so that your server, or upstream servers down the line, can’t accurately talk to each other, leading to a timeout when they can’t resolve the miscommunication.

PHP worker limitations: In WordPress, PHP workers are processes that help serve your website content to visitors. If you don’t have enough of these in place to keep up with traffic, a server may have to ‘get in line’ before its request can be answered, which will likely cause it to time out.

Why Fix The 504 Gateway Timeout Error?

OK, now for one very important consideration before we get into the work of fixing timeout errors: why bother fixing the 504 error at all?

There are really two core reasons to care here: user experience and SEO.

Any of the HTTP 500 errors stop a website from loading. That’s probably the worst experience you can create for a visitor to your website — especially for first-time visitors who were referred to your website or landed there from an ad, as it can leave a bad taste in their mouth that keeps them from ever returning. That’s a problem not just for your ego and brand but for your sales and retention.

Then, there’s search engine optimization (SEO) to consider.

If a search engine goes to index (basically, read and categorize your website so it knows what kind of searches to display it for) your website and finds that loading is slow or stopped due to a 504 Gateway Timeout error, it can seriously hurt how it chooses to rank your website in search results.

The further down your website appears on a search engine result page (SERP), the less likely people are to click on it, and if search engine indexers encounter loading errors often enough, they may stop indexing your website at all. The result? Removing you from search results altogether.

In an age when clicks are currency, unresolved and repetitive 504 errors can seriously set you back.

How To Fix The 504 Gateway Timeout Error (9 Possibilities)

Daunted? Don’t be. If your website is reporting a 504 Gateway Timeout error, here’s what you need to know to fix it.

1. Refresh The Site

No, really. It could be that simple!

In the case of connectivity interruptions, device snafus, traffic overload, and maintenance, it’s probably just a matter of bad timing. Give it a minute and refresh your site to see if those issues have been resolved and your site is back to being as accessible as ever.

Here’s how:

• Google Chrome on Mac: Hit Command + R
• Google Chrome on Windows: Use Ctrl + R
• Safari (currently only supported on Mac): Command + R
• Microsoft Edge on Windows: CTRL+R
• Microsoft Edge on Mac: Command + Shift + R

2. Switch/Restart Devices And Browsers

Hardware bugs, outdated caches, and other pretty simple glitches can interrupt the server connection and cause a timeout-related error.

Try restarting and also changing up the devices and/or browsers you’re working on to see if your site loads. You may also want to reboot your modem or router. This may fix everything. Or, if you find your site starts working in some places but not in others, it may at least help you narrow down what’s going on.

To restart most modern desktop machines on MacOS, go to the Apple menu (top left) > Restart. For a computer running Windows, it should look something like navigating to Start in the taskbar, selecting the power icon, and then Restart on the next screen.

While you can’t usually bust open and fix any hardware that’s having a problem, you may be able to resolve why some browsers time out while others are perfectly fine. That’s coming up next.

3. Clear Browser Cache

Browsers often store website information locally (to your device) to save loading time. When the records it has stored become out of date, they can lead to connectivity issues.

To clear the browser cache in Google Chrome, click on the three vertical dots in the top-right corner to open the Chrome menu. Visit More Tools > Clear Browsing Data.

Here, you’ll be able to select what you want to clear and over what time frame. Just be sure to hit the Clear data button to complete your mission. Keep in mind this can look different depending on your device and operating system.

For Safari, select Safari in the top left cover, then > Clear History > All History > Clear History button.

To clear the browser cache on Microsoft Edge, it’s as easy as putting “edge://settings/clearbrowserdata” in the address bar and selecting what you want to clear and for what time range.

Keep in mind that these processes can look different depending on your device and which version of each operating system you’re on.

4. Consider DNS Changes And Cache

If you or your hosting provider has changed your website’s DNS server due to adopting a new IP address or a whole new WordPress website host, those changes can take time to go live and for everything to work together flawlessly again. It can take as many as 48 hours for the full propagation to wrap up.

However, if there haven’t been any changes you’re aware of, or it’s been well past the waiting period, it could be another caching issue, this time at the DNS level.

Clearing your DNS cache will prompt the device you’re using to request updated information from the DNS server on websites, so it will no longer attempt to connect using out-of-date DNS info.

Here’s how:

Windows:

• Press Win + R and type in ipconfig /flushdns
• Hit Ctrl + Shift + Enter to run the command prompt
• You should see a success message when complete

Mac:

• Make sure you’re running the newest operating system
• Open the Terminal and type in sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder (The operating system you’re using may impact the success of this command, so if this doesn’t seem to work you may need to search “flush DNS cache mac OS [your version here]”)
• Hit Enter
• Input your admin password if prompted, then Enter again to run the command.
  Note: You likely won’t see a success message after this. The command should just run.

Google Chrome (Yep, it has its own DNS cache!)

• Enter “chrome://net-internals/#dns” into your Chrome address bar and hit Enter
• Click the Clear host cache button on the next screen

5. Disable The CDN

If you haven’t solved it yet, the issue might be your content delivery network. And you can find out if it’s the culprit by turning it off temporarily and seeing if that helps.

If you’re using a CDN WordPress plugin and you can access your plugins, simply deactivate it then test if your site will load. (Access this via WordPress Dashboard > Plugins.)

However, if you can’t get to your WordPress admin due to the 504 timeout error, you can access your site via your host’s file manager or secure file transfer protocol (SFTP). Here’s how it’s done for DreamHost users.

Once you’re in your site’s directory, navigate to your website’s name then wp-content > plugins > your CDN plugin’s file. Rename that file (something like file name_OFF), save your changes, and refresh your website to see if that has worked.

When this experiment is over, be sure to restore the original name of the folder and save it again so the plugin can function. You may also want to visit the plugins section of your WordPress admin to make sure it’s on and running.

While this won’t fix the issue, it will tell you if your CDN is acting up, from which point you can choose to move to a different provider if it makes sense.

6. Check WordPress Plugins

Because WordPress plugins are independent little packets of code that integrate with your WordPress instance, if they go buggy they can interrupt the server connection and throw a 504.

To find out if this is what’s going on, the process is very similar to what we did above.

First, if you can get to your WordPress admin, go to the Plugins page and deactivate everything. Then, reactivate each one at a time and refresh your site to see if it loads seamlessly. When you catch the culprit, you can deactivate it and look for a newer version or alternative.

If you can’t access the dashboard, you’ll have to open it up via your host file manager or an SFTP platform.

In the directory, navigate to your website name > wp-content > plugins. Now rename that whole file (like plugins_OFF) save, and reload. If it works, you know the rub is in your plugins somewhere. Now you should be able to log into your WP admin, navigate to your plugins, and turn them back on one by one to see which trips up your website load time.

7. Turn Off Your Firewall

To temporarily turn off your firewall to see if its settings are what’s causing the 504 error, follow these steps:

Windows:

• Start menu > Settings > Privacy & security > Windows Security > Firewall & network protection
• Choose your network profile
• Find Microsoft Defender Firewall and switch off

Mac:

• Apple menu > System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Firewall (at the top of the box)
• Select the button to turn the firewall on
• You may have to unlock this page using your password to make any changes

(Note: We recommend turning your firewall back on! If it’s causing gateway errors, once it’s back on you can take some time digging into its configurations to improve performance.)

8. Change Web Server Settings

For the more technically advanced, changing the settings on Apache and NGINX may help you reduce or even eliminate 504 errors.

Here’s how:

Apache

• Find your Apache configuration file (httpd.conf or apache2.conf)
• Open it in a text editor
• Modify Timeout by increasing the default to 60 seconds. So if you want it to be 500 seconds, for example, use Timeout 500
• Save and exit the editor
• Now, open and edit the php.ini file by increasing max_execution_time from the default 30 seconds to something like 400 seconds using max_execution_time = 400
• Save and restart Apache to put your timing increases into effect using sudo service apache2 restart

NGINX

• Locate the NGINX configuration file (often /etc/nginx/nginx.conf)
• For NGINX + FastCGI Process Manager or when using NGINX as a reverse proxy for Apache, here are all the places where you’re going to increase the default values (we’ll use 500 and 400 seconds again):
  • proxy_connect_timeout 500;
  • proxy_send_timeout 500;
  • proxy_read_timeout 500;
  • send_timeout 500;
  • fastcgi_read_timeout 400;
• Reload the NGINX server: sudo service nginx reload
• Edit the PHP-FPM pool config file (/etc/php/[version]/fpm/pool.d/www.conf — put your own version in place of [version])
• Set: request_terminate_timeout = 400
• In the php.ini file, set: max_execution_time = 400
• Reload PHP-FPM and NGINX using sudo service php[version]-fpm reload && sudo service nginx reload

Hopefully, that should be the end of those sensitive timeout server settings!

9. Turn To Your Host For Support

If you’re throwing your hands up in the air and don’t know what else to do anymore, you should always be able to contact your WordPress website host for quick and reliable support.

Aside from troubleshooting and solving problems alongside you, they can also quickly do a few things that tend to wipe out 504 errors, such as increase PHP workers, or upgrade you to a server with more or better resources to handle issues related to traffic.

What’s that we hear? If you’re not working with a hosting company that’s happy to do anything they can to make sure your website is performing well for both searchers and search engines, it’s time to shop around for a new one.

At DreamHost, we’re not just into helping website owners, managers, and builders with common errors — we’re fanatical about the WordPress platform as a whole!

That’s why we offer DreamPress, a package we specifically built for clients who want a hassle-free yet up-to-date and high-performing WordPress website.

And, for a totally white-glove experience, our pro services department can take website development and management off your hands.

Whether you want to get in the weeds with us or just rake in the benefits of a successful WordPress website without getting your hands dirty, DreamHost can create the perfect hosting and support plan for you.

Schedule a free consultation with our pro services team and begin crafting your website’s future today!

The post 9 Tactics For Fixing The 504 Gateway Timeout Error appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

This common error is related to issues establishing an encrypted SSL/TLS connection with the website’s server. Without that secure handshake, browsers block access to protect your data.

The good news is that, although perplexing, you can often resolve the ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR with a few simple fixes. In this guide, we’ll uncover what causes it and walk through various solutions to have you browsing securely again.

What Is The ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR?

To understand ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR, we first need to explore how website connections happen under the hood…

When you enter a URL into a web browser, a request fires off to connect with a server to retrieve the associated resource. If it’s an e-commerce site, you want assurance that personal details like payment data remain safe and that no sneaky eyes snoop along the purchasing journey.

Modern sites use encryption called TLS (Transport Layer Security), which is based on an older protocol called SSL (Secure Sockets Layer). SSL/TLS provides an encrypted secure connection that secures data in transit between your browser and the web server hosting the site.

It protects information like logins, browsing activity, communications, and transactions by scrambling it into coded gibberish only reconstituted at the final destination points.

But an encrypted connection doesn’t just happen automatically (that’s a little programmer joke!). The browser and server undergo a meticulous multi-step process termed a “handshake” to safely establish and validate the encrypted pathway, securely linking them.

Here’s a quick rundown of the steps that take place in the background during an SSL handshake:

• Hello: The client says “Hi” to the server and shares options for connecting securely.
• Agreement: The server responds with its identity certificate and agrees on the best encryption method.
• Verification: The client verifies the server’s identity is authentic.
• Key swap: The client and server exchange special keys to encrypt data.
• Secure connection locked in: Both sides confirm everything is good to go and create a secure connection.
• Data transfer: The browser and website can now share private information encrypted through the secure tunnel.

The main goal is to share an identity safely, validate both parties, and trade secret keys to encrypt data between the client browser and server website.

If anything disrupts the TLS handshake, it fails. Websites don’t load properly, and the browser warnings tell you there was a connection error.

That failed handshake typically triggers the infamous “ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR” message. It signifies the browser and server couldn’t agree on encryption versions, keys, certificates, or other required components to complete the security tunnel setup.

Now that you understand what’s supposed to happen, let’s explore what can cause things to break, resulting in ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR frustration.

What Triggers The ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR?

SSL/TLS are encryption protocols that establish an encrypted link between a browser and a server. They protect sensitive data such as passwords, emails, downloads, and more during their transfer from you to the website.

To create this encrypted connection, the browser and server must handshake using compatible SSL/TLS versions, supported ciphers, and valid certificates. If anything interferes with that authentication process, the handshake fails – triggering browser warnings about connection issues or the dreaded ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR.

Potential culprits behind a failed SSL/TLS handshake include:

• An outdated browser is unable to support modern protocols.
• The server does not support the required encryption ciphers.
• There are errors in the SSL/TLS configuration on the server.
• The website has an expired or invalid SSL certificate.
• Incorrect date and time settings are on your device.
• Caching issues are corrupting SSL data.
• Problems arise with antivirus software, firewalls, proxy settings, and more.

Pinpointing what disrupted the handshake is a great start to correcting ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR across your browsers and devices.

8 Ways To Fix ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR

With so many potential sources of the issue, you need to methodically check common issues until you uncover the SSL/TLS troublemaker. Let’s explore critical techniques to squash ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR in your browser:

1. Set The Correct Date & Time

The easiest first step is to verify you’ve set your computer’s date and time correctly. If inaccurate, this can hinder SSL certificate expiration checks and other processes that depend on coordinated universal times.

To quickly fix this:

• Go to Windows Date & Time settings or Mac system preferences.
• Enable the “Set date and time automatically” toggle if available.
• Select your time zone.
• Ensure the date and time match the current settings online.

Once you’ve confirmed everything is correct, reload the site to see if this resolved your ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR message.

2. Clear Browser Cache & Cookies

Outdated SSL data in your browser cache or cookies can disrupt that critical SSL/TLS handshake. Often, clearing this data resolves common SSL errors like the one we’re currently tackling.

To flush cache/cookies in popular browsers:

• Chrome: Click the menu button > Clear browsing data
• Firefox: Click the menu button > Options > Privacy & Security > Clear Data
• Safari: Develop menu > Empty Caches
• Edge: Click menu > Settings > Clear Browsing Data

Select all time ranges and check cached images/files and cookies before confirming the clearing. Afterward, reload pages initially affected by ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR to test whether this solved the SSL issue.

