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8 Ways to Identify and Fix Browser-Based Website Errors and Issues

No one is perfect, and that goes for website owners as well. Even the best, most well-coded and thoughtfully put together websites will experience errors and issues at some point – it’s simply unavoidable. In fact, part of the process of owning a website is being able to identify and fix an error as it comes up.

Often, you’ll find issues occur after switching hosts, updating plugins or themes in WordPress, or adding code snippets to existing designs. It doesn’t take much to break a site and prevent it from interacting with browsers properly.

However, not all errors or issues are the same. Some are relatively minor and can be fixed with ease; others may require more time and effort on your part.

That’s why in this article, we’ll outline 8 different types of browser-based website errors and issues you may encounter, along with tips on how to identify and fix them on the spot.

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Page Not Found (404) Error

This is perhaps the most common type of error you’ll encounter. A 404 error occurs when a user tries to access a page that doesn’t exist on your website. There can be a number of reasons why this might happen, but usually, it’s because the page in question has been moved or deleted.

Page Not Found (404) Error

In any case, if a user encounters a 404 error on your website, it’s important to have a custom error page set up. This should include a brief message explaining the error, along with links to other pages on your website that the user may find helpful.

Connection Timeout Error

A connection timeout error occurs when a user’s browser is unable to establish a connection with your server. This can happen for a number of reasons, but usually, it’s due to heavy traffic on your website or an issue with your server itself.

If you’re encountering this error frequently, it may be a sign that you need to upgrade your hosting plan to one that can accommodate more traffic. Alternatively, if the issue is with your server, you may need to contact your host or web developer for assistance.

Internal Server Error

An internal server error is similar to a connection timeout error, in that it’s also caused by an issue with your server. However, this error is typically more serious and can be caused by more pressing issues like a corrupt file or database.

Should this error occur, the first thing you should do is access your server directly in order to identify and fix the issue via an FTP client like FileZilla or Cyberduck.

Internal Server Error

Potential solutions include:

  • Checking (and adjusting) your file permissions
  • Clearing your website’s cache
  • Running a malware scan
  • Upgrading your hosting plan

Maintenance Mode Error

If you’re in the process of making changes or updates to your website, you may want to put it into maintenance mode. This essentially means that your website is only accessible to you and other administrators; regular users will see a custom error page explaining that the website is down for maintenance.

Putting your website into maintenance mode is a relatively simple process, but it’s important to remember to take it out of maintenance mode when you’re finished making changes. Otherwise, your regular users will continue to see the error page and may become frustrated.

DNS Error

A DNS, or Domain Name System, error occurs when a user’s browser is unable to resolve your website’s domain name. This usually happens due to an issue with your DNS settings.

Here’s how to adjust your DNS settings to resolve this error:

  1. Log in to your domain name registrar and select the DNS management tool.
  2. Find the A record for your website’s domain name and make sure the IP address is correct.
  3. If there is no A record for your website’s domain name, you’ll need to create one.
  4. Make sure your www CNAME record is pointing to your website’s domain name.
  5. Save your changes and wait for the DNS to propagate (this can take up to 24 hours).

SSL Certificate Error

An SSL, or Secure Sockets Layer, certificate is a type of security certificate that helps to encrypt data being transmitted between a user’s browser and your website. If you have an SSL certificate installed on your website, you may encounter an error if it expires or is not properly configured.

SSL Certificate Error

If you’re encountering an SSL certificate error, the first thing you should do is check the expiration date on your certificate. If it has expired, you’ll need to renew it.

If your certificate is still valid, but you’re encountering an error, the issue may be with your configuration. To fix this, simply follow these steps:

  1. Log in to your domain name registrar and select the SSL/TLS certificates tool.
  2. Find the SSL certificate for your website’s domain name and make sure the details are correct.
  3. If there is no SSL certificate for your website’s domain name, you’ll need to create one.
  4. Save your changes and wait for the SSL to propagate (this can take up to 24 hours).

