How to Fix the WordPress White Screen of Death By Blogging Mentor

WordPress is one of the most popular content management systems (CMS) in the world. It is used by millions of bloggers, businesses, and organizations to create and manage websites. However, sometimes users encounter a frustrating problem known as the "WordPress white screen of death" (WSOD).

This issue can prevent your website from loading properly and can be caused by a variety of factors. In this article, we will discuss how to fix the WordPress white screen of death and get your website up and running again.

How to Fix the WordPress White Screen of Death

Step 1: Check for Plugin or Theme Conflicts

The first thing to check when encountering the WordPress white screen of death is whether there is a conflict with a plugin or theme. Sometimes, when you update a plugin or theme, it can cause compatibility issues with other plugins or themes, resulting in a blank screen. To check for plugin or theme conflicts, you can follow these steps:

1. Disable all your plugins by going to Plugins > Installed Plugins and selecting all the plugins, then choosing Deactivate from the Bulk Actions dropdown menu.

2. Try accessing your website to see if the issue has been resolved. If the website loads correctly, you can then reactivate each plugin one by one, testing the website each time until you find the one causing the issue.

3. If you still encounter the issue, try switching to a default WordPress theme (such as Twenty Twenty-One) to see if the problem lies with your current theme.

Step 2: Increase the Memory Limit

If the plugin or theme conflict does not resolve the issue, it is possible that the memory limit set by your web host is too low. To increase the memory limit, follow these steps:

1. Open your WordPress root directory via FTP or cPanel File Manager.

2. Locate the wp-config.php file and open it in a text editor.

3. Add the following code at the end of the file: define( 'WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M' );

4. Save the changes and try accessing your website again to see if the issue has been resolved.

Step 3: Disable WordPress Debugging

If increasing the memory limit does not solve the issue, the next step is to disable WordPress debugging. WordPress debugging is a tool used by developers to help identify issues with code, but it can cause issues with your website if it is enabled. To disable debugging, follow these steps:

1. Open your WordPress root directory via FTP or cPanel File Manager.

2. Locate the wp-config.php file and open it in a text editor.

3. Look for the following code: define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );

4. Change the value of 'true' to 'false' so the code looks like this: define( 'WP_DEBUG', false );

5. Save the changes and try accessing your website again to see if the issue has been resolved.

Step 4: Reinstall WordPress

If none of the above steps work, you may need to reinstall WordPress. Before doing this, make sure you have a backup of your website in case anything goes wrong. To reinstall WordPress, follow these steps:

1. Download the latest version of WordPress from the official website.

2. Extract the downloaded zip file and delete the wp-content folder.

3. Upload the remaining files to your website's root directory using FTP.

4. Access your website to complete the installation process.

Conclusion

The WordPress white screen of death can be a frustrating issue for website owners, but there are several steps you can take to resolve the problem. By checking for plugin or theme conflicts, increasing the memory limit, disabling WordPress debugging, and reinstalling WordPress, you can get your website up and running again in no time. Remember to always have a backup of your website before making any changes to avoid losing any important data.