3. Update Your Web Browser

Another browser-based culprit is running outdated software that cannot connect using modern TLS 1.2 or 1.3 protocols many sites now require. Each version bump brings improved encryption strength that websites use to protect internet users’ data in transit.

However, old browsers still operate on deprecated protocols like TLS 1.0 without support for current ciphers able to handshake new server configurations. To fix this, simply update the browser to the latest version.

Here’s how to update common browsers:

• Chrome: Click menu > Help > About Google Chrome. Chrome auto-updates but checks and triggers manual updates if available.
• Firefox: Click menu > Help > About Firefox. Initiates auto-check and manual updates.
• Safari: Apple menu > Software Update. or the Updates tab in the App Store app to check for Apple software updates, including Safari.
• Edge: Click menu > Help and feedback > About Microsoft Edge to auto-update Windows. You can also manually update if desired.

Install any pending browser updates. Once done, give sites with prior ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR another whirl to see if the update did the trick.

4. Adjust Firewall And Antivirus Settings

Security software like your antivirus program, VPNs, and firewalls play an important role in protecting devices and connections from online threats.

However, they occasionally overreach — misinterpreting legitimate connections to websites as potential risks.

This interception blocks what appears suspicious, making the website connections fail and triggering the common ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR. Luckily, this is easy to fix by adding website exceptions to security tools:

• Windows Firewall: Permit apps network access under Allow an App Through Windows Defender Firewall.
• Avast: Open the application > whitelist web addresses causing issues on the Exclusions list.
• AVG: Add problematic websites to exclusions under Options > Advanced Settings.

For a diagnostic step, try temporarily disabling your antivirus software to see if it resolves the issue. Similarly, turning off your firewall momentarily can help determine if it is responsible for your SSL connection errors – Just make sure to turn it back on!

Once you’re sure these tools are causing the errors, simply add exceptions, and you’re ready to keep moving.

5. Check SSL Certificate Issues

Shifting gears into issues outside direct control, server-side website infrastructure also plays a key role in completing the TLS handshake with browsers.

An SSL-protected website securely validates identity and enables encryption. You can check if your connection to a website is secure by clicking on the padlock icon on the left of the URL in your address bar.

Nerd Note: The padlock icon has now changed to a “configuration” icon for the Chrome browser.

However, expired or improperly set up certificates can block establishing secure browser connections, triggering the ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR warning.

While mostly website owner terrain, you can absolutely check to be sure it’s a server-side issue:

• Confirm no warnings appear mentioning certificate problems, mismatches, or expirations.
• Use the Qualys SSL Checker Tools to inspect certificates.

If you find SSL certificate problems, you can contact the site owners by looking for email addresses on their websites. With proper information, owners can quickly investigate and deploy an updated certificate.

6. Reset Browser Settings

Despite trying typical browser fixes, if ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR still dashed site loading hopes, consider browser settings resets:

• Chrome Desktop: Click menu > Settings > Reset settings.
• Firefox: Click menu > Help > Troubleshooting Info > Refresh / Reset Firefox

Resetting erases ALL browser data and custom settings. So, use this as a last-resort troubleshooting step. If some custom settings in the browser were causing the issue, resetting will remove whatever factor was standing between you and the websites working correctly again.

A word of caution — Don’t reset browser settings on a whim, as the deletion is aggressive. Try safer options first before going this route!

7. Disable Browser Extensions

Some third-party browser extensions interfere with websites loading properly or establishing secure SSL/TLS connections.

Try disabling unnecessary extensions one by one and reloading impacted sites to check if an extension causes issues:

• Chrome: Puzzle icon > Manage extensions > Toggle off.

• Firefox: Menu > Add-ons > Extensions > Disable individually
• Safari: Safari menu > Preferences > Extensions > Uncheck boxes

If disabling a particular extension allows sites to load correctly, update the extension if possible or check settings closely related to privacy, security, or SSL handling.

However, you may need to permanently remove an extension if problems persist.

8. Use A VPN Service

Particularly when other troubleshooting struck out, routing web traffic through an encrypted VPN tunnel sometimes resolves stubborn ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR messages.

A VPN extends an encrypted tunnel from your device to the VPN server itself first before then reaching out to external websites.

This allows sites to complete the SSL/TLS handshake through the VPN tunnel rather than dealing directly with a browser that struggles to make local encrypted connections.

To set up a VPN:

• Pick a good VPN provider and download the software.
• Install on the device, create an account, and connect to the local server.
• Refresh problematic sites with an active VPN.

If pages load correctly, something related to your specific network is likely blocking successful SSL handshakes natively. Corporate firewalls and proxies potentially interfere with work devices, for example. Other geographic restrictions can also bubble up depending on where you physically reside when attempting to access certain websites.

While VPNs provide temporary relief, they do degrade browsing performance. Plus, costs add up for paid services in the long term. So, determine if any restrictive policies or configurations unique to your situation block SSL traffic, which the VPN successfully sidesteps. At the end of the day, you want to address the root cause first, even if you choose to resort permanently to using a VPN.

FAQs

What is the solution for ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR?

The solution is identifying what blocked the SSL/TLS handshake and then applying the right fix whether updating old browsers, clearing corrupt cache data, checking server configurations, or rectifying certificate issues. You need to go one step at a time; verifying common causes of the  ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR and working on fixing them.

What is ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR on my website?

It likely means the web server is misconfigured and fails to establish SSL connections with visiting browsers, preventing SSL handshakes from completing properly. Site owners should examine supported TLS and cipher versions, validate the certificate deployed, and confirm no blocking firewall rules exist on the server.

How do I check my SSL settings in Chrome?

Use chrome://settings/security in the URL bar. It displays certificate authorities stored, HTTPS/SSL version support capability, management of certificates, and options to clear SSL state like session data and hostname resolutions. Review settings against supported configurations by the website for troubleshooting odd SSL behavior in Chrome.

Prevent Future ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR Woes

TLS handshakes are critical for establishing secure encrypted website connections. But they can fail in many ways: outdated software, misconfigurations, certificate issues, and more triggering cryptographic errors that block access.

As a site owner, it can feel overwhelming to stay on top of encryption protocols apart from your other priorities. But your visitors need assurance their data gets protected during website transactions.

That’s where choosing a managed hosting provider like DreamHost shines. The security experts here handle the heavy lifting in terms of security management:

• Automatically apply the latest TLS patches
• Monitor expiring SSL certificates 24/7
• Ensure compatible ciphers and protocols
• Provide free shared certificates
• Upgrade plans include dedicated IP addresses
• Save hours not having to troubleshoot cryptographic issues!

DreamHost provides robust security while abstracting away the complexities website owners traditionally shoulder alone. One less headache while keeping sites safe and performing fast.

The post How To Fix The ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR (8 Ways) appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

But what exactly is a DNS server and why is it misbehaving? In a strange way, the information provided by the error message is only useful if you already know what it means.

To help you resolve this issue, we decided to take a deeper look at the DNS Server Not Responding error, and all the possible causes. Keep reading to find the answers you’re looking for!

What Does The “DNS Server Not Responding” Error Mean?

To understand this error, we first need to take a quick look at DNS, or domain name system.

Whenever you ask your browser to connect to a website, a DNS server has to convert the domain name (e.g., mysite.com) to the numeric IP address (four numbers separated by three periods, for example, 127.0.0.1) of the hosting server. This is where the site actually lives; the domain name is simply a pretty title that is easier for humans to remember.

DNS Server Not Responding error occurs when, for some reason, your browser can’t make contact with the server that handles the domain name to IP address translation.

There are three underlying reasons why this could be happening:

• The DNS server is down or unreachable: There is something wrong with the server itself, or its network connection.
• You have connectivity issues: Often due to an outage somewhere between you and the server, including network issues.
• The DNS record for the domain name is incorrect or missing: This means the DNS server doesn’t know which IP address to point the domain name to.

In order to fix the error, we need to work through a checklist that covers all three possible causes.

Fixing The DNS Server Not Responding Error

If the DNS Server Not Responding error appears only on your site, it might be because your domain name isn’t configured correctly.

• Make sure your domain name hasn’t expired.
• Check that you have an “A record” and it contains no typos.
• If you made changes recently, give them time to propagate.

If none of this helps, or you see the error on other websites, here are all the ways you can fix a DNS Server Not Responding error:

1. Try Using A Different Browser

Strictly speaking, switching to another browser won’t fix DNS issues. But it can reveal what has gone wrong.

Every browser maintains a cache, where content is stored temporarily for quick access. The problem is that your browser cache might have stored the wrong DNS records. If this happens, you will get the same error message whenever you try to revisit the same page.

By moving away from your default browser, you will be using a different cache, and each browser has its own default DNS servers. In addition, you will bypass other issues like extensions that block connections.

2. Check The Site From A Different Device

If you’re still seeing an error on a particular website after changing your browser, try swapping to a different device. This will ensure that some other unexpected issue in your local system isn’t causing the problem.

If you don’t have access to another desktop computer, simply pull out your phone and try to visit the page in question. If this doesn’t fix the error, it’s also worth connecting to a different network or switching to data.

3. Restart Your Computer

Another way to deal with cache-related problems is by restarting your device. This will flush all DNS records from your machine, so your device will have to perform a live DNS lookup when you visit the problematic page.

Restarting your device also renews its IP address and clears the DNS request queue, which can be enough to fix certain connectivity issues. It could be enough to clear the error.

4. Restart Your Computer In Safe Mode

Sometimes, software and related drivers on your device are the cause for the blocked DNS connections. To test for this issue, it’s a good idea to boot up your device in Safe Mode:

Windows:

1. On the sign-in screen, click Restart while holding Shift.
2. Select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart.
3. After restart, press 5 or F5 to start up your device in safe mode with networking.

Mac: Hold Shift as you power up.

iOS / Android: Press and hold the power button, and then tap the down volume control after the screen lights up.

In this mode, your machine will revert to default settings and only the most essential drivers. If the problem sites load normally while in Safe Mode, it means that either third-party software or drivers are causing incompatibility issues.

This is definitely bad news, because the only way to track down the precise cause is by testing your apps, one by one. That said, it’s most likely to be something like a VPN, or security software causing your headaches.

5. Turn Off Antivirus Software And/Or Your Firewall

Antivirus applications and firewalls protect your device by monitoring traffic. From time to time, these tools sometimes meddle too much with your internet connection and end up causing DNS server errors.

As such, it’s a good idea to switch off your antivirus program and/or firewall protection temporarily, to test whether they are causing the problems.

If this resolves the problem, make sure to turn your protection back on. Then, look through the settings to find anything related to DNS that may be causing your troubles. If your chosen software package includes support, it may be worth reaching out to your provider for help.

6. Turn Off Your VPN

VPNs, or virtual private networks, provide an extra layer of online privacy by routing data to your device through an encrypted tunnel. So far, so useful. The issue is, the tunnel might be bypassing your default DNS servers.

To test this idea, switch off your VPN and try to visit the page where you had the DNS server issue. If this resolves your problems, restart the VPN and take a peek at the settings. You’re looking for controls related to DNS filtering. If you need a helping hand, try contacting your VPN provider for support.

7. Flush DNS Cache

You don’t necessarily need to restart your device to flush the DNS cache. You can do it manually instead:

• Windows:

1. Press Win + R and type in the “ipconfig /flushdns”.
2. Then, hit Ctrl + Shift + Enter to run the command prompt.

• Mac:

1. Open the Terminal, and type in “sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder”.
2. Press Enter.
3. Input your admin password when prompted, and press the Enter button again.

• iOS: Turn Airplane Mode on and back off again.
• Android

1. In Chrome, type “chrome://net-internals/#dns” into the search box.
2. Select DNS on the left, and then tap Clear host cache

By flushing your DNS cache, you will force your device to re-query the DNS server for each site you visit. This ensures you have updated mappings of domain names to IP addresses — an essential first step in network diagnostics.

8. Restart Your Router

Network connection issues are a common cause of DNS server errors. One easy way to fix this kind of problem is by restarting your internet router.

Switch it off and unplug the power cable for around 30 seconds. This should clear any corrupted DNS entries that have been stored in the router cache, and renew your connection.

At the same time, it’s worth checking that your router’s firmware is up to date. Outdated firmware can cause connectivity issues that prevent DNS lookups. In combination, these steps might fix your problem.

9. Disable IPv6

Internet protocol is the system that creates a unique IP address for every device on the internet. The current version is IPv6 (Internet Protocol Version 6), which has gradually replaced IPv4 over the past few years. It is now the default option.

However, not every network and DNS server has been updated to IPv6.

If you use this version to request a particular web page, you might only receive a DNS Server Not Responding error. Similarly, systems that are in hybrid mode can experience technical troubles in juggling both systems.

For this reason, it’s worth temporarily switching off IPv6 to see whether you can access a website via IPv4.

The exact process depends on your platform, but it usually involves:

1. Visiting the network settings on your device.
2. Selecting your active connection (usually Ethernet or Wi-Fi).
3. Accessing the advanced options via Advanced, Properties, or i.
4. Toggling IPv6 off, and saving your changes.

Lastly, you will need to restart your device to test whether this potential solution has worked. If you see no improvement, reverse the process to switch IPv6 back on — this can help you to maintain better performance as you move between different networks.

10. Change The Default DNS Server

Normally speaking, your device connects to a DNS server provided by your ISP (Internet Service Provider). If you’re having DNS issues, it might be because this server is misbehaving. The solution here is to switch to a different server.

Organizations like Google and Cloudflare provide public DNS servers that anyone can use. Some people prefer using these servers because they can speed up page loading. In other cases, people use an alternative DNS server for privacy reasons.

Some of the most popular alternate DNS providers include:

• Google: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4
• Cloudflare: 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1
• OpenDNS: 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220

Here’s how to switch your DNS server address.

Windows:

1. Navigate to Control Panel > Network Connections > Properties. 
2. Under Preferred DNS server, enter the IP address of your preferred DNS server.
3. Under Alternate DNS Server, put in the address of your backup server, and save your changes.

