Kirki causes 500 Internal server error

  • Boris

    (@ispacecrusader)


    2 weeks, 4 days ago

    I have a WPML/WooCommerce website running on the Sober theme. Everything is up to date. But as of late, the pages beyond the homepage are all generating 500 internal server errors.
    After some testing, I found out that the issue disappears when Kirki is disabled. I have tried replacing 6.0.8 with earlier versions (6.0.7, 6.0.0), but those two cannot be activated because they cause a fatal error.
    I also noticed that the htaccess file in the website root is changed. When I discard that and re-save permalinks, everything is back to normal. Until I activate Kirki again.
    Is there a bug in the 6.x.x versions?

    I am also wondering where exactly I can adjust the fields Kirki adds to the Appearance > Customizer, as that is the only active thing I see from Kirki (I did not build this website myself, but am responsible for maintaining it). Can you also shed some light on that?
    Thank you very much for your help!

    The page I need help with: [log in to see the link]

Viewing 8 replies - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)
  • Plugin Support Parag Das

    (@parag44)

    2 weeks, 4 days ago

    Hi,

    Thanks for sharing the details. Since this is a 500 server error, could you please check whether any fatal errors are being generated in the server error logs or wp-content/debug.log?

    Please also share:

    • your current PHP version
    • any relevant error log entries related to Kirki or the affected pages

    Please remove any sensitive information before posting logs publicly.

    Thread Starter Boris

    (@ispacecrusader)

    2 weeks, 4 days ago

    Hi @parag44 – thanks for your help!
    – Debug.log shows only deprecation messages, and nothing Kirki-related
    – this is what was found in the server log: Request exceeded the limit of 10 internal redirects
    due to probable configuration error. Use ‘LimitInternalRecursion’ to increase. this led us to the htaccess file initially.
    the limit if necessary. Use ‘LogLevel debug’ to get a backtrace.
    – PHP version: 8.3.31

    Plugin Support Parag Das

    (@parag44)

    2 weeks, 4 days ago

    Hi @ispacecrusader

    Thanks for checking the logs.

    The message Request exceeded the limit of 10 internal redirects usually points to a rewrite/permalink loop in .htaccess, rather than a direct PHP fatal error from Kirki.

    Kirki itself does not normally write or manage .htaccess rules. In many themes, Kirki is only used as the framework for Customizer fields, while the theme registers and handles the actual settings. So this may be coming from the Sober theme, WPML, or another integration that runs when Kirki is active.

    Could you please try the following?

    1. Back up your current .htaccess file.
    2. With Kirki active, go to Settings > Permalinks and click Save Changes.
    3. Compare the regenerated .htaccess file with the working version.
    4. Temporarily switch to a default WordPress theme, such as Twenty Twenty-Four or Twenty Twenty-Five, while keeping Kirki active.
    5. Temporarily deactivate WPML and its related add-ons, then test the affected pages again.
    6. Temporarily deactivate all plugins except Kirki and WooCommerce, then test again.

    Please let me know the update after checking these.

    Thread Starter Boris

    (@ispacecrusader)

    2 weeks, 4 days ago

    Hi @parag44 ,
    Thank you. I will run those tests. But it will take a bit of time, especially changing the theme, since I don’t want to risk losing widgets. I will run the tests next week, and let you know.

    Thread Starter Boris

    (@ispacecrusader)

    1 week, 5 days ago

    Hi @parag44,
    I’ve run all the tests. The results:
    1. after replacing htaccess, activating kirki and saving permalinks, the error is back.
    2. Compared htaccess files. Two lines have been added:
    RewriteBase /fr/
    RewriteRule . /fr/index.php [L]
    3. Switched to 2024. The error remains.
    4. disabled all plugins except Kirki and WooCommerce. The error is gone.
    5. Switched back to Sober theme. The error still gone.
    6. Re-enabled plugins one by one. The error returns when I activate WPML.
    7. Disabled Kirki again, and the error is gone again.
    8. I’ve manually edited htaccess and replaced the /fr/ entries with standard WordPress ones. Then the error disappears again. For a few minutes, then it’s back because the htaccess file has been changed again.

    So it looks like the issue is somewhere in the compatibility of Kirki and WPML. What do you think?

    • This reply was modified 1 week, 5 days ago by Boris.
    Thread Starter Boris

    (@ispacecrusader)

    1 week, 5 days ago

    I see several “flush_rewrite_rules” in the Kirki plugin. Perhaps that is causing it?

    Looks like Kirki is repeatedly flushing permalinks while WPML’s current language context is /fr/.

    For now, I’ve manually updated htaccess and set its permissions on 444. But that’s not the ideal situation.

    • This reply was modified 1 week, 5 days ago by Boris.
    Nafiz

    (@urnafiz)

    1 week, 5 days ago

    Hello @ispacecrusader ,

    Thanks for narrowing this down so thoroughly. Your observation is reasonable. Since the issue reappears after WPML rewrites the .htaccess file, it suggests a permalink rewrite conflict. We will review this internally and investigate what to do in this scenario.

    Thread Starter Boris

    (@ispacecrusader)

    1 week, 5 days ago

    Thank you @urnafiz. I will keep the workaround in place for now and await your findings.

Viewing 8 replies - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)

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