8 Server Issues That Affect WordPress and How to Fix Them

If your WordPress site breaks, the problem might be your server, not just themes or plugins.

Most WordPress users blame plugins or themes when something breaks. But sometimes, the real trouble is hiding behind the scenes—inside the server. From misconfigured settings to resource limits, server WP problems can quietly ruin your site’s performance.

What makes these issues tricky is that they often show up as something else. A failed plugin update, a white screen, or a missed cron job might all trace back to server behavior.

WordPress developers and users often discuss these common server problems on Quora, but they don’t find proper solutions to fix these issues. That’s why we have decided to cover eight critical server issues that can break the WordPress website with their solution in this guide.

Let’s jump on the first WordPress issue!

8 Server Problems That Can Break or Slow Down Your WordPress Site

1. DNS Problems That Make Your WordPress Site Hard to Reach

The “server DNS address could not be found” is the most common WordPress error, and users struggle to fix it. This error means your domain name can’t connect to the server where you have hosted the WordPress site.

This issue happens when:

The DNS records are outdated

The hosting server is down

There’s a delay after recent DNS changes (like switching hosts)

To solve this issue:

Check and Update DNS Settings: First, get the correct DNS records from the hosting service provider. Then, go to your domain registrar’s control panel and check whether you have the correct and updated DNS records. If not, update them.

Use DNS tools to verify:  You can use websites like dnschecker.org to check if your DNS is set correctly and has spread across global servers.

Wait for a While: If you have recently updated your DNS records, wait for a few moments, as updating DNS records takes time.

Still, if you can’t solve the problem, you might contact your hosting and domain service providers.

2. Updating to PHP 8.1 or 8.2 Broke Your WordPress Site

Sometimes, when you update the WordPress site to PHP 8.1, you get errors like the ones below

This error can crash your site and prevent you from accessing the WP admin dashboard. So you can’t make any edits. This error is also called white screen of death.

This error mainly occurs due to the third-party plugins or themes you are using that are not compatible with the updated version of PHP.

To overcome this compatibility issue:

1. Update all plugins and themes.
2. If updating plugins doesn’t work, log in to the C-panel and revert to the recent update to downgrade the PHP version.
3. Next, deactivate plugins one by one to find the one that breaks the site.
4. Once you find a plugin that is causing the problem, remove it or use an updated version.

Also Read: Supercharge Your WordPress Website with Premium Plugins

3. The cURL Error 28: Connection Timed Out in WordPress

In PHP, the cURL is a command-line tool and library to transfer data with URLs. This PHP error happens when your WordPress site tries to make an API request to another server or website but doesn’t get a response on time.

Generally, this error appears when a plugin, theme, or WordPress core tries to connect to an external API, like for updates, payment gateways, or REST API calls, and the server takes too much time to respond. Fixing these WordPress problems is important as it can impact the site’s performance.

The causes behind cURL error 28 can be:

• Plugin conflicts
• Incorrect SSL configuration
• Firewall issues
• Outdated software
• Insufficient PHP memory limit

How to fix it:

• Disable the firewall in the security plugin to check whether it’s causing the issue.
• Try reconfiguring the SSL certificate.
• If cURL version is not compatible with the latest PHP version, update it.
• Increase memory limits in PHP.
• Deactivate plugins one by one to see if a specific one is causing the error.

4. Error Establishing Database Connection

Whenever you see the “Error establishing a database connection” error message on your WordPress site, as shown in the image below, there might be a problem in connecting to the database. So, you won’t be able to see any posts, pages, etc., on your site. 

The problem occurs if:

• The database login details are wrong
• The database server is down or overloaded
• The database is corrupted or crashed
  

How to fix it:

• First, open the  wp-config.php file and check whether the database name, username, password, and hostname are all correct. If not, update them.
• If this WordPress fix doesn’t work, contact your hosting service provider’s support team and confirm that the database server is running correctly.

5. Memory Exhausted Error

Sometimes, you see an error message, as shown in the image below, caused by low memory.