Mac:

1. Navigate to System Preferences > Network and select your primary internet connection in the sidebar.
2. Click Details (or Advanced on older Macs) then select DNS.
3. At the bottom of the DNS servers list, click the + button and enter your new DNS address.
4. Make sure to click Apply before leaving the Network screen.

iOS Mobile

1. Navigate to Wi-Fi settings (they might be under Network & Internet)
2. Find the DNS settings…
3. On iOS, tap the i icon, then Configure DNS.
4. Select Manual < Add server to update DNS.

Android Mobile

1. On Android, open Settings > Connections > More connection settings.
2. Tap on “Private DNS” and choose “Private DNS provider hostname to change the DNS server.

Once you have finished changing your DNS server settings, restart your device before trying to access the internet. This will ensure that the new DNS settings are adopted, giving you a chance of beating those pesky errors!

11. Update Network Adapter Drivers

A network adapter driver is a piece of software that allows an operating system to communicate with a network adapter. This is the small card in your device that handles internet connections.

If the driver software isn’t regularly updated, it can start to create problems. Likewise, a driver that is corrupted, or incompatible with a new network adapter, is likely to create headaches.

One possible symptom is — you guessed it — the kind of DNS error we’re trying to fix.

Many devices update their network drivers automatically; macOS handles this chore behind the scenes. On Windows, you can take control of the adapter settings yourself:

1. Visit Device Manager.
2. Right-click Network Adapter.
3. Select Update Drivers from the drop-down menu.

If possible, it’s a good idea to connect to the internet via an Ethernet cable when updating your drivers. The reason is simple: you’re updating the piece of hardware you need in order to download the update. Interruptions due to poor Wi-Fi signal can mess up the process.

Once you have updated your drivers successfully, restart your device and see if DNS is working properly.

12. Disable Secondary Connections

Some devices have more than one network adapter. For example, wired and wireless connections use different adapters.

In most cases, you only need to use one adapter at a time. Switching off all secondary connections is a good idea because they can cause problems with DNS requests.

To do this, visit the network settings on your device and turn off all live connections other than the one you’re using (e.g., If you’re connected via Wi-Fi, disable the Ethernet connection.)

It’s also worth checking whether you have a virtual network adapter running. This is a digital service that allows multiple connections via the same physical adapter. It’s a feature used by VPNs, allowing you to tunnel some traffic through the private network, and some through a regular internet connection.

To make sure a misbehaving virtual network adapter isn’t causing your problems:

• Windows:

1. Open Control Panel > Network Connections.
2. Right-click on the virtual adapter you want to switch off, and select Disable.
3. Confirm you want to disable the adapter. This will take it offline.

• Mac: 

1. Open System Preferences > Network.
2. Select the virtual adapter in the left sidebar, and click the gear icon.
3. Select Make Service Inactive to disable the adapter.

• Mobile:

1. Find the VPN settings on your device.
2. Tap the i or gear icon.
3. Switch off the adapter.

Once again, try to reload the malfunctioning page to see if the DNS error message has cleared.

13. Disable Peer-To-Peer Feature (Windows)

No luck? Don’t worry, there is one more potential fix you can try.

Windows has a peer-to-peer feature, which helps to reduce the amount of bandwidth needed while downloading updates. Rather than forcing your device to swallow all the data in one big lump, this option splits updates into individual pieces. The PC that receives these pieces can then share them with others on the same network.

This is obviously a useful feature. But as you might have guessed already, Windows P2P can interfere with the DNS lookup process. Switching it off can help you to diagnose errors:

1. Navigate to Settings > Windows Update.
2. Next, click on Advanced Options > Delivery Optimization.
3. Toggle the switch labeled Allow downloads from other PCs.

You will then need to restart your computer to test, once again, whether the DNS error has cleared. Fingers crossed!

Frequently Asked Questions

Still have questions? You’ve come to the right place. Here’s a little extra detail on fixing your DNS settings, and a closer look at why failures happen:

How Do You Reset Your DNS Server?

After following the various troubleshooting steps above, you may decide that you want to go back to the domain name servers you originally had.

To achieve this, simply retrace the exact steps mentioned in #10 — but this time, select your current DNS servers and press the little minus button to remove them. After a restart, your device should then revert to the default ISP DNS servers.

What Causes A DNS Failure?

In simple terms, a DNS failure happens when your browser cannot convert a domain name to an IP address. However, there can be many different underlying causes.

The DNS process offers access to over 1 billion internet hosts. That’s one mighty “phone book.” So, it’s almost inevitable that the system will have some flaws.

Most DNS problems that people encounter are caused by issues with internet access or software on their device. Actual failures are most commonly caused by server outages or incorrectly configured domain names.

Set Up Your Site Correctly With DreamHost

If you want to avoid seeing DNS errors pop up on your website, you might want to switch to DreamHost.

Our hosting panel makes it really easy to configure your site correctly and manage all your domain names on a single page. If you ever get stuck, our Technical Support team is available 24/7 to provide help — and that’s on every single plan.

Sounds good? Sign up today to give it a try for yourself!

The post DNS Server Not Responding Error? Here’s How To Fix It (13 Ways) appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

In many cases, this is caused by a gremlin on your device. Bad browser extensions, misbehaving proxies, and poor internet connections are all possible causes. But if you find the error popping up on someone else’s computer, or connected to a different Wi-Fi network, you might need to take action to fix your site.

If you’re not familiar with the ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED error, knowing where to begin can be tricky. How do you even diagnose the problem? Well, this guide is a good place to start.

Keep reading to discover why this error happens, and how you can fix it.

What Is An ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Error?

ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED is an error that can occur when you try to connect to a web server or other network service. It indicates that the server actively refused your connection attempt. This is usually because the server isn’t accepting incoming requests.

Technically, it’s worth noting that ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors happen at the network connection level. That is, before any HTTP request is sent. That’s why you don’t see an HTTP status code ( like a 404 or 500).

The ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED error is also different from getting no response at all. A refused connection means something is listening but rejected it. No response indicates that the server isn’t even listening.

What Causes ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Errors?

So, why is the server being so antisocial? Well, there could be several possible reasons:

• The web server hasn’t got the proper software installed.
• The incorrect server has been requested, or a DNS issue.
• The server software has crashed, or there is server downtime due to maintenance.
• The listening process has been stopped intentionally.
• A firewall or some other software is blocking the port for incoming requests.
• A faulty internet connection, or incorrect internet settings.

In other words, the troubleshooting process revolves around figuring out why the server is refusing requests. It could either be a problem on the client side (i.e., visitor devices) or on the server side.

What Does An ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Error Look Like?

Bear in mind that ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors appear differently depending on which platform and browser you’re using.

On Google Chrome, you will see an error page that reads, “This site can’t be reached.”

Mozilla Firefox users who encounter an ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED error will see a message that says, “Unable to connect Error.”

Meanwhile, those of us who use Microsoft Edge will get a different page, with the message, “Hmmm…can’t reach this page.”

How To Fix An ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Error

Now we know the issue we need to solve, it’s time to start making some investigations.

Whoa there, Sherlock! Before you start digging around on your server, it’s important to run a quick test. Are you seeing the error only when visiting your website, or does it appear on multiple sites?

If the problem is universal, you have a client-side error. Scroll down to the section on troubleshooting tips for visitors.

But if the ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED message only appears for your website, you will need to take action to get your site working again.

Don’t worry, this shouldn’t take long. Here’s your checklist:

Disable Active Plugins

One common culprit for server-side issues is an incompatible or buggy plugin. If you have any plugins or extensions installed within your CMS, try disabling them and see if that resolves the issue.

In WordPress, you can disable plugins quickly from your dashboard:

1. Go to Plugins > Installed Plugins.
2. For each active plugin, click Deactivate.
3. Check if the site works normally now, without plugins.

If the errors disappear, try reactivating your plugins one by one. Test the site after you enable each plugin.

If the error message crops up again, the plugin you last activated is the one to blame. If an update is available, make sure to install the current version.

Otherwise, it might be time to find an alternative.

Change Your Theme

Much like plugins and extensions, themes can be the cause of ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors. This is most likely to happen if you’re using an outdated third-party theme.

To test whether a theme is causing your headaches, switch to an official theme made by the developer of your chosen CMS. In WordPress, this would mean switching to the Twenty Twenty-Three theme via your dashboard:

1. Go to Appearance > Themes.
2. Click Activate on Twenty Twenty-Three, or the latest default theme.
3. Check if ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED has resolved after making the switch.

If you no longer see an error, your custom theme probably needs an update or reset. Reach out to the developer of your theme for fixes, or consider changing to a different theme.

Increase Your PHP max_execution_time

Some connection errors happen because a script on your website is taking too long to execute. One way to address this is by increasing the max_execution_time in your PHP settings.

To test whether this is the cause of your problems, try doubling it from 30 seconds to 60 seconds:

1. Add this line to your wp-config.php file: ini_set( ‘max_execution_time’, 60 );
2. Save changes and test if timeout errors reduce.

If you don’t have access to PHP configs, reach out to your web host for assistance with increasing timeouts.

Get In Touch With Your Host

If you’ve tried all the troubleshooting tips mentioned above and are still seeing ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED, it’s a good idea to get in touch with your web host’s support team.

They have better access to key information, meaning they can investigate the problem at a deeper level.

Send them details about the error and when it seems to happen. Your host can then check server logs, load, configurations, and resource usage to pinpoint the cause.

Folks who host their website with DreamHost get 24/7 access to our excellent support team via live chat. They can diagnose any strange errors that pop up, and get your site back up and running smoothly.

How To Fix ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Errors As A Visitor

As you try to track down the cause of your ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED woes, it’s worth bearing in mind that these errors often come from the client side. In other words, something that is specific to your device or network.

If you’re seeing errors popping up all over the place, try following these troubleshooting steps:

Clear Out Your Browser

An easy place to start is by clearing your browser cache and cookies.

As you explore the web, your browser saves files locally for quick access. These files can get corrupted, leading to connectivity issues like refused connections.

The process for clearing out your cache and cookies usually involves visiting your browser settings menu. On the desktop version of Chrome, the process looks like this:

1. To the right of the address bar, click the three dots in the menu bar.
2. Select Settings from the drop-down menu.
3. Navigate to Privacy and Security > Clear Browsing Data.
4. Select Cached images and files and Cookies and other site data, before clicking Clear.

Then, try to reload the webpage to see if the error has cleared.

Check Your Internet Connection

One common cause of the ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED error is an unreliable internet connection.

If you’re at home, check that the status lights on your router are lit up as usual. Red lights can mean that the internet connection to your home isn’t working properly.

The problem may resolve itself in a few minutes. Otherwise, you might need to get in touch with your ISP (Internet Service Provider).

If you don’t have easy access to the router, you can check your connection by running a speed test. Google has one built in; Just search for “speed test” and follow the instructions provided.

Bear in mind that it’s not always the actual internet connection that is to blame — Sometimes, routers misbehave. To check your Wi-Fi connection:

• On Windows: In the Control Panel, go to Network and Internet > Network and Sharing Center, and select the blue Wi-Fi link.
• On Mac: Hold the option key, and click the Wi-Fi icon on the status bar at the top of your screen. Then, select Wireless Diagnostics from the menu.

Restart Your Device

Sometimes, all you need is a simple restart to clear up connection issues.

Try rebooting your computer, phone, tablet, or even your router if you can easily gain access to the power button or unplug the power supply.

This process flushes the DNS resolver cache, meaning that any invalid DNS address will be washed away. Restarting your devices will also reset certain network settings to the original default settings.

(It’s also possible to flush your DNS cache manually without having to turn off your device).

Dive Into Your DNS Settings

When a simple reboot doesn’t do the trick, it might be because the DNS configuration you are using isn’t working correctly. This can cause errors because your browser doesn’t know where to find the website you want.

To test this possible cause, you will need to switch to an alternate DNS server. You can do this by visiting the internet settings panel on your device and finding the DNS configuration options:

On Windows: Open Start and type “Control panel” in the search bar. Click on the app to open and navigate to Network and Sharing Center. Click on your current network next to “Connections” and then open Properties. Click Use the following DNS server addresses.

Type in one of the public DNS addresses listed below.

On Mac: In System Settings, open Network. Then, click the Advanced… button in the bottom right, and select the DNS tab.

Here, you should see your current DNS server address. This is usually owned by your internet provider. Add or replace this with the IP addresses of public DNS servers. Here are some popular options:

• Google Public DNS: 8.8.8.8 or 8.8.4.4
• Cloudflare DNS: 1.1.1.1 or 1.0.0.1
• OpenDNS Home: 208.67.222.222 or 208.67.220.220

If this fixes your problem, you can either keep your new server IP address or get in touch with your ISP for additional help.

Just remember, your DNS cache could be to blame. This holds temporary entries to speed up the page loading process. However, outdated DNS cache entries can block domains. If in doubt, restart your device or manually clear your DNS cache.

(Temporarily) Disable Your Security Software

Using a firewall and antivirus software is wise if you want to keep your devices secure. Unfortunately, overzealous security tools can sometimes block connections — leading to client-side issues.

To test whether firewall interference or antivirus protection is causing your ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors, try temporarily disabling your security programs and see if it makes a difference.

If you’re using the built-in Defender Firewall on Windows:

1. Head to Settings > Privacy & security> Windows Security.
2. Click on Firewall & network protection.
3. Select: Domain network.
4. Under Microsoft Defender Firewall switch the setting to Off.

Don’t leave it off permanently though! If you discover that certain domain names are being blocked, make sure to whitelist them in your chosen app.

Check Proxy Settings

Much like security software, proxies and VPN services can interfere with connections and domain name resolution, leading to ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors.

To check if your proxy server settings are causing issues on Windows:

1. Visit the Control Panel.
2. Go to Network and Internet > Internet Options > Connections > LAN Settings.
3. Deselect two options: Automatically detect settings and Use a proxy server for your LAN.
4. Save the changes by clicking Ok.

On Mac:

1. Open up System preferences.
2. Navigate to Network > Advanced > Proxies.
3. Make sure all proxy protocols in the list are unchecked.
4. Click Ok to save any changes.

Try loading the site again — if the error goes away, you know the proxy was at fault. Explore your network settings, or ask your network admin to allow access to any mistakenly blocked domains.

Given the privacy implications, removing proxy protection isn’t a long-term solution. However, disabling it temporarily can help you to pin down technical errors.

