It finally happened: your website went down and you’re freaking out because you don’t know what to do or even if you have a recent website backup. Don’t worry, we’re here to help! We’re going to go over some of the common issues that cause a website to crash, what to do, and how to be better prepared if it happens again.
Common Reasons Why a Website Will Crash
- Plugins. As technology is always evolving, the same can’t be said for plugins. Some plugin creators either abandon their creation or don’t update it. If a plugin you used has not been updated there is a chance that it will bug out and cause a crash.
- Coding. When updating code, be sure that it is on the same page as your website. Adding code that clashes with the current code or a plugin will usually result in a crash. If your website goes down right after you’ve added new code, this is probably the culprit.
- Traffic Spike. If you’re a glass-half-full person, this is a good problem. I mean, your website is down (boo) but you are getting more traffic(yay)! However, it’s still a problem, and it needs to be fixed.
- Lack of Hosting Space. A common problem with traffic spikes – if you don’t have enough hosting space your site can and will crash. Unlike a traffic spike, there is no glass-half-full here. What you started with will not always work unless you keep your website extremely small and don’t upgrade it.
- Hackers. Some people just want to watch the world burn, and your website just happens to be in their world. Brute force attacks can cripple a website extremely fast causing stress and loss of time and money trying to fix it.
- Domain Expiring. You may not think about your domain after purchasing it, but it’s crucial to your site. If your domain expires without you having renewed it, there’s simply no way to get to your site.
How Do Crashes Get Fixed?
Right off the bat, contact your hosting provider. They’ll be able to help you figure out the issue. Even if it’s not their fault they have the tools and experience to uncover the problem area and how to go about solving it.
Stay in contact with them and try to remain calm and patient. Every fix is not immediate and there may be multiple issues going on. If your host can’t help you, start looking for somebody who can. Then start looking for a new host.
Get Up and Running From Your Website Backup
Remember when we talked about a website backup? Well, hopefully, you had one. If not, let’s talk about your host.
You need to have absolute confidence in your hosting provider having a backup of your website. If your host doesn’t offer this, why are you still with them? Having a backup when your site goes down reduces the downtime drastically. We understand the importance of getting your website back up as fast as possible, which is why we offer an Automatic Remote Backup Service.
Another step is to do some research before adding new code or adding or updating plugins. As we mentioned, these things can get outdated or cause more issues without your knowledge. A simple Google search can help save the headaches caused by your website crashing.
If we seemed a little aggressive about the website backup, it’s because it’s very important. Websites crash. You might not be able to prevent your site from crashing, but you can always be prepared. Make sure you are 100% confident in your host having a backup and being able to help you when the time comes. For more information on our automatic backup service, check out the details here.