This WordPress issue occurs when:

• Any installed WordPress plugin or theme uses more memory than allowed
• You might run too many processes at once that consume a lot of memory.
• The initial memory limit set by the host is too low.
  

How to fix it:

To simply fix this, edit the wp-config.php file and increase the memory limit:

1. Open the wp config.php file.
2. Add the below PHP code at the end of the wp-config.php file.

define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘256M’);

3. Save the file and refresh your site.

Also Read: 9 Best WordPress Security Plugins in 2024

6. Website Takes Time to Load Due to Server Issues

Better web server response means a faster site for everyone.

According to the Wp-rocket.me, if website load time increases from 1s to 5s, the bounce rate increases by 90%, which can affect the site ranking directly.

If your WordPress site takes too long to load, even after using caching, compressing images, and removing heavy plugins, the server may be the problem.

Slow servers can delay the first response your site gives when someone visits. This is often caused by:

• Overloaded shared hosting
• Old or low-resource server
• Poor server location (too far from users)
• No server-level caching
  

How to fix it:

1. Try to use a CDN to reduce the resource load time, which can decrease the overall page load time.
2. You can also try to get a better hosting plan, like VPS or managed WordPress hosting.
3. Use some plugins for caching.

7. 500 Internal Server Error in WordPress

The “500 internal server error” appears on the screen when an unknown issue occurs on the server side. It is one of the most confusing WordPress issues, as it clearly doesn’t state what is wrong with the server. 

This often happens when:

• The .htaccess file is corrupted
• A plugin or theme has bad code
• PHP memory is too low
• Server rules block certain actions

How to fix it:

1. Rename your .htaccess file to .htaccess_old using FTP or File Manager. Then go to WordPress → Settings → Permalinks and save to create a fresh one.
   
2. If the error remains, try increasing PHP memory in wp-config.php:

• define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘256M’);

You can also switch the theme to a default one to check whether there is any theme-related issue.

If you still can’t solve the problem, take help from WordPress fix service provider professionals. This is a common example of problemen met by WordPress that needs both checking and patience.

8. Fixing 400 Bad Request Errors in WordPress

A 400 Bad Request error means the browser sent something the server couldn’t understand. It usually happens because of broken cookies, URL issues, or server misconfigurations.

This error can show up when:

• URLs are too long or formatted wrongly
• Browser cache or cookies are corrupted
• Your SSL or DNS setup has problems
• A plugin sends bad requests
  

How to fix it:

1. Try clearing the cache and cookies.
2. If the first solution doesn’t work, check the URL. If the URL is too long and has unknown characters, try removing a few queries or extra characters from the end.
3. Disable all plugins temporarily and check whether the error goes away. If so, any of the plugins might be causing the issue.

Closing Thoughts

Server-related problems can quietly cause many WordPress issues. They may not always be obvious, but their impact can be serious if left unchecked.

From memory limits to DNS errors, most of these problems have simple fixes, once you know where to look. It’s better to catch them early than deal with a broken or slow site later.

Keep your hosting setup clean, stay updated, and don’t ignore warning signs like failed updates or long load times. These are often linked to server limits or misconfigurations.

And when you can’t solve the problem with basic troubleshooting, you can always get support from the hosting service providers.

FAQs

1. Can a server configuration mistake cause WordPress issues?

Yes, wrong server configurations like outdated PHP version, low memory, etc., can lead to fatal errors and slow performance of the site. Sometimes, it can also crash the site.

2. Will fixing a server error cause data loss on my WordPress site?

In most cases, errors don’t affect your data. Still, it is a good idea to take regular backups to avoid data loss.

3. Is that possible to access the error logs of my WordPress site?

In most cases, you can access the error logs from the cPanel. These error logs can help you trace the cause of fatal errors.

4. My WordPress website crashed after a plugin update. How should I diagnose and fix it?

Sometimes, outdated plugins can’t work with the latest version of WordPress. In this case, you can check the error logs and fix the errors.

5. Can a bad server setup affect a fresh WordPress installation?

Yes. If the server is missing required PHP extensions or has limits on resources, even a new WordPress installation can fail or throw errors. Proper server configuration is important right from the start.