Disable Browser Extensions

Some ad blockers, tracking protection extensions, or VPN plug-ins added to your browser can inadvertently block access to certain sites and cause ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED.

We see this most often with Chrome Extensions, mainly because they’re so popular.

To test if Chrome Extension issues are to blame:

1. Click the three dots in the top-right corner, just along the search bar.
2. Open the Extensions menu by navigating to Tools > Extensions.
3. For each extension installed, toggle it to Off to disable it. Alternatively, you can click Remove on suspicious extensions to uninstall completely.

After disabling or removing extensions, try reloading the website displaying the error. If the site now works, turn extensions back on one by one until you identify the problematic plugin.

Make sure to note which extension caused the issue, and rummage through the settings to see whether it is set up to block any domains. Many privacy extensions have options to whitelist certain domains to get around this problem.

Take A Peek At Your .hosts File

If none of the above is making any difference, you might have a case of the .hosts file blues.

Traditionally speaking, this file is pretty helpful. It maps hostnames (like DreamHost.com) to IP addresses (like 192.0.2.235). The problem is some apps use this file to block access to specific domains.

You can find a .hosts file in every operating system:

In Windows open the Start menu and type “Notepad” in the search bar. Right-click the app and click Run as administrator. Once Notepad is open, click File > Open. Then, enter this file name into the text box: C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\

For macOS, hop to Finder and navigate to /etc/hosts

For all other operating systems:

• Linux/Unix: Check out /etc/hosts
• Android: Using any file browser app, navigate to /system/etc/hosts
• iOS: Via the Files app, go to /etc/hosts

Open the file and check for any blocked or redirected domains. If you find any, edit the file to remove those entries. Then, see if you still have an error when loading websites.

Reinstall Your Browser

If you’ve tried all other troubleshooting steps and are still seeing ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors, a clean reinstall of your web browser may help resolve any corrupted files or settings causing issues.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Close all windows and quit the browser completely.
2. On Windows, go to Start > Settings > Apps > Apps & features. On Mac, head over to Finder > Applications.
3. Search for your internet browser, and uninstall the app. Confirm any prompts to fully uninstall.
4. Next, restart your computer. This helps to flush any cached files.
5. Download the latest version of your chosen browser. Make sure to visit the official source.
6. Run through the reinstallation process. Make sure to deselect any options to import previous data.

Once the browser is installed, try loading the problematic sites again. The fresh install should not have any corrupted extensions, caches, or configurations that could cause issues.

If you continue to see connection issues, the problem likely lies elsewhere, such as with your network setup or the website’s server configuration. But reinstalling the browser is worth trying, just to rule out any client-side corruption. Make sure to back up bookmarks and your passwords before uninstalling!

Fix Errors Faster With DreamHost

From clearing caches, and fixing internet-related issues, to tracking down incorrect firewall settings, we’ve walked through a lot of troubleshooting methods in this guide.

In most cases, you won’t need to use every possible solution. Using simple tests, you should be able to figure out the likely problem:

• Do you only get ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors on one website? Chances are, it’s a server-side issue.
• Seeing ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED errors on multiple sites? It is almost certainly a client-side problem.

While we can’t fix your internet connection or your proxy problems, we can fix your website if it starts showing an error.

All of our hosting packages come with 24/7 live support, and our expert staff can handle any technical query you have.

Sounds good? Sign up for hosting today to give it a try for yourself.

The post How To Resolve The ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Error appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

If left unattended, these can snowball into significant challenges: Dwindling traffic, poor user experience, and elevated security risks, to name a few.

It’s important to root out the cause of the issue as soon as possible, whether it’s WordPress errors or something else.

The bad news: A variety of potential server-side issues could be throwing the error. The good news is that those error codes you see? They’re your map to effective troubleshooting.

We’ll explain in simple terms what the 502 Bad Gateway error is, why it happens, and most importantly, how to make it disappear.

Let’s get started.

What Is The 502 Bad Gateway Error?

First of all, a little bit of a crash course on what’s going on behind the scenes may help everything make a bit more sense. After all, knowledge is power, right?

Every time you enter a URL into an address bar and attempt to access a site, your browser sends a request to that site’s server. The server processes that request and then displays the website’s content.

If something were to go wrong, you would instead see an HTTP status code. Then the fun begins.

You’ve probably faced a 404 error (page not found) at least once, if not a hundred times. It’s saying the server was able to process the request, but couldn’t locate the specific page or content.

In contrast, a 502 Bad Gateway error happens when there’s a communication breakdown between two servers. The first server relayed the message but received an invalid response from the upstream (or next) server.

In other words, the server, which acts as a gateway or proxy, received an invalid response from an inbound server and was not able to fulfill the request.

Depending on the browser you use, the status may appear in a handful of different ways:

• 502 Bad Gateway
• 502 Proxy Error
• Error 502
• HTTP Error 502 – Bad Gateway
• Temporary Error (502)
• 502 Service Temporarily Overloaded

The HTTP 502 server error isn’t limited to a problem with a proxy server or server overload, so let’s dig in a little further and look at some common causes.

What Causes The 502 Bad Gateway Error?

Several issues can return a 502 Bad Gateway error. These include:

• An unresolved domain name – There could be connectivity issues between the domain name and your IP address. This often happens when a website recently migrated from one web host to a new hosting provider, and the DNS server hasn’t had time to propagate.
• An oversensitive firewall – If your website (perhaps a WordPress site with a firewall plugin) or your web host has firewall settings that are too restrictive, some Internet providers or IP addresses may be blocked. This can happen when the firewall detects them as a false threat.
• Server overload – A sudden spike in traffic can cause the origin server to crash. If your website’s server is on a shared hosting plan, your traffic can be impacted by everybody else’s traffic (like your neighbors are having a big party, and their guests are taking up all the parking spots.)

Having said the above, it should be noted that the 502 Bad Gateway error isn’t restricted to problems with the server. Client-side issues such as outdated browsers or corrupted files in the browser cache can also be a cause of the status error.

How Do You Fix The 502 Bad Gateway Error? (9 Possible Solutions)

Now, let’s look at how to fix the 502 Bad Gateway error! We’ll cover two scenarios: an issue on the client side and a problem with the server.

1. Refresh The Webpage And Try A Different Browser

We should always start with the simplest solution. The 502 Bad Gateway error could be a temporary issue. For example, the web server may have become overloaded for a few minutes or experienced a brief surge in traffic.

Try waiting a few minutes and refresh the page. If that doesn’t work, you can try accessing the same site using a different browser. If that works, then the issue may be with the original browser. If the page still doesn’t open, the website itself may be the problem.

Another way to determine whether the problem is on your end or at the web server is to use a tool like Down for Everyone or Just Me, or Is It Down Right Now to confirm whether the problem is on your end or with the site’s host.

Using one of these tools will identify the status of your site. If your site isn’t down for everyone, you’ll need to troubleshoot on your end, and the first several steps below will help with that. If your site is down for everyone, you’ll need to check into your site’s backend to find the source of the problem, which will be addressed later in the post.

2. Test Using Another Device

Assuming you’ve been using your computer and ISP, try to access your website from your cell phone. First, go to your phone’s settings and turn off your wifi, then make sure your mobile data is enabled. If you’re able to access your site, the problem is at your end, and rebooting your network may fix the issue.

To reboot your network, shut your computer down, then unplug your modem and router. If you have an integrated modem and wifi router, unplug it, wait for about a minute, then plug in your modem and let it reboot. Then plug in your router and let it boot up. If you have integrated hardware, plug it in and let it boot.

Finally, start your computer and try to access your site.

3. Clear Your Browser’s Cache

Browsers store a lot of data, primarily to help pages load faster the next time they’re opened. However, your browser cache may contain outdated site data or corrupted files, leading to the Bad Gateway error.

Based on this, the next thing to do is clear your browser cache. Depending on which browser you use, steps may vary.

If you use Mozilla Firefox, access the hamburger menu (three horizontal bars) at the top right. Go to History > Clear recent history.

From there, you’ll open a new menu and further options. If you were able to access your site without issue yesterday, then you can choose Today in the time range field, select Cache — you can deselect the other options if you want — and then click Clear Now.

For the most part, the process will be much the same if you’re using Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari, or something else. If you’re unsure, check the process for clearing cache in other browsers for specific details.

If you try to access your site after clearing the cache and still get a status error, move on to the next step.

4. Flush The DNS Cache

A 502 Bad Gateway error could also be caused by a Domain Name System (DNS) issue. For example, if you’ve just migrated your site to a new web host, the propagation process can take up to 48 hours.

However, the issue may also originate with your local DNS cache. This temporary storage on your device contains information about previously visited domain names.

If you’re using Windows, you can flush the DNS cache using the Command Prompt. To access it, type “CMD” into the Windows search on your taskbar, and press Enter.

You’ll now have access to your Command Prompt.

Once the Command Prompt box is open, copy or type the following command:

ipconfig /flushdns

Let it run. When it’s finished, you’ll see a message that says, “Successfully flushed the DNS resolver Cache.”

If you’re using a Mac operating system, enter or copy the following command in the terminal.

dscacheutil -flushcache

If you’re uncomfortable doing either of these, you can also use a third-party service such as Google Public DNS to temporarily change your DNS server.

5. Check Your Site’s Error Log

If your site is down for everyone and the problem is local, you can also check your site’s error logs, which may help you identify the cause of your issue. For example, it may flag a plugin conflict or update as the source of your 502 Bad Gateway error.

Your website’s log files can be accessed via a Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) client, such as WinSCP or SmartFTP. Once you’ve installed your client of choice, DreamHost provides a comprehensive Knowledge Base entry on accessing your error logs via SFTP.

6. Deactivate Your Plugins And Themes

Although it doesn’t happen often, a new or updated plugin or theme can cause conflict with other plugins or tools, resulting in a 502 Bad Gateway error.

Since you can’t access your WordPress admin dashboard, you’ll need to deactivate your plugins and themes using an SFTP client.

Once you’ve installed or logged into your SFTP client (see the section above for options) please refer to this DreamHost walkthrough for the steps to deactivate/disable your plugins. Note that you have the option of deactivating all of your plugins at the folder level or any single plugin of choice, perhaps the ones you’ve most recently updated or added.

When you’ve completed that step, try accessing your site again. If it’s up and running, log into your dashboard, access your plugins menu, and reactivate each deactivated plugin individually. Each time, make sure you refresh the page to determine if you still have access to your dashboard.

If you identify that a plugin is causing the status code error, either disable or delete it until the developer has released a fix.

If the problem didn’t originate from one of your plugins, you can go through this entire process again, except this time, focus on your Themes folder. Or carry on to the next possible fix.

7. Disable Your CDN Or Firewall

If everything so far has failed, the next thing to check is your Content Delivery Network (CDN) or firewall. Note that your firewall could be a stand-alone plugin, part of your overall security plugin, or implemented by your host.

If you’re using Cloudflare, you can check to see if there are any reported issues. For example, the server might be undergoing scheduled maintenance:

If maintenance isn’t the issue, you can also try deactivating both your CDN and firewall through your host’s control panel. Since all hosts do not use the same control panel, it’s recommended that you contact them for assistance.

8. Restart PHP And Increase Your PHP Limits

The 502 Gateway Error could also be caused by a PHP timeout issue. This happens when the PHP process takes longer than the maximum load time and the request timed out.

Restarting PHP may help resolve your connectivity issues. Most hosts provide an option to restart your services via your control panel but if you don’t see that, you may want to ask them to do this for you.

Unfortunately, changing your server’s max_execution_time or max_input_time values may be necessary. By default, WordPress has these values set to 300 seconds, but you can increase PHP execution time via your host’s control panel, or reaching out to their technical support and asking them to do it for you.

9. Contact Your Hosting Provider

If you’ve been through the previous steps and nothing has helped, it’s time to consider contacting your hosting provider. There may be a server issue that’s affecting your site. Unfortunately, if that’s the case, there’s nothing you can do except wait for them to fix it.

Additionally, they may be able to identify the source of your 502 Bad Gateway error and walk you through a solution. Many hosts offer 24/7 support via chat and should be able to resolve the issue quickly.

Solve The 502 Bad Gateway Error

The 502 Gateway Error is typically caused by a problem at the server. For instance, it may have experienced a spike in traffic that’s affecting performance and availability. However, the error could also be triggered by plugin conflicts and updates.

To troubleshoot the problem, start by clearing your browser cache and local DNS cache to rule out any issues on your end. Then, you can try disabling your plugins, themes, CDN, and firewall. If you’re still experiencing problems, consider contacting your hosting provider for assistance.

If you’re on a shared hosting plan, your 502 error may be because of another website’s traffic spikes. DreamHost offers VPS hosting that provides you with isolated resources and better performance, giving you more control and room to grow. Learn more about our VPS Hosting plans.

We Know You've Got Lots of VPS Options

Here’s how DreamHost’s VPS offering stands apart: 24/7 customer support, an intuitive panel, scalable RAM, unlimited bandwidth, unlimited hosting domains, and SSD storage.

Change Your VPS Plan

The post 502 Bad Gateway Error: What It Is and How to Fix It appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

When this happens, a lot of times it’s the “ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT” error. This is a common error that has a lot of potential causes, which means it can be frustrating for site administrators to diagnose and solve. Luckily though, most of the steps required to troubleshoot it are straightforward, even for beginners.

So if you’re staring down a Connection Timed Out error, you’re in the right place. Read on to learn more about what causes this common error and, more importantly, how to fix it on your site.

What Is The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error?

The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error is a message you might see in your web browser. It means that a web page or resource you’re trying to reach took too long to respond, so the connection attempt was terminated due to a timeout.

This is a shockingly common error, though it presents different ways in different web browsers. The error will probably say some variation of, “This site can’t be reached.”

In a Google Chrome browser, it’s called an ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error.

In Safari, it displays as “Safari Can’t Open the Page.”

If you use Mozilla Firefox and encounter this error, you’ll see, “The connection has timed out.”

And if you use Microsoft Edge, the error will read, “Hmmm… can’t reach this page.”

What Causes The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error?

