Enabling the WordPress Debug log

WordPress provides a debugging tool that helps you find the cause of any errors on your website. This tool can display information in two ways:

• Live on your website — This is not recommended if your website is live to the public, but can be a quick way to troubleshoot an issue.
• Create a debug log file — This creates a log file on the server to help you troubleshoot an issue.

1. Log in to your server via SSH or FTP.
2. Edit the wp-config.php file using SSH or your FTP client.

   The following line appears near the bottom:

   define('WP_DEBUG', false);

3. Replace that line with these three lines:

   define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );
   define( 'WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY', false );
   define( 'WP_DEBUG_LOG', true );

   It's not recommended to change WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY to true as this displays any errors on your live website.

   By enabling WP_DEBUG_LOG, you can view the same errors in your /wp-content/debug.log file instead.

When an error occurs in WordPress, it now writes to a file titled debug.log, located in your /wp-content/ directory. Open this file using SSH or your FTP client to view the debug report.

You can also use a plugin to help you debug your site and view your debug log. See this article for information on how to manage and install a plugin. When searching for a plugin, try typing in debug as a search term, as there are many different options for you to choose from.