• Resolved revmook

    (@revmook)


    Hello! I’ve been using the ActivityPub plugin since it was first released and it has been working well. At some point, either with a plugin update or host move, the plugin stopped working. This happened maybe 8 months ago. I believe the inbox accepts the Follow request (202), but when WordPress tries to fetch the actor object from the remote server to verify the signature, it gets a 404. Without verified actor data, it can’t complete the follow. I’m self hosting on a VPS, Debian 13.

    I’ve disabled all plugins, un-installed / re-installed ActivityPub, and it is still stuck with requests pending. Additionally, new posts don’t seem to get federated if I just look at @rev_mook@blog.benmook.com

    Thoughts?

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

Viewing 4 replies - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)
  • Plugin Author Matthias Pfefferle

    (@pfefferle)

    Hey @revmook 👋

    do you see the follower in your WordPress backend? The question is, is it blocked by the webserver already or is it an issue of a missing Accept response.

    Normally the pending Follow request are because of firewall or mod_sec rules, that block certain requests.

    Thread Starter revmook

    (@revmook)

    Hi @pfefferle , Thanks for your reply! So, I see 9 followers in the WordPress backend, but those were from when the plugin previously worked. If I run the following (recommended by an AI)

    $ wp eval '
    global $wpdb;
    $results = $wpdb->get_results("
       SELECT p.ID, p.post_title, p.post_date, pm.meta_value as follower_of
       FROM wp_posts p
       LEFT JOIN wp_postmeta pm ON p.ID = pm.post_id  
       AND pm.meta_key = \"_activitypub_user_id\"
       WHERE p.post_type = \"ap_actor\"
       ORDER BY p.ID DESC
       LIMIT 50
    ");
    print_r($results);


    I see 34 users who are stuck. Here are the first 5;

    [0] => stdClass Object
           (
               [ID] => 5625
               [post_title] => Eugen Rochko
               [post_date] => 2026-03-02 21:51:48
               [follower_of] =>  
           )

       [1] => stdClass Object
           (
               [ID] => 5598
               [post_title] => me
               [post_date] => 2026-02-23 18:10:30
               [follower_of] =>  
           )

       [2] => stdClass Object
           (
               [ID] => 5484
               [post_title] => JDS
               [post_date] => 2026-01-30 01:47:28
               [follower_of] =>  
           )

       [3] => stdClass Object
           (
               [ID] => 5483
               [post_title] => JDS
               [post_date] => 2026-01-30 01:47:28
               [follower_of] =>  
           )

       [4] => stdClass Object
           (
               [ID] => 5447
               [post_title] => David
               [post_date] => 2025-11-17 22:21:16
               [follower_of] =>  
           )



    So, it seems like the Follow requests are arriving and creating actor records. I would think that [follower_of] would have some sort of value. I’m totally stuck at this point. Thoughts?

    Thread Starter revmook

    (@revmook)

    Okay, after several months of wrenching on this I’ve figured it out. The Activitypub plugin checks against WordPress’s comment disallowed list. My list contained .com and .ru, since it was receiving 100’s of spam comments attempting to sell discount pharmaceuticals for men ~15 years ago when I first started blogging. Removing “.com” from my list fixed the plugin. I can now receive and process follows, and it’s now federating out. Thanks for your help @pfefferle

    • This reply was modified 2 weeks, 4 days ago by revmook.
    Plugin Author Matthias Pfefferle

    (@pfefferle)

    Oh no 🫣

    I am glad you found it!

Viewing 4 replies - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)

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