One of the really tricky (and potentially frustrating) things about getting an ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error on your site is that it has a ton of potential causes. These errors can be caused by:

1. Network issues: Problems with your local network, such as unstable Wi-Fi or a poor Internet connection, can prevent your browser from connecting to a server in time.

2. Firewall or security software: Sometimes, firewall settings or security software might block a connection or cause delays, leading to timeouts.

3. Browser issues: Occasionally, cached data or cookies might cause connection problems. In these cases, clearing browser cache and cookies might help.

4. DNS issues: The Domain Name System (DNS) translates domain names (like www.example.com) into IP addresses. If there’s an issue with the DNS server your device is using, it might prevent you from accessing certain websites.

5. Server-side issues: The server where the website is hosted might be experiencing high traffic, it could be down, or there might be other technical issues preventing it from responding in a timely manner.

How To Fix ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Errors: Step By Step

Ready to solve your ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error?

We’ll start by troubleshooting this error at the network, browser, and software level.

Then, we’ll explore some DNS fixes.

If those don’t work, we’ll go through some steps you can take to change the configuration of your WordPress site or server to finally banish ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT errors for good.

Troubleshooting At The Network, Browser, And Software Level

We’ll start with the easiest fixes first.

Step 1: Check Your Network Connection

Sometimes, when you get a Connection Timed Out error, it’s for a very straightforward reason: connection issues.

If you’re at home, check your router and reset it if necessary. To completely power cycle it, disconnect the power supply and wait at least 30 seconds before you plug it back in.

If you’re somewhere where you don’t have access to the router, like a coffee shop, visit another site or run an internet speed test to check the connection.

Step 2: Disable Firewall And Antivirus Software (Temporarily)

While your firewalls and antivirus programs are meant to protect your computer from harmful websites and programs, they can get a little, shall we say, overzealous. Even the most popular antivirus software has been known to block perfectly safe websites from time to time, which is why the next step should be to (temporarily) switch off your firewalls and antivirus software and then try accessing your site again to see if it’s getting blocked.

Of course, only do this if you’re absolutely sure the site you’re trying to access is safe.

If it turns out this is the problem, you can submit a “false positive” report to the antivirus software that’s blocking your site to let the developer know they’re keeping users away from a site that’s actually safe. They should review your report and help resolve the issue.

Step 3: Disable Proxy Settings Or VPN

Proxy servers and VPNs work kind of like an internet middleman, redirecting the flow of information between your device and the website you’re visiting to help protect your IP address. However, depending on your VPN or proxy settings, they can also control which sites are accessible, which can result in accidentally blocking certain pages and getting a Connection Timed Out error.

If you’re using a VPN, you can either change the protocol or turn it off temporarily. If you’re using a proxy server, you’ll need to change the settings – and how you do that depends on your operating system.

For Windows 10: Open the Control Panel and select Internet Options. This will open the Internet Properties windows. Go to the Connections tab, then LAN Settings. Uncheck all the proxy settings and click OK.

For MacOS: Open System Preferences, go to Network, and click Advanced. Under the Proxies tab, uncheck all the boxes and click OK.

Step 4: Clear Browsing Data

Your web browser stores certain information, including browsing history, login data, cookies, and more. Having browser data saved means when you revisit a web page, it can load faster. When cached data is out of date, it can cause loading problems and lead to errors, which is why it’s a good idea to clear your cache periodically.

The exact steps for doing so vary by browser, but it’s pretty straightforward – if you aren’t sure how, a quick Google search for your browser and “clear cache” should pull up a tutorial.

Troubleshooting At The DNS Level

If none of the above troubleshooting steps worked, it’s time to get a bit more technical. The next few steps will explore solutions to Connection Timed Out errors that have to do with DNS errors.

Step 1: Change DNS Servers

The first thing to try is changing your DNS servers. By default, DNS servers are automatically assigned by your internet service provider (ISP), but these default servers don’t always provide the best performance. You can try changing them to a free, third-party server, like the ones provided by Google or Cloudflare.

Once again, how you do this depends on your operating system.

For Windows 10:

• Open the Control Panel and select Network and Sharing Center. 
• At the top left, click Change adapter settings. Right-click on the current connection and select Properties.
• Choose whether to use IPv4 or IPv6 addresses for your DNS settings. Then click Properties.

• Select the option to “Use the following DNS server addresses:”
• Type in the IP address with the following:
  • Google DNS: 
    • For IPv4, use 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.8.4
    • For IPv6, use 2001:4860:4860::8888 and 2001:4860:4860::8844
  • Cloudflare DNS:
    • For IPv4, use 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1
    • For IPv6, use 2606:4700:4700::1111 and 2606:4700:4700::1001
• Click OK, then close and restart your browser.

For MacOS:

• Open System Preferences, go to Network, and click Advanced.
• On the DNS tab, click the Plus sign in the DNS Servers section. Type in each IP address:
  • Google DNS:
    • For IPv4, use 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.8.4
    • For IPv6, use 2001:4860:4860::8888 and 2001:4860:4860::8844
  • Cloudflare DNS:
    • For IPv4, use 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1
    • For IPv6, use 2606:4700:4700::1111 and 2606:4700:4700::1001
• Click OK.

Step 2: Flush DNS

Similar to your browser, your computer keeps a cache of information about the IP addresses of websites you visit, so it doesn’t need to start from the beginning to translate their domains each time you revisit a site. Also, similar to your browser cache, your DNS cache can become outdated and cause errors, so the next troubleshooting step is to flush it.

If you’re using Windows, you can do this using Command Prompt. Press the Windows key + R to activate the Run command, then type “cmd” into the dialog box and click OK. In the Command Prompt window, enter the following:

ipconfig /flushdns

Then, press enter. If it worked, you should see a message that says, “Successfully flushed the DNS resolver Cache.”

If you’re on Mac, open the Terminal application and insert the following command:

dscacheutil -flushcache

Note that there’s no success message on Mac.

Step 3: Check Your Hosts File

Your hosts file is where your computer stores a sort of map between IP addresses and their corresponding domain names. However, it may also include a list of blocked websites, and if the site you’re trying to access is blacklisted in your hosts file, that will cause the Connection Timed Out error.

On Windows, you’ll need to set up additional access with a text editor, like Notepad, to view the Windows hosts file. From the start menu, find Notepad, right-click on it, and select Run as administrator. Then, from your text editor, navigate to File → Open and put the path below into the File name bar:

C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\

Select the hosts file. The list of blocked sites will be below the last line that starts with the “#” sign. Delete them and save your changes.

On Mac, open the Terminal, insert the line below, and hit enter:

sudo nano /private/etc/hosts

Remove all the websites below the “::1” line.

Troubleshooting At The WordPress Site Or Server Level

If none of the above fixes solved your Connection Timed Out error, it could be an issue with your WordPress site or server. Below are some of the most common server-side issues and how to troubleshoot them.

Step 1: Temporarily Disable Plugins

WordPress plugins are a great way to expand your site’s functionality, but they can also be problematic, especially if they come from an unreliable source or if you install more plugins than your site can handle.

That’s why temporarily disabling plugins is a great first step if you believe a Connection Timed Out error is originating from an issue with your site. If you recently installed any new plugins that you suspect could be the cause, start there.

However, if you’re unable to load your site, that typically also means you can’t access your WordPress admin area. That means you’ll need to access your site using SFTP. We recommend using FileZilla, since it’s free and open source. Once you’ve connected to your site, you’ll need to find your wp-content directory, and inside it, a folder called plugins. Change the name of the plugins folder to something like plugins-discontinued (make sure you remember the name so you can find it later). Reload your site. If you no longer get the Connection Timed Out error, you now know one of your plugins was the culprit. You just need to find out which one.

To do so, head back to SFTP and rename the plugins folder back to its old name. Inside the folder, you’ll see a folder for each individual plugin. Do the same thing, but this time, rename each individual plugin’s folder, then try to reload your site. This will isolate the exact plugin that’s causing the error.

Step 2: Check The Maximum Execution Time

Maximum execution time is the total duration a php script can run on a site before it times out. If your site is reaching its maximum execution time before it can fully load, that could be the cause of your Connection Timed Out error.

On most sites, this is set to 30 seconds as a default. However, you can increase it. You have a few options here, but they depend on how your hosting provider has set up their servers:

• Find the php.ini file in your home directory, then find the max_execution_time parameter within it and increase it.
• Edit your .htaccess file to include php_value max_execution_time set to your preferred value.
• Reach out to your hosting provider and ask them to increase your maximum execution time.

Step 3: Increase Your PHP Memory Limit

PHP allows a default amount of memory to be used when processing a website. Some sites need more than that, which could be the cause of the Connection Timed Out error you’ve been seeing. In this case, increasing your PHP memory limit would be the solution.

You’ll need to access your site via SFTP to increase your PHP memory limit. Access your site’s directory, then find the wp-config.php file. Edit the wp-config.php file to include the following lines before the wp-settings.php inclusion:

define( 'WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '300M' );
define( 'WP_MAX_MEMORY_LIMIT', '300M' );

/** Sets up WordPress vars and included files. */
require_once(ABSPATH . 'wp-settings.php');

Keep in mind that you can’t increase your site’s PHP memory infinitely. If you try to increase it too much, you may receive an error telling you that you’ve reached its limit. If this happens and you still need more memory, you may need to upgrade your hosting plan.

Step 4: Revert To The Default Theme

If you’ve ruled out plugins, execution time, and PHP memory limits, the next place to look is your WordPress theme. Similar to plugins, themes can break or cause compatibility issues with websites, which could be the cause of a Connection Timed Out error.

To check if your theme is causing problems, connect to your site through SFTP and revert to the default theme. Then, reload your site to see if the error is still there.

Step 5: Upgrade Your Hosting Plan

If you’ve tried all the troubleshooting steps above and you’re still getting an ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error, it’s time to reach out to your hosting provider. They can help you troubleshoot the issue more deeply and look for less common problems that might take more specialized expertise to solve.

In some cases, this error might even just mean it’s time to upgrade your hosting plan. For example, if you use shared hosting, another site could be hogging your server’s resources. Another potential cause? Your site may have simply exceeded its maximum allowed bandwidth.

A higher-tier hosting plan can help your site avoid slowdowns and downtime since it will dedicate more server resources directly to your site. It will also ensure that your site isn’t affected when other sites have traffic surges.

Ready to explore better hosting plans? DreamPress offers reliable, lightning-fast hosting solutions specifically optimized for WordPress – plus free migration for existing WordPress sites.

ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error FAQs

What Does The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error Mean?

Getting this error indicates that a requested web page or resource took too long to respond, leading the browser to terminate the connection attempt due to a timeout.

Is The Error A Problem With My Device Or The Website I’m Trying To Visit?

It could be either. The error could be due to server-side issues, but it could also be a result of issues with your network, browser, firewall, DNS, or other client-side problems.

Does This Error Compromise My Security?

The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error itself doesn’t compromise your security. Still, it’s always a good idea to ensure that your browser, OS, and security software are up-to-date to protect against potential threats.

Can VPNs Cause This Error?

Yes, sometimes a VPN might cause connection issues. If you’re using a VPN and encounter this error, try disconnecting from the VPN and accessing the site again to see if that resolves the issue.

The Website I’m Trying To Access Works For Others But Not For Me. Why?

This suggests that the issue might be on your end. It could be due to localized network problems, your ISP, specific settings on your computer, or other client-side factors.

How Long Should I Wait Before Trying To Access The Website Again?

If it’s a server-side issue, it’s hard to say. You can wait a few minutes and try again. If you really need to access the site right away, you should consider reaching out to the site’s administrator or support for more information.

The post How to Fix the ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

The 403 Forbidden error typically occurs when you’re trying to log in to WordPress or visit a specific page, but can’t. This can be incredibly frustrating.

Fortunately, there are a few simple fixes for this common WordPress error. Depending on your hosting plan, you may even be able to resolve the issue with help from your web host.

In this post, we’ll take a closer look at the 403 Forbidden error and its main causes. We’ll then show you 11 ways to fix it.

What Is The 403 Forbidden Error?

The 403 Forbidden error means that your server thinks you do not have the required permission to access that particular page. This is usually caused by an issue with file permissions, but could be caused by another problem related to hosting or authentication.

The 403 Forbidden error typically appears when you’re trying to log in to your WordPress admin area or when visiting a specific page on your site. You may also encounter it while installing WordPress.

It’s one of several HTTP status codes used by servers to communicate with your browser.

The error is usually accompanied by one of the following messages (or similar variations):

• “HTTP 403 Forbidden – Access to this resource on the server is denied.”
• “HTTP Error 403 – Forbidden.”
• “Forbidden – You don’t have permission to access [directory name] on this server.”
• “You are not authorized to view this page.”
• “It appears you don’t have permission to access this page.”
• “403. That’s an error. Your client does not have permission to get URL [address] from this server.”

Instead of the “403 Forbidden” status, you might come across a simple notification that says “Access Denied.” It is also possible that you will get the following message: “Access to [domain name] was denied. You don’t have authorization to view this page.”

What Causes The 403 Forbidden Error?

There are several possible causes of the 403 Forbidden error code but the most likely one is an incorrect file permission on your server.

This means that one or more files the browser is trying to access are not accessible because of their permissions.

Permissions directives determine who can view and modify the files on your website and your web server. They protect your files from outside tampering. But, in some cases, if misconfigured, they can prevent your site from working correctly.

However, this error can also be triggered by a faulty plugin or a corrupt .htaccess file.

In most cases, you should be able to resolve the issue on your own. However, you might also need to get in touch with your hosting provider to access or change some settings on your site.

11 Ways To Fix The 403 Forbidden Error In WordPress

Now, let’s go through a few ways you can fix the 403 Forbidden error.

First, we recommend that you make a backup of your site just in case something goes wrong and you need to restore it to an earlier version.

We’ll explore some common causes and how to fix the problem:

1. Check the URL
2. Perform a Hard) Refresh
3. Clear Browser Cache
4. Disconnect from VPN
5. Check Index Page
6. Change Your File Permissions
7. Deactivate Your Plugins
8. Delete and Restore the .htaccess File
9. Deactivate Your CDN
10. Check Hotlink Protection
11. Contact Your Web Host

1. Check The URL And (Hard) Refresh

Before we delve deeper, let’s make an assumption – you’re operating on a private Wi-Fi network. It’s important to note that public networks often have different firewall rules that may prevent you from accessing your website.

