A 500 Internal Server Error is a general server-side failure. The response alone usually does not identify the underlying cause.
Common causes
- An application exception or faulty deployment.
- Incorrect server configuration or rewrite rules.
- Missing environment variables or unavailable dependencies.
- Resource limits, database failures, or file permission issues.
How to investigate
- Refresh once to rule out a temporary failure.
- Check application and web-server logs at the exact time of the error.
- Review the most recent deployment, plugin, theme, or configuration change.
- Verify environment variables and required services without exposing secrets.
- Roll back a recent change if logs point to it and a rollback is safe.
- Contact your host with the timestamp and relevant error details if the cause is unclear.
Avoid showing stack traces, passwords, or internal paths to public visitors. Log technical details privately and show a helpful generic error page.