Browser Compatibility Error

Browser compatibility errors occur when a user’s browser is not compatible with the code used to build your website. This can happen for a number of reasons, but usually, it’s because the user is using an outdated or unsupported browser.

If you’re encountering this error, the first thing you should do is check to see if the browser you’re using is supported or up-to-date. If not, you may need to update your browser or switch to a different browser to view the website properly.

It can also be helpful to create a notice on your website that indicates its browser compatibility clearly — especially if your site has a very new feature or attribute that isn’t universally supported yet.

Malicious Website Errors

If you’re encountering an error that says your website has been flagged as malicious, it’s likely because your website has been hacked. This can happen for a number of reasons, but usually, it’s because the hackers were able to exploit a security vulnerability on your site.

If you believe your website has been hacked, the first thing you should do is change all of your passwords — especially if you think the hackers may have access to them. You should also run a security scan on your website to check for any malicious code or files that may have been injected. If you find any, you’ll need to delete them and then update your website to the latest version to patch the security vulnerability.

Don’t Let Browser Issues Halt Site Progress

Website errors that show up in browsers can be frustrating, but luckily, most of them are relatively easy to fix. By following the steps outlined in this article, you should be able to identify and fix any browser-based website errors and issues you encounter.

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What you must know about PHP errors to avoid scratching your forehead when something goes wrong

While pure object-oriented languages produce mainly exceptions to signal an error, PHP started out as procedural and so it has a wide range of errors that can be raised along with exceptions.

Errors are Human, But We Must Identify Them

There isn’t a programmer alive who hasn’t made errors when coding something at some point in their career. It is simply a part of the process, and it is important to recognize that we will all make these types of mistakes from time to time. That said, it is best to identify the errors as they occur so as to correct them at the moment. 

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Suspicious Sortings in Unity, ASP.NET Core, and More

Some believe that experienced developers do not make silly errors. Comparison errors? Dereferencing null references? Bet you think: "No, it's definitely not about me..." ;) By the way, what about errors with sorting? As the title suggests, there are some nuances.

OrderBy(...).OrderBy(...)

Let me give you an example to describe the problem. Let's say we have some type (Wrapper) with two integer properties (Primary and Secondary). There's an array of instances of this type. We need to sort it in ascending order. First — by the primary key, then — by the secondary key.

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The Cost of Bad Data

When developing new functionality or expanding existing features, members of the feature team can find themselves battling a hidden enemy — bad test data. In this article, I am going to talk about the challenges of not having adequate test data for feature validation and offer some options to avoid falling into this hidden sinkhole that can absorb a team's success rate.

How Bad Data Is Bad?

One of the first topics of discussion when starting a new project is to understand the source of the non-production data sources, which will be used to validate a feature team's work. Nothing scares me more to hear something like, "We have a test database that was created from production a few years ago."

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5 Surprising and Sneaky Ways Errors Impact Your Business

Every app is imperfect and generates errors, but do you know how errors affect your users and business? When you look at logs for a large application, you might see thousands of errors per day and not know where to start. Even worse are errors that are not tracked by your application. They could be buttons that stop working, input that isn’t saved, or any number of other issues. Without proper error tracking, you are flying blind to these user experience problems.

Unfortunately, developers who are deep in the code are not expected to understand how these errors impact users, and ultimately, their company’s finances. Even if they know of an error that should be fixed, it can be difficult to articulate why they should be fixed instead of developing a new feature. Here are five ways developers can advocate to management about the importance of fixing errors.

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About the “Warning! WordPress Encrypts User Cookies” Error

Upgrading from older versions of WordPress is designed to go without a hitch, but depending on the setup and the two versions involved, you may encounter some hangups along the way. For example, if you are upgrading from a version of WordPress older than 3.0, eventually you may encounter the dreaded "Warning! WordPress Encrypts User Cookies" error. This quick DigWP tutorial explains what it is, why it happens, and how to fix the problem asap.

The error message

For those who are experiencing this "encrypted cookie" issue, the error message that's displayed looks something like this:

Warning! WordPress encrypts user cookies ...