With our Wi-Fi network disclaimers out of the way, let’s really begin.

First, double-check the URL that you’re typing into your web browser and make sure that it’s pointing to the correct website and web page.

Sometimes, a small mistype in the web address can trigger an error, or a broken link on your website could have sent you to a page that doesn’t exist, triggering the 403 error.

If the URL looks correct and there are no problems with its structure, format, or spelling, then we’ll move onto refreshing the page.

2. Perform A (Hard) Refresh

Next, try refreshing the page.

In most browsers like Google Chrome, you can do this by simply clicking on the address bar to highlight the address. Then press “Enter.”

If refreshing doesn’t help, then let’s try a “Hard” refresh.

This is a simple trick that clears your browser’s cache for the specific page you’re trying to access. This forces the browser to download the latest version of the page and might fix the issue.

To perform a hard refresh in Google Chrome: Open the page and press Cmd + Shift + R.

The page should refresh and you can see if this solved the problem.

If not, then let’s take it to the next step.

3. Clear Browser Cache

Website errors are either caused by server-side problems (issues with the website, server, or configuration) or client-side problems (issues with the browser or user’s device, settings, etc).

Your browser cache is one client-side problem that can cause many unexpected issues.

Luckily it’s easy to fix. You just clear the cache to force your browser to fully fetch content from the pages you’re trying to visit.

Follow these instructions to clear your browser’s cache.

Nerd note: If this doesn’t work and you really want to be sure it’s not a caching issue, you can try flushing your DNS cache, too. Just to be safe.

4. Disconnect From VPN

VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) are great for masking your location and protecting your privacy online. Because they route your internet activity through somewhere other than your actual location, they also change your IP address.

This is good for privacy, but it can create access and permissions issues on certain websites.

If you’re using a VPN, try disabling it and then repeating the above steps.

5. Check Index Page

Now we’re going to dig in a bit further and start diagnosing potential problems with your website files, permissions settings, and other problems that may give rise to the 403 error.

Most websites, including WordPress sites, expect your homepage to have a specific file name by default.

Unless otherwise specified, the site will look for a file named something like:

• Index.php
• Index.html

If the page is missing, you’ll likely have issues.

Before we start adjusting file permissions, let’s just make sure that your homepage file is intact and correctly named.

To do this, you’ll need to take one to two steps:

1. Connect to your site with a Secure File Transfer Protocol (S/FTP) client, such as FileZilla
2. Access your site through the file manager in your hosting account

If you have a DreamHost account, this guide from our knowledge base will walk you through accessing and utilizing the built-in file manager.

Whether you access your files through S/FTP or a file manager, you need to look for your “index” file.

Inside your root directory, you’ll likely find a folder called something like “myexamplesite.com” (If you’re a DreamPress user, the folder will be called “{YOURSITE}.dream.press”.)

This is the main folder that contains all of your website’s files.

Open it and look for a file called either “index.html” or “index.php”.

If you’re using WordPress, then you may need to take a few extra steps. Navigate to wp-content > themes > {YOUR THEME}. The index file for your specific site theme should live in this folder.

If you find an index.php or index.html file, then this is unlikely to be causing your 403 error.

If you can’t find an index file, then this could be the issue that’s generating the 403 error.

Start by creating and uploading a blank “index.html” or “index.php” file into the relevant folder.

Then go try your website again, performing a hard refresh.

You probably won’t see your website, but if you see a blank screen rather than the 403 error, then it’s likely that you’ve found the problem.

At this point, you’ll probably want to try contacting your web host for help. Alternatively, roll back your website to a previous backup version before the problem occurred.

If you’re using WordPress, you could consider installing WordPress again. (This will wipe out your settings, themes, and plugins, but it shouldn’t impact the content and files you’ve added to your database.)

6. Change Your File Permissions

Every WordPress file on your site’s server has its own access permissions. These settings control who can access and modify its contents. If these files have incorrect permissions, your server will stop you from accessing them.

As we covered in the last section, you can access your website either through S/FTP client or a file manager app. Once you do so, you’ll need to find your “public_html” folder or whichever folder contains all of your website files in the directory browsing window.

Then, right-click on it and choose File Attributes.

In the popup window, locate the Numeric field and enter “755” or “750” in the value box. Then select the “Recurse into subdirectories” and “Apply to directories only” options, and click on “OK.”

So far, you’ve applied the correct folder permissions just for your directories. You’ll now do the same thing for your files.

To start, right-click on your public_html folder and select File Attributes. This time, you’ll need to type “644” in the Numeric value field. Then choose Recurse into subdirectories, select Apply to files only, and click on OK.

Nerd note: Your wp-config.php file requires a different numeric value than the ones stated here. This unique value prevents other users on your servers from accessing the file. Therefore, you’ll need to change its file permission manually.

In your root directory, find the wp-config.php file, right-click, and select File permissions. Next, set the numeric value to “440”, and click OK.

Now, every one of your WordPress files and folders should have the correct permissions. Once you’ve completed the above steps, go back to your site and try to reproduce the 403 Forbidden error. If your site works fine, you don’t need to do anything else.

However, don’t worry if you’re still facing the same problem. There are still a few more fixes to try.

7. Deactivate Your WordPress Plugins

As we mentioned earlier, the 403 Forbidden error can also be caused by a faulty plugin. To determine if this is the case, you’ll need to deactivate your plugins and then reactivate them individually.

To start, connect to your site via FileZilla or the file manager in your hosting account. Then, open the wp-content folder in your site’s root directory and locate the plugins folder. Right-click on the plugins folder and select Rename.

Next, give the folder a new name, for example, “plugins_test”. This will automatically deactivate all of your plugins.

If you can access your site after renaming the folder, then the 403 Forbidden error was caused by a glitchy plugin. Your next step is to find out which one it is.

First, return to your site’s root directory and rename the plugins folder back to “plugins”. Then, navigate to the Plugins page in your WordPress dashboard and activate the plugins one at a time. Keep doing this until you are able to reproduce the error.

Once you’ve identified the faulty plugin, you can either remove it or contact its developer for support.

8. Delete And Restore The .htaccess File

A corrupt or misconfigured .htaccess file can also trigger the 403 Forbidden error. This file is located in your site’s root directory and enables WordPress to interact with your server.

.htaccess is a file used on Apache web servers. It contains rules and directives about your website. If it becomes corrupted or misconfigured, it can create problems like the 403 error (among other things).

How do you fix it?

Inside your site’s root directory, locate the .htaccess file, right-click on it, and choose Delete.

Now, try accessing your site again. If the 403 Forbidden error has disappeared, then your .htaccess file may have been corrupted. This means you’ll need to create a new one.

To do this, navigate to Settings in your WordPress dashboard and select Permalinks. Then click on the Save Changes button at the bottom of the page, and a new .htaccess file will be generated. You can look for the file in your site’s directory to ensure that it has been restored.

9. Deactivate Your CDN

If you’re still getting the 403 Forbidden error after completing the above steps, you may have a problem with your Content Delivery Network (CDN). This is a network of servers located in different parts of the world, with each server hosting a copy of your website. Many hosting plans come with a CDN to help boost your site’s performance.

To see if your CDN is the cause of the error, you’ll need to temporarily disable it. You can do this by logging into your hosting account and locating your CDN settings. If you’re unable to access your CDN, we recommend getting in touch with your hosting provider.

10. Check Your Hotlink Protection

Finally, you might want to check your site’s hotlink protection.

Hotlinking is when someone embeds media files on their site by linking them directly from another site. Some individuals may do this to use another site owner’s bandwidth (rather than their own), which is effectively theft.

Some hosts and CDN providers offer hotlink protection.

However, if this is not set up properly, it can trigger a 403 Forbidden error on your site.

Therefore, you may want to contact your web host about this issue. While you may want to look into this yourself, it’s best to get help from a technical expert to ensure that your hotlink protection is configured correctly.

11. Contact Your Web Host

If all else fails, ask for help.

Your website hosting company’s support team should be able to provide additional steps and ideas for troubleshooting this issue.

In some cases, it could be triggered by a server configuration problem, changes to the DNS, or even malware or other website attacks.

Additional WordPress Resources

If you’re new to WordPress, you’re bound to run into some technical issues while setting up your site. To help you fix some of the most common WordPress errors, we’ve put together several how-to guides:

• How to Fix Common WordPress Errors
• How to Troubleshoot the WordPress White Screen of Death
• How to Fix the 500 Internal Server Error in WordPress
• How to Fix Syntax Errors in WordPress
• How to Fix the WordPress Not Sending Email Issue
• How to Fix the Error Establishing a Database Connection in WordPress
• How to Fix WordPress Error 404 Not Found
• How to Fix White Text and Missing Buttons in the WordPress Visual Editor
• How to Fix the Sidebar Below Content Error in WordPress
• What to Do When You’re Locked Out of the WordPress Admin Area
• How to Fix the WordPress Memory Exhausted Error By Increasing Your Site’s PHP Memory Limit
• How to Fix the “Upload: Failed to Write File to Disk” Error in WordPress

Meanwhile, if you’re looking for more WordPress tips and hacks, check out our WordPress Tutorials. This collection of guides will help you set up and design your first WordPress site like a professional.

The post 403 Forbidden Error: What It Means & 11 Ways To Fix It Fast appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

WordPress is an excellent, secure platform out of the box, but there’s certainly more you can (and should!) do to keep your site safe from malicious intent. Many of these security enhancements are easy to implement and can be performed manually in mere minutes. Others simply require installing a particular plugin.

In this article, I’ll guide you through 20 different strategies for upping the defenses on your WordPress fortress. But first, let’s go a little further into why website security should matter to you.

Why WordPress Security Is So Important

Choosing WordPress as your platform is an excellent way to start when you’re trying to create a site. It’s not only a flexible, powerful platform for building websites — it’s also remarkably secure as is.

But of course, no platform can be 100% secure, and there are many reasons to be concerned about the security of your WordPress site:

• Popularity – WordPress powers a huge portion of all the websites on the internet, making it a prime target for cybercriminals. Its widespread usage makes it an attractive platform to exploit vulnerabilities and gain unauthorized access to websites.
• Vulnerabilities – As with any software, WordPress is not immune to vulnerabilities. Hackers constantly search for vulnerabilities in WordPress themes, plugins, and core software. Exploiting them can lead to unauthorized access, data breaches, defacement, or even complete control of a website.
• Data breaches – WordPress websites often store sensitive user information, like email addresses, passwords, and personal data. A security breach can expose this confidential data, leading to identity theft, financial loss, or even legal consequences (yikes!).
• SEO impact – A compromised WordPress site can be used for malicious activities, like hosting malware, redirecting visitors to harmful websites, or sending spam emails. Search engines may flag and penalize such websites, leading to a significant drop in rankings and organic traffic once you regain control of your site.
• Reputation and trust – If a WordPress website is compromised and used for malicious purposes, it can severely damage the site owner’s reputation and erode user trust. Think of an e-commerce store, for example. If the store can’t commit to keeping shoppers’ personal data safe, people just won’t shop there (and who can blame them?).
• Downtime and financial loss – A hacked site can experience extended downtime while the website owner works to resolve the security breach. In turn, downtime can result in lost business, decreased revenue, and additional expenses for recovery and restoration.

Given these risks, investing in WordPress security measures is essential to protect your website and its users’ data. Ideally, you should put just as much time and effort into security as you spent designing your site in the first place (if not more). Fortunately for you, dear reader, there are lots of simple, quick ways to improve your site’s security, as well as some more complex techniques you may want to employ — and below, we’re covering them all.

Top WordPress Security Vulnerabilities

As the saying goes, know thy enemy. Before we dive into our security tips, let’s learn more about the security vulnerabilities you need to protect your WordPress site from.

• Outdated software, themes, and plugins – Using outdated versions of WordPress, themes, or plugins can leave your site vulnerable to known security flaws.
• Weak usernames and passwords – Weak login credentials make it easier for hackers to access your site. Avoid using common usernames like “admin” and choose strong, unique passwords that include a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols.
• Brute force attacks – Brute force attacks involve repeated attempts to guess your login credentials. You can prevent them by limiting login attempts and using two-factor authorization (more on that later in this article).
• Cross-site scripting (XSS) – XSS vulnerabilities happen when malicious scripts are injected into web pages, potentially compromising users’ browsers or session data. Many security plugins have features to prevent XSS.
• Malware infections – Malware can be injected into your site through vulnerabilities, infected themes or plugins, or compromised files. To avoid malware, don’t install plugins without checking into their reputation first. And regular malware scanning can catch infections before they have the chance to wreak havoc on your site.
• Backdoors – A backdoor is a hidden entry point in a website that allows unauthorized access even after security measures are in place. Backdoors can be created by malicious actors or accidentally introduced through compromised themes, plugins, or weak security practices. Once a backdoor is established, it can grant unauthorized access to an attacker, who can then manipulate the site, steal data, or perform other malicious activities without the website owner’s knowledge.

Implementing security plugins and other best practices can protect your site from these vulnerabilities. So without further ado, let’s get to what you’re here for: actionable WordPress security tips and how to put them into practice.

20 WordPress Security Tips

Hopefully, I’ve convinced you about the importance of maintaining a secure WordPress website. If not, I’m going to have to re-enroll in Persuasive Writing 101. Please don’t make me do that.

Throughout the rest of this article, I’ll introduce 20 strategies (along with some of the best WordPress security plugins) for making your site safer from some of the most common and dangerous security vulnerabilities. You don’t have to implement every suggestion on this list (although you certainly can!), but the more steps you take to secure your site, the lower your chances of encountering a disaster down the road.

1. Use A Quality Host

You can think of your web host as your website’s street on the Internet — it’s the place where your site “lives.” And like a good school district matters to your kid’s future (so they say; I turned out fine), the quality of your website’s home base counts in a lot of big ways.

A solid hosting provider can impact how well your site performs, how reliable it is, how large it can grow, and even how it ranks in search engines. The best hosts offer a variety of useful features, excellent support, and a service tailored to your chosen platform.

