Title: Internal server error for Multisite
Last modified: August 20, 2016

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# Internal server error for Multisite

 *  Resolved [Rob Watson](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rcwatson/)
 * (@rcwatson)
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/)
 * I’m fairly certain I’ve read and followed everything in other posts, but I’m 
   still having trouble setting up multisite on a fresh 3.2.1 install.
 * PROBLEM: When I update wp-admin.php with the code recommended by the network 
   installer, but NOT the .htaccess code recommended (blank .htaccess file), the
   base site works fine. New sites don’t work, though. However, as soon as I add
   the recommended .htaccess code, I get Internal Server 500 errors for every URL.
 * SETUP:
    1.  documentroot is not named “wordpress”
    2.  I DO want a subdirectory install, NOT a subdomain install.
    3. My obfuscated wp-config.php file, which is in documentroot and has 775 permissions:
       [http://pastebin.com/kVwkzG7v](http://pastebin.com/kVwkzG7v)
    4. My .htaccess file, which is in the documentroot and has 775 permission: [http://pastebin.com/PcvxFuPR](http://pastebin.com/PcvxFuPR)
    5. Added AllowOverride ALL: [http://pastebin.com/Deug2n5g](http://pastebin.com/Deug2n5g)
    6.  and restarted Apache: [http://pastebin.com/1a0p3AHB](http://pastebin.com/1a0p3AHB)
 * Anything else I can try?

Viewing 6 replies - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)

 *  Moderator [Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)](https://wordpress.org/support/users/ipstenu/)
 * (@ipstenu)
 * 🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248775)
 * If you get error 500 on .htaccess, the file’s not being read correctly.
 * The permissions (775 etc) aren’t the problem. That’s all in the httpd.conf setup.
   And yes, you HAVE to have the .htaccess working for pretty permalinks and for
   multisite.
 *  Thread Starter [Rob Watson](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rcwatson/)
 * (@rcwatson)
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248828)
 * Thanks for clarifying on whether it was truly .htaccess. Now that it’s narrowed
   down, can you offer any advice, based on the code I linked to, as to what might
   not be in place in .htaccess or my vhost settings?
 *  Thread Starter [Rob Watson](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rcwatson/)
 * (@rcwatson)
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248832)
 * SOLVED! I tailed the error log for this instance when .htaccess contains the 
   code above, which triggers the Internal Server 500 error.
 * The error message in the log is:
 * `[Thu Aug 18 02:02:21 2011] [alert] [client nnn.nnn.nnn.n] /usr1/webroot/example/.
   htaccess: Invalid command '\xef\xbb\xbf#', perhaps misspelled or defined by a
   module not included in the server configuration`
 * Searching on the Invalid command string, I found [this article](http://blog.troygrosfield.com/2010/08/13/godaddy-windows-linux-and-htaccess/),
   which solved the issue handily.
 * I hate Windows.
 *  Moderator [Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)](https://wordpress.org/support/users/ipstenu/)
 * (@ipstenu)
 * 🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248847)
 * UGH! Okay, what text editor are you using? Notepad++ if you’re on windows is 
   the best to use.
 *  Thread Starter [Rob Watson](https://wordpress.org/support/users/rcwatson/)
 * (@rcwatson)
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248848)
 * I used Notepad++ and also an editor that is built into SmartFTP. Same as I always
   do with no problems. But somewhere along the way, Windows character codes got
   into it and weren’t visible and Notepad++ couldn’t shake them, so I kept editing
   and uploading in ignorance. It was only when I used pure vi and typed it all 
   out by hand that I was able to have success. Lesson learned.
 * Thanks for all the help the past couple of days, though.
 *  Moderator [Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)](https://wordpress.org/support/users/ipstenu/)
 * (@ipstenu)
 * 🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist
 * [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248851)
 * > and also an editor that is built into SmartFTP
 * I would stop using that one. NotePad++ when set to Unix mode (there’s a way to
   do that) is safe as houses 😉

Viewing 6 replies - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)

The topic ‘Internal server error for Multisite’ is closed to new replies.

## Tags

 * ["internal server error"](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/internal-server-error/)
 * [multisite](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/multisite/)

 * In: [Networking WordPress](https://wordpress.org/support/forum/multisite/)
 * 6 replies
 * 2 participants
 * Last reply from: [Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)](https://wordpress.org/support/users/ipstenu/)
 * Last activity: [14 years, 10 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/internal-server-error-for-multisite/#post-2248851)
 * Status: resolved

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