This error happens when trying to log in or when you try to do things in the Admin Area. Basically you keep getting logged out for no apparent reason.

Why it happens

Fortunately there is an easy solution for the "WordPress Encrypts User Cookies" error. Open your site's wp-config.php file. Scroll down the file to just after the database credentials. Depending on your version of WordPress, you should find something like this:

/**#@+
 * Authentication Unique Keys and Salts.
 *

..followed by a set of 3, 4, or 8 (depending on WP version) constant definitions. For example, in the latest version of WordPress (5.0), there are EIGHT Unique Keys and Salts, waiting to be filled with random characters:

define('AUTH_KEY',         'put your unique phrase here');
define('SECURE_AUTH_KEY',  'put your unique phrase here');
define('LOGGED_IN_KEY',    'put your unique phrase here');
define('NONCE_KEY',        'put your unique phrase here');
define('AUTH_SALT',        'put your unique phrase here');
define('SECURE_AUTH_SALT', 'put your unique phrase here');
define('LOGGED_IN_SALT',   'put your unique phrase here');
define('NONCE_SALT',       'put your unique phrase here');

The problem is that the number of these keys has changed along with WordPress. For those with better things to do, here is a brief history:

WordPress < 2.6

WP 2.6 has no secret keys:

[ none ]

WordPress 2.6

WP 2.6 has three secret keys:

define('AUTH_KEY',        'put your unique phrase here');
define('SECURE_AUTH_KEY', 'put your unique phrase here');
define('LOGGED_IN_KEY',   'put your unique phrase here');

WordPress 2.7 — 2.9

WP 2.7 thru 2.9 have four secret keys:

define('AUTH_KEY',        'put your unique phrase here');
define('SECURE_AUTH_KEY', 'put your unique phrase here');
define('LOGGED_IN_KEY',   'put your unique phrase here');
define('NONCE_KEY',       'put your unique phrase here');

WordPress >= 3.0

Versions of WP greater than or equal to 3.0 have eight secret keys:

define('AUTH_KEY',         'put your unique phrase here');
define('SECURE_AUTH_KEY',  'put your unique phrase here');
define('LOGGED_IN_KEY',    'put your unique phrase here');
define('NONCE_KEY',        'put your unique phrase here');
define('AUTH_SALT',        'put your unique phrase here');
define('SECURE_AUTH_SALT', 'put your unique phrase here');
define('LOGGED_IN_SALT',   'put your unique phrase here');
define('NONCE_SALT',       'put your unique phrase here');

What does this mean? It means that when you upgrade from an older version of WordPress, the number of Unique Keys and Salts may not be the same. And so, if the latest version of WordPress is expecting eight secret-key constants, but your site's wp-config.php only contains four constants, you're gonna get the "WordPress Encrypts User Cookies" error.

The solution

To resolve the "encrypts cookie" error, you need to update your site's Unique Keys and Salts (secret keys), so as to provide the correct number of key constants. So if your old WP site only has three key constants, and you upgrade to WordPress 5.0, you will need to add the five missing constants (for a total of eight), so that WordPress can operate normally and without error.

Example: Upgrade from any version of WP, to the latest version of WP

If you are upgrading from any version of WP to the latest version, you can fix the error by simply replacing your existing secret keys with a brand new set. To do so, visit the WordPress Keys & Salts Generator, copy the results, and replace your existing keys with the freshly generated code. Then save changes, upload to your server and done. Once the new, complete set of keys is added, the encrypted-cookie error will disappear.

Other upgrade paths

As explained previously, your site's wp-config.php file should have the same number of constants that is expected by WordPress. Although ideally everyone everywhere always would update to the latest version of WordPress, we know that's just not a realistic expectation.

So for any other "non-latest" upgrade path that you may be taking, just make sure that your new version of WordPress has the correct number of secret keys defined. Check out the previous section for a list of WP versions and their respective number of Unique/Key salts.