As you’ve probably already guessed, your web host can also have a significant impact on your site’s security. There are several security benefits to choosing from the best hosting companies.

How Web Hosting Can Improve WordPress Security:

• A quality host will constantly update its service, software, and tools to respond to the latest threats and eliminate potential security breaches.
• Web hosts often offer various targeted security features, such as SSL/TLS certificates and DDoS protection. You should also get access to a Web Application Firewall (WAF), which will help monitor and block serious threats to your site.
• Your web host will most likely provide a way to back up your site (in some cases, even carrying out real-time backups for you), so if you’re hacked, you can easily revert to a stable, previous version.
• If your host offers reliable, 24/7 support, you’ll always have someone to help you out if you do run into a security-related issue.

This list should give you a good starting point to work from when looking for a host for your new site. You’ll want to find one that offers all of the features and functionality you’ll need, plus has a reputation for reliability and excellent performance.

DreamPress is a managed WordPress hosting service that’s fast, reliable, scalable, and, of course, secure. DreamPress includes a pre-installed SSL/TLS certificate and provides a dedicated WAF designed with rules built to protect WordPress sites and block hacking attempts. With your hosting plan, you’ll also get automated backups, 24/7 support from WordPress experts, and Jetpack Premium — a plugin that can add many additional security features to your site — at no additional cost.

With DreamPress, you’ll be able to rest easy knowing that your site is protected. Our hosting service even takes care of many of the other security-enhancing steps on this list — although we still encourage you to read on to learn what extra measures you can take to protect your site.

2. Register Your Domain Privately

To register a domain, you’re asked to provide your name, address, and phone number. This information is used to track ownership of domain names and can be found online with a quick search on the WHOIS directory.

While keeping track of this information is vital to the health of the internet, it’s reasonable not to want your personal information online. This is where Private Registration enters the story. When you register a domain with DreamHost (or another secure hosting platform, I guess), you have the option to substitute your personal information with the relevant data from the hosting platform — so looking up your domain on WHOIS shows DreamHost’s address and contact information instead of yours. You can even enable this security feature after your domain has already been registered!

3. Change Your Admin Username

When you first create your website, all shiny and new, you’re given a User Profile. At any time, you can go back and change your Nickname or fill in your Full Name, but to change your username is a different story — you will need to create a whole new user and grant that account the administrator role. The drawback? You need to use a different email address than the one used by your current account.

You can then alter your username by creating a new user, giving it the administrator role, attributing all your content to it, and deleting your original account. When your previous username has been deleted, you can change the email address of your new account if you desire.

4. Enable A Web Application Firewall

You’re probably familiar with the concept of a firewall — a program that helps to block all sorts of unwanted attacks on your site. Most likely, you have some kind of firewall on your computer. A Web Application Firewall (WAF) is simply a firewall designed specifically for websites. It can protect servers, specific websites, or entire groups of sites.

A WAF on your WordPress site will function as a barrier between your website and the rest of the web. A firewall monitors incoming activity, detects attacks, malware, and other unwanted events, and blocks anything it considers a risk from accessing your web server. #winning

You have many options for adding a WAF to your site (WordFence is a popular choice). But if you’ve opted for our DreamPress package, you can relax; you won’t need an additional firewall. DreamPress includes a built-in WAF that will monitor your site for threats and block malicious users and programs from gaining access. No action required on your part.

DreamHost also offers DreamShield, our in-house malware scanning service. When you enable DreamShield on your hosting account, we’ll scan your site daily for malicious code. If we find anything suspicious, you’ll be notified immediately via email.

5. Implement Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication (which also goes by two-step authentication and a variety of other, similar names) refers to a two-step process you’ll need to follow when logging into your site. This takes a little more time and effort but goes a long way toward keeping hackers out.

Two-factor authentication involves using a smartphone or other device to verify your login. First, you’ll visit your WordPress site and enter your username and password as usual. A unique code will then be sent to your mobile device, which you must provide to finish logging in. This enables you to prove your identity by showing you have access to something solely yours — such as a particular phone or tablet.

As with many WordPress features, two-factor authentication is easy to add with a dedicated plugin. The Two Factor Authentication plugin is a solid choice — it’s created by reliable developers, compatible with Google Authenticator, and will enable you to add two-factor functionality to your site with no fuss.

Another choice is the Two-Factor plugin, which was built mainly by core WordPress developers and is well known for its reliability. As with any plugin in this category, it comes with a bit of a learning curve, but it will get the job done and is incredibly secure. If you’re willing to spend a little money, you can also check out Jetpack’s Clef-like premium solution.

Whatever route you choose, make sure to plan ahead with your team, since you’ll need to gather phone numbers and other information for all user accounts. With that, your login page is now secured and ready to go.

6. Be Mindful When Adding New Plugins And Themes

One of the best things about WordPress is the ready availability of plugins and themes for just about any need. With these handy tools, you can make your site look just right and add nearly any feature or functionality you can think of.

Not all plugins and themes are created equally, though.

Developers who aren’t careful or don’t have the right level of experience can create plugins that are unreliable or insecure — or just downright sucky. They might use poor coding practices that leave holes hackers can easily exploit or unknowingly interfere with crucial functionality.

This means you must be very careful about the themes and plugins you add to your site. Each one should be vetted to ensure it’s a solid option that won’t hurt your site or cause problems. Here’s how to select quality tools:

• Read reviews – Check user ratings and reviews to learn whether others have had a good experience with the plugin or theme.
• Developer support – Look at how recently the plugin or theme has been updated. If it’s been longer than six months, chances are it isn’t as secure as it could be.
• Easy does it – Install new plugins and themes one at a time, so if anything goes wrong, you’ll know what the cause was. Also, remember to back up your site before adding anything to it.
• Vetted sources – Get your plugins and themes from trustworthy sources, such as the WordPress.org Theme and Plugin Directories, ThemeForest and CodeCanyon, and reliable developer websites.

7. Regularly Update WordPress

Keeping WordPress up to date is one of the most important things you can do to secure your site. Smaller patches and security updates will be implemented automatically, but you may need to approve major updates independently (don’t worry, this is very simple to do). This probably goes without saying, but DreamHost handles these updates for you, so you don’t have to worry.

But your work isn’t done just because WordPress is up to date.

You’ll also need to regularly update your plugins, themes, and other WordPress installations to ensure they work well together and are secured against the latest threats. Fortunately, this is also pretty easy — simply go to your WordPress dashboard, look for the red notifications telling you there are themes or plugins with available updates, and click “Update Now” next to each one.

You can also update your plugins in a batch by selecting all of them and then hitting the update button, either here or in the WordPress panel.

8. Configure File Permissions

Let’s talk technical for a minute.

A lot of the information, data, and content on your WordPress site is stored in a series of folders and files on its back end. These are organized into a hierarchical structure, and each one is given a permissions level. The permissions on a WordPress file or folder determine who can view and edit it. They can be set to allow access to anyone, only you, or almost anything in between.

File permissions are represented by a three-digit number in WordPress, and each digit has a meaning. The first digit stands for an individual user (the site’s owner), the second digit for the group (for example, members of your site), and the third for everyone in the world. The number itself means that the user, group, or world:

• 0: Has no access to the file.
• 1: Can only execute the file.
• 2: Can edit the file.
• 3: Can edit and execute the file.
• 4: Can read the file.
• 5: Can read and execute the file.
• 6: Can read and edit the file.
• 7: Can read, edit, and execute the file.

So, for example, if a file is given a permissions level of 640 it means the primary user can read and edit the file, the group can read the file but not edit it, and the rest of the world cannot access it at all. It’s important to ensure that each person only has the level of access to your site’s files and folders you want them to have.

WordPress recommends setting folders to a permissions level of 755 and files to 644. You’re pretty safe sticking to these guidelines, although you can set up any combination you’d like. Just remember that it’s best not to give anyone more access than they absolutely need, especially to core files.

You should also keep in mind that your ideal permissions settings will depend somewhat on your hosting service, so you may want to find out what your host recommends.

Note: Be very careful when making changes to your permissions levels — choosing the wrong values (like the dreaded 777) can make your site inaccessible.

And while we’re on this subject, it’s important to note that WordPress comes with a built-in code editor that allows users to edit theme and plugin files right from the Admin Area. This is handy when you need it, but a big security risk if your site falls into the wrong hands. That’s why you should disable file editing with a plugin like Sucuri.

9. Keep WordPress Users To A Minimum

If you’re running your WordPress site solo, you don’t need to worry about this step. Just don’t give anyone else an account on your site, and you’ll be the only person who can make changes.

However, there are many reasons to add another user account to your site: You may want to let other authors contribute content, or you might need people to help edit content and manage your site. You may even have an entire team of users who regularly access your WordPress site and make their own changes.

This can be beneficial (or even necessary). However, it’s also a potential security risk.

The more people you let into your site, the higher the chance that someone will make a mistake, cause problems, or just be a putz. That’s why you should keep your site’s user count as low as possible without hampering its ability to grow. In particular, try to limit the number of administrators and other user roles with high privileges.

Here are a few other best practices:

• Limit each user to only what permissions are necessary for them to do their job.
• Encourage users to use strong passwords.
• Try to stick with one administrator and a small group of editors.
• Remove users who have left the site or no longer need access.
• Regularly log out idle users (the Inactive Logout plugin is great for this!).
• Consider downloading a plugin like Members, which provides a user interface for WordPress’ role and capabilities system.

10. Limit Login Attempts

Everyone forgets their password sometimes. But good news! By default, WordPress allows an unlimited number of guesses.

But is that really good news? Brute force attacks, or attacks where a hacker tries any number of passwords, are one of the most common ways hackers gain access to private accounts. With no limit on login attempts, a hacker or bot could try every password in the book with no consequences.

First, check your Web Access Firewall (WAF) to limit the number of login attempts a user can make. If your firewall is already set up, a limit will already be in place, but you can also use a separate plugin for that! Both Login Lockdown and Cerber Limit Login Attempts record the IP address and time stamp for each failed login attempt, let you limit the number of failed attempts allowed in a certain span of time, and lock out IP addresses that exceed the limit. Both plugins are free, but Login Lockdown is simpler and more beginner-friendly. If you require a more robust system, Cerber Limit Login Attempts is the way to go, allowing not only IP white/blacklisting, but also notifying admins if a certain number of lockouts is reached.

11. Track Your Admin Area Activity

If you have multiple users, keeping tabs on what they’re all doing on the site is a good idea. Tracking activity in your WordPress admin area will help you spot when other users are doing things they shouldn’t — and can help you spot when unauthorized users have gained access.

But you also need a tool to help you see who is behind different site activities — like when someone makes an unauthorized change or a suspicious new install. For that, you need another plugin. Simple History lives up to its name by creating a streamlined, easy-to-understand log of changes and events on your site.

For more comprehensive tracking features, check out WP Security Audit Log, which tracks just about everything that happens on your site and offers premium add-ons.

12. Password Protect Your Login Page

The login page is the most likely way for hackers to access your website, so protecting it is a great way to protect the rest of your site. This can be a bit technical, but it’s still worth learning. Use this tutorial to learn how to create an htaccess file and add a password prompt to your login page. A login for your login — what will they think of next?

And if you’re hosting content that not everyone needs to see, you can password protect other parts of your site. For blog posts and other pages, you can add password protection by going into pages >> all posts option. Click “edit,” and you’ll see the option to change the visibility to “Password Protected”. Just publish, and badabing-badaboom, that page is locked up tight!

13. Hide Your Login Page

Adding password protection to your login page is great, but even better is if hackers can’t even find it. Changing your wp-admin and wp-login pages is easy and helps deter hackers who can easily find your login page if you leave default settings in place.

There are several plugins that can redirect the default login page to another page of your choosing. Many plugins offer this as part of a larger package (for example, Defender also includes a malware scanner and firewall). But if you’re looking for something simple, try WPS Hide Login, which just hides your login. Just don’t forget to bookmark your new login page so you can find it.

14. Update PHP

Just like America runs on Dunkin’ (don’t quote us there), WordPress runs on PHP. Updating WordPress isn’t enough to keep your site safe and secure — you need to make sure you’re using the latest version of PHP, too.

Normally, each PHP version is supported for at least two years after its release date, meaning vulnerabilities are addressed by the engineers who designed the code. When the code goes out of date (or reaches its EOL or “end of life”), it’s time to upgrade, or you risk being exposed to security concerns, performance slowdowns, and bugs galore.

To see which version of PHP you’re currently running, log in to your WordPress site, and select Tools >> Site Health. Navigate to Info and then Server, and view your current PHP version.

15. Secure Your WordPress Database

Leaving anything at the default settings is a boon for hackers, and by default, WordPress uses wp_ as the prefix for all of your related tables. Good news! If you’re using the One-Click Installer, you already have a prefix of random letters and numbers. As long as it ends with an underscore, the system is happy. Better News! Even if your WordPress is already installed, it may be eligible for the One-Click Installer as long as the site is fully hosted and meets a few other guidelines.

Just note that breaking something can be as easy as a missing underscore. Luckily, there is a default version of the wp-config.php file available at WordPress Core, so you can quickly and easily rebuild — whether you tried to change the database prefix manually, or with a service like phpMyAdmin.

16. Add Security Questions

Security questions are often overlooked, but they give extra oomph to your security. Depending on the plugin you choose, you’ll either choose from existing security questions or create your own.

17. Hide Your WordPress Version

Security through Obscurity — if they can’t find it, they can’t hack it!

Hide which version of WordPress you’re using (or hide that you’re using WordPress altogether) by altering the header code. If that sounds too technical, use a plugin like WPCode. Just make sure to alter the code and not just edit the display information in your theme settings — those snippets of code will only return during the next theme update.

18. Prevent Hotlinking

Hotlinking is the act of stealing bandwidth by using files hosted on one site and linking them to another. For example, let’s say someone draws a pretty clever comic, and some other website wants to feature it without permission. They could hotlink the comic instead of hosting it on their own servers, costing the original website more bandwidth, and therefore more money.

To prevent hotlinking, you can choose to reject certain domains, allow only certain domains, or remove the ability to hotlink altogether, all by making a few changes to your htaccess file. You can even include a snippet in your .htaccess file that routes all hotlinking attempts to a page or image of your choice — perhaps one that says, “Stop hotlinking, freeloader!”

