HTTP 500 error on wp-admin, frontend works, database accessible

  • forgedwyrm

    (@forgedwyrm)


    1 month, 2 weeks ago

    Hi,

    I’m experiencing an HTTP 500 error when accessing /wp-admin.
    The frontend of the site loads correctly, but wp-admin returns a 500 Internal Server Error.

    What I have confirmed so far:

    • The database is accessible via phpMyAdmin
    • wp-config.php contains valid database credentials
    • The active theme is Astra
    • The issue started after troubleshooting plugins / file structure
    • No .htaccess file is visible on the server
    • I currently cannot access wp-admin at all

    Hosting: Rackhost (shared hosting)
    PHP version cannot be changed from the control panel.

    Could this be caused by missing or corrupted core files or plugins?
    What would be the recommended recovery steps in this situation?

    Thank you.

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

Viewing 2 replies - 1 through 2 (of 2 total)
  • Moderator Steven Stern (sterndata)

    (@sterndata)

    Volunteer Forum Moderator

    1 month, 2 weeks ago

    Errors like this are logged. Check the error log on your server. If you can’t find the log, please contact your host.

    Meantime, enable wp_debug and wp_debug_log and after an error, look at wp-content/debug.log to see if anything gets logged there. https://wordpress.org/support/article/debugging-in-wordpress/

    You can also try this: Please attempt to disable all plugins, and use one of the default (Twenty*) themes. If the problem goes away, enable them one by one to identify the source of your troubles.

    If you cannot access wp-admin, there are other ways to deactivate plugins:  https://wordpress.org/support/article/faq-troubleshooting/#how-to-deactivate-all-plugins-when-not-able-to-access-the-administrative-menus

    Kirtikumar Solanki

    (@solankisoftware)

    1 month, 2 weeks ago

    Hi @forgedwyrm ,

    Since the frontend works but wp-admin shows a 500 error, it usually points to a plugin, corrupted core file, or server PHP issue. Along with what Steven suggested, you can also try:

    • Rename the /wp-content/plugins/ folder via FTP/File Manager to quickly disable all plugins (useful if you can’t access wp-admin).
    • Re-upload fresh copies of /wp-admin and /wp-includes from a clean WordPress download — sometimes core files get corrupted.
    • Check or regenerate the .htaccess file (rename it temporarily and resave permalinks later).
    • Ask your host to check PHP error logs or memory limits — shared hosting issues can trigger 500 errors.

    Since database access is fine, it’s very likely a PHP/plugin/core file issue rather than DB related.

    Hope this helps — let us know what you find 🙂

Viewing 2 replies - 1 through 2 (of 2 total)

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