Internal Server Error 500 is a generic PHP/MySQL error which indicates that the system has run out of resources to manage the database and pages. This typically occurs with PHP-powered websites using Joomla or WordPress.
Error 500 troubleshooting
As a first troubleshooting step, confirm the logs subdirectory is present in the File Manager. This folder is where the error logs are written. If it is missing, it can be created in the File Manager by clicking the Create Subdirectory button (or the +Folder link in cPanel) and providing the appropriate directory name. Learn more.
Creating the logs folder will also enable Error Logging. Reviewing the error logs will give you an idea of what led to the exhausting of system resources. Use the instructions in this Help Page to review the error log contents and take appropriate action. Note: When the site reaches capacity and displays the Error 500 page, error logging will halt until the connections/memory is released (about an hour).
What's changed?
Did you change WordPress themes, or add a new plugin? Add new code? If they're causing problems, you'll see them referenced in the error log. Reverting these changes may resolve the issue once the memory is released. Learn more.
If the 500 errors begin suddenly, consider recent changes you may have made. Did you upload a .htaccess file using FTP? The presence of this file on our servers will cause the 500 error, and you'll have to contact us to have it removed (for Turbify Web Hosting). Learn more. Important: cPanel Web Hosting accounts have .htaccess pre-installed and it is recommended not to remove the file.
Memory issue symptoms
Running out of memory can be difficult to diagnose since the error may be intermittent and there is no clear sign that the allocated memory for a script is being consumed. Should the issue be isolated to a script memory problem, you will need to revert any recent changes made or contact your developer for assistance. Note: The 60MB PHP memory limit cannot be adjusted on a single user basis. Learn more.
The following is a list of symptoms a site will typically exhibit when memory is being exhausted:
- You recently made code changes to a theme or plugin their website uses. This can cause the script to run much longer than it should.
- Issue occurs intermittently, and when it does only pages that utilizes PHP stop working. Images and HTML pages load fine.
- Repairing the database briefly resolves the issue, but it eventually returns.
- You had custom codes or plugins added to his site just prior to the issue occurring. Reverting these changes resolves the issue after about an hour.
- The problem occurs only during specific times of the day. This is because Turbify will close script and database connections automatically over 24 hours, causing the issue to momentarily resolve but occur again when users begin visiting the site.
- There may be a problem with your scripts. Learn how to troubleshoot your PHP or Perl scripts.
- Your scripts log may have exceeded its maximum size of 10MB.