19. DDoS Protection (Disable XML RPC)

A Distributed Denial of Service attack (or DDoS) is when a hacker uses multiple systems to send a huge volume of data and overwhelm their target. This can slow down and crash their target — imagine a huge traffic jam for your website where no legitimate traffic can get in.

We know that patience is hard to come by online, with the average user waiting only 3 seconds for a page to load before clicking away, so the sooner you can identify and resolve an attack on your website, the better.

While preventing a DDoS attack may seem daunting, one of the first steps you can take is to remove or disable any old or unutilized plugins. Plugins are incredibly handy, but by increasing functionality, they also have access to your website that can be exploited. For once, downloading more plugins is not the answer!

XML-RPC allows WordPress access through the app on your mobile device. If you don’t use your smartphone to make changes to your WordPress website, you likely don’t need this feature enabled. Turning it off involves adding a quick snippet of code to your htaccess file, and you’ll be all the safer for it.

20. Malware Scanning

Malware (short for malicious software) hides in what appears to be safe applications so that the user doesn’t know their computer or website has been infected.

Malware scanning is an important defense that works by using anti-malware software to identify and isolate suspicious files until you decide if they need to be removed. If a threat is detected, a good malware scanner will delete any trace of it from your computer ASAP. Luckily, several firewall plugins come with malware scanning built in, so make sure to check your security plugins to see what they offer.

If you have DreamHost as your hosting platform, you can activate DreamShield to handle daily malware scanning for you.

WordPress Security: Locking It Up

If your website is hacked, you’ll spend hours (perhaps even days) trying to repair the damage. You may permanently lose data or see your personal information compromised — or worse: your clients’ data.

That’s why you have to put enough time and energy into making sure your site is secure. Otherwise, you just risk losing valuable business and precious time.

These WordPress security tips should help. Some are simple tweaks, while others affect your entire site. But if you’re looking for one impactful change you can make today to keep your site secure, make sure it runs on a secured WordPress host.

DreamPress hosting (with free WordPress migration) is specifically designed for the WordPress environment. Plus, if you ever do encounter a security issue, we’ve got you covered with automatic daily backups, a daily malware scan, and our support team of WordPress experts! Ready to protect your site from threats and vulnerabilities? Learn more about DreamPress hosting today.

Launch Your Website with DreamPress

Our automatic updates and strong security defenses take server management off your hands so you can focus on creating a great website.

Check Out Plans

The post Everything You Need To Know About WordPress Security (+20 Hardening Tips) appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.

Of course, just like with those kids, the trick never actually works. Only in the case of a website, your browser issues a boring warning message instead of having a good laugh about it like a good-humored box office clerk.

That being said, ignoring such a warning message can be disastrous for both website visitors and backend administrators. After all, an unencrypted connection is an open invitation to cyber criminals to intercept your website activity for their own nefarious deeds!

Worry not! This guide will tell you everything you need to know to successfully troubleshoot an SSL connection error whenever you see it. We’ll go over the error message, the reasons behind its appearance, and potential steps for permanently getting rid of it.

What Does the ‘Your connection is not private’ Error Mean?

Did you notice a ‘Your connection is not private’ error message popup when trying to access a web page? Worry not, you’re still safe, and your security has not been compromised. However, this is still an alert you should take seriously, as proceeding further into the website could make your device vulnerable to cybersecurity attacks.

When you try to access a website, your browser checks the digital certificates installed on the server to ensure that the site is up to privacy standards and safe to proceed. If there’s something wrong with the certificate, a browser like Chrome or Firefox will stop you from accessing the site with the “Your connection is not private” message. Some common variations include:

• Google Chrome: “Your connection is not private. Attackers might be trying to steal your information from [website] (for example, passwords, messages, or credit cards).”
• Mozilla Firefox: “Your connection is not secure. The owner of [website] has configured their website improperly. To protect your information from being stolen, Firefox has not connected to this website.”
• Apple Safari: “Safari can’t verify the identity of the website [website]”
• Microsoft Edge: “Your connection isn’t private. Attackers might be trying to steal your information from [website] (for example, passwords, messages, or credit cards).”
• Internet Explorer: “There is a problem with this website’s security certificate.”

Digital certificates are like online identity cards, providing proof that a website is who they say they are. They help protect your personal information, passwords, and payment details by encrypting the connection between the client (your device) and the server (of the website you’re trying to access).

So what do you do if an important website you’re trying to visit hits you with this error? Thankfully, there are ways to troubleshoot the error and browse safely. Some are pretty straightforward and can be done by any visitor, whereas others require intervention from the website administrator or even the hosting provider.

HTTP vs HTTPS: Understanding the Difference

HTTP and HTTPS are both protocols used for transferring information between different systems, like your computer and a website. The main difference between them is that HTTPS is more secure than HTTP.

HTTP sends information in plain text, which means anyone can intercept and read it. This makes sensitive information, like passwords and credit card numbers, vulnerable to hackers. HTTPS, on the other hand, uses encryption to protect your personal data, making it much harder for hackers to steal your information.

HTTPS uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) or TLS (Transport Layer Security) to encrypt and validate your data, ensuring that it remains confidential and secure. Websites with HTTPS have a padlock icon and URL starting with https://, signifying a secure connection.

HTTPS is more secure than HTTP, but can also be slightly slower due to the added computation power required for encryption. However, HTTPS encryption is a must-have for transactions that require entering private information.

SSL Certificates: What Are They Really?

SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer — a technology that helps keep your internet connection secure and protects any sensitive data you send or receive online.

SSL certificates are digital certificates that validate the identity of a website and establish a secure connection between your device and the server hosting the website. This ensures that any information you send or receive over the internet is protected from hackers.

When you visit a website with an SSL certificate, you’ll notice that the URL in your browser begins with “https” instead of “http”. In addition, a padlock icon may be displayed in the address bar next to the URL — This indicates that the website has a valid SSL certificate and that your connection is secure.

SSL certificates use a combination of asymmetric and symmetric encryption technologies to secure your connection. Asymmetric encryption uses a pair of keys, one public and one private, to encrypt and decrypt data. This ensures that only the intended recipient can read the data. Symmetric encryption, on the other hand, uses a single key to encrypt and decrypt data, and this key is shared between the sender and recipient.

Depending on the level of validation and protection required, there are different types of SSL certificates, ranging from basic to highly secure.

9 Potential Causes of an SSL Connection Error

But what really causes an SSL certificate error? SSL errors can be both client-side or server-side, meaning that both your device or the website you’re trying to access could be the culprit. Here’s a list of common causes for the ‘Your connection is not private’ error to help you narrow down your suspect list;

• Invalid Certificate: SSL certificates may be invalid when the certificate has been issued to the wrong domain, when the browser sees a self-signed certificate, or when the certificate is otherwise not recognized by the user’s browser, causing the browser to display an error message.
• SSL/TLS Protocol: The SSL/TLS protocol is used to establish a secure connection between a web server and a web browser. If there are issues with the protocol, such as outdated or unsupported versions, it can cause an error.
• Intermediate Certificates: Intermediate certificates are used to create a chain of trust between the SSL certificate and the root certificate. SSL errors can occur if an intermediate certificate is missing or improperly configured.
• Expired SSL: SSL certificates have expiration dates and must be renewed periodically. If an SSL certificate has expired or has been revoked for any reason, it can cause an error in establishing a secure connection.
• Antivirus Software: Some browser extensions or antivirus software can interfere with SSL certificate validation, causing the error to occur.
• DNS Cache: DNS (Domain Name System) is used to resolve domain names into IP addresses. If there are issues with DNS cache, such as the cache containing outdated or incorrect information, it can cause the error.
• Wi-Fi Issues: If there are issues with the user’s Wi-Fi network, such as a weak or intermittent connection, it can sometimes lead to errors in establishing a secure connection between the website and the client. These issues are especially common with public Wi-Fi networks.
• Operating System: If the user’s operating system, whether Windows or Mac, is outdated or has corrupted files, it can cause a connection error.’
• Client-Side Errors: Client-side SSL errors can occur due to issues with the user’s browser or security settings, such as outdated or unsupported browser versions, or incorrect settings for SSL/TLS.

How to Troubleshoot the ‘Your connection is not private’ Error as a Visitor

It’s always annoying when you’re doing important work (or chasing the latest funny cat video), and a ‘Your connection is not private’ error puts a damper on your plans. However, here are a few quick things you can do as a website visitor to resolve the issue so you can get back to surfing the web to your heart’s content!

• Reload the Web Page: Sometimes, an SSL error can occur due to a temporary issue with the website or the user’s internet connection. Reloading the page can sometimes resolve the error. To reload the page, click on the reload button in the browser or press the F5 key.
• Check the URL: Make sure that the URL of the website you are trying to access is correct, as a typo in the URL can cause an SSL error. Also, make sure that the URL begins with “https://” instead of “http://” — The “s” in “https” indicates that the website has an SSL certificate installed.
• Clear Browser Cache: Clearing the browser cache can sometimes resolve an SSL error. To clear the cache, go to the browser settings and find the option to clear browsing data. Select the option to clear the cache and then try reaccessing the website.
• Disable Your Browser Extensions: Some browser extensions can interfere with SSL certificate validation, causing an SSL error. To troubleshoot, try disabling browser extensions one by one and then try accessing the website again.
• Disable the Antivirus Software: Antivirus software can also interfere with SSL certificate validation. Try disabling the antivirus software temporarily and then try accessing the website again.
• Check Date and Time Settings: SSL certificates have expiration dates and rely on accurate date and time settings to validate correctly. Make sure your computer’s date and time settings are correct based on your time zone, and try accessing the website again.
• Try a Different Browser: Sometimes, an SSL error can occur due to issues with the user’s browser. Try accessing the website using a different browser to see if the error persists.
• Avoid Incognito Mode: Incognito browsing can sometimes create a breach in the connection between your browser and the website. Try the regular version of your browser, and see if the error persists.
• Contact the Website Owner: If none of the above steps resolve the SSL error, it may be an issue with the website’s SSL certificate. Contact the website owner and let them know about the error you are experiencing. They may need to renew or reconfigure their SSL certificate.

How to Troubleshoot the ‘Your connection is not private’ Error as a Site Admin

As a site admin, there’s nothing more frustrating than encountering the “Your connection is not private” error on your website. Not only can it lead to a loss in traffic, but it can also put your website’s and visitors’ security at risk. Luckily, there are several troubleshooting methods that you can use to resolve this error and ensure that your website is secure and reliable.

• Check Your SSL Certificate’s Expiration Date: SSL certificates have expiration dates and must be renewed periodically. If your SSL certificate has expired or is about to expire, it can cause an SSL error. To check your SSL certificate’s expiration date, go to the SSL certificate section in your web hosting account or contact your SSL certificate provider.
• Confirm That the Certificate was Issued Properly: An SSL error can occur if the SSL certificate was not issued correctly. To troubleshoot this issue, confirm that the SSL certificate was issued to the correct domain name and that the domain name is spelled correctly in the certificate. You can also check the certificate chain to ensure all intermediate certificates have installed correctly.
• Run an SSL Server Test for Your Website: An SSL server test can help you identify any issues with your SSL certificate or server configuration that may be causing the SSL error. Several free SSL scan tools are available online, such as SSL Labs or Qualys SSL Server Test. These tools will scan your website’s SSL certificate and server configuration and provide a detailed report of any issues found.
• Contact Your Web Hosting Provider for Support: If none of the above steps resolve the SSL error, it may be an issue with your web hosting provider’s server configuration. Contact your web hosting provider’s support team and let them know about the error you are experiencing. They may need to update their server configuration or provide a new SSL certificate to resolve the issue.

Common Error Codes Associated with the ‘Your connection is not private’ Error

SSL errors can occur due to a wide array of factors involving digital certificates, security protocols, cryptographic algorithms, and network connections. However, they also come with an associated error code that can help website visitors and web administrators troubleshoot the issue further. Here’s a list of some of those error codes, along with what they each mean:

• ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID: This error occurs when the domain name on the SSL certificate does not match the domain name of the website you are trying to access.
• ERR_CERT_DATE_INVALID: This error occurs when the SSL certificate has expired or the date and time on your computer are incorrect.
• ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID: This error occurs when the SSL certificate is not issued by a trusted certificate authority.
• ERR_CERT_WEAK_SIGNATURE_ALGORITHM: This error occurs when the SSL certificate uses a weak cryptographic algorithm that is no longer considered secure.
• ERR_CERTIFICATE_TRANSPARENCY_REQUIRED: This error occurs when the SSL certificate does not meet the Certificate Transparency policy requirements.
• ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH: This error occurs when the browser is unable to establish a secure connection due to a mismatch in the SSL/TLS version or cipher suite being used by the server and the browser.
• ERR_CONNECTION_CLOSED: This error occurs when the server terminates the connection unexpectedly.
• ERR_CONNECTION_RESET: This error occurs when the connection is reset by the server or your network.
• ERR_TIMED_OUT: This error occurs when the server does not respond within a certain time limit.

Know When to Contact Your Hosting Provider About an SSL Connection Error

If your website faces a privacy error, your users’ sensitive information, such as login credentials, credit card numbers, or personal data, may be at risk.

If you encounter an SSL connection error on your website, the first thing you should do is to try to diagnose the issue yourself. You can start by checking the certificate status, verifying that the certificate is up-to-date, and ensuring that the domain name matches the certificate. You can also try clearing your browser data or using a different browser to see if the error persists.

If you are unable to resolve the SSL connection error, it is essential that you contact your web host for assistance. Your web host can help you identify the error’s cause and guide you on how to fix it. They may also be able to provide you with a new SSL certificate or help you configure your server settings to ensure that your website is secure.

When contacting your web host about an SSL connection error, provide as much information as possible, including the error message, the URL of the affected page, and any other relevant details. This will help your hosting provider diagnose and resolve the issue more quickly.

Power Your Website with DreamHost

We make sure your website is fast, secure and always up so your visitors trust you.

Choose Your Plan

The post SSL Certificates: Your Guide to the ‘Your Connection Is Not Private’ Error appeared first on Website Guides, Tips & Knowledge.