BluehostSupport

This is looking like it’s likely a PHP issue. But before I get into that we did see the sensitive information was previously posted and that it has been removed. You’ll want to make sure you update the your database name, username, password, keys, and salts immediately. 

For sure take a look to make sure PHP is running, You can throw in a phpinfo.php in your WordPress files and add the following:

<?php phpinfo(); ?>

Then just visit Visit yoursite.com/phpinfo.php. If it’s just code and not the PHP info, the server isn’t running PHP and we can help you out to get that fixed.

If the PHP is working fine, you can try to replace the .htaccess file with a fresh copy (You can pull the code from various sites like WPbeginner but it should look like this:

# BEGIN WordPress
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index\.php$ – [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
# END WordPress

Just be sure to save the old one, we typically just rename it adding something like .old to the end so you save any important code you may need to reuse or to just revert it back by changing the name back to default. You may also want to peek at the wpconfig.php file to make sure any plugins modified anything breaking it. You may have to do a bit of research if you are unfamiliar with standard code in these files and what will break it.

The last thing you can try is replacing the core website files. You can use the “Scan Core Files” button in the security tab in Your Bluehost account manager. Just select the WordPress install from the Websites tab and click the Security option at the top. If all else fails, please reach out to our support team by phone or chat and we’ll take a deeper look, you may ask them to run a malware scan just to be safe here.

Hello again, we are happy to hear that the initial problem has been fixed but in true web development fashion it sounds like another popped up. You’ll want to double check that your theme and plugins should are updated to the most current versions. As mentioned above though, your best bet will be to reach out to the developer directly for advice. Just provide them the error codes and they should be able to assist. If they recommend any changes on our end, just let us know and we can let you know how we can help.

Hi, @lydianweb

Those 409 errors can be quite a pain to figure out, right? So, we have done some rummaging around to see what might be the cause.

HTTP 409 errors typically indicate a conflict with the current state of the resource, and in WordPress environments, this can sometimes be triggered by security plugins like Wordfence intercepting or blocking requests it deems suspicious. Since you’re on our Bluehost shared hosting platform, and have already disabled extended protection by commenting out the auto_prepend_file in user.ini, but the issue still persists, here are a few things that are worth checking out.

Things to Try:

1. Check for Remaining Firewall Hooks. Even if extended protection is disabled, Wordfence may still be actively filtering traffic through basic WordPress hooks. This can be done by going to WordPress Dashboard → Wordfence → Firewall → Tools, and then check if Wordfence is still in “Learning Mode” or partially active. Consider switching the firewall to Disabled temporarily for testing.
2. Clear All Caching Layers and make sure you have cleared all WordPress-level cache (any caching plugin you may be using), Server cache (Bluehost has built-in caching—try clearing via the Bluehost plugin if active), and even the Browser cache, just in case.
3. Disable Other Security or Optimization Plugins. Try temporarily deactivate other plugins that may conflict with Wordfence, such as the following:

Caching plugins (e.g., W3TC, WP Rocket)
CDN services (like Cloudflare or SiteLock)
Security headers or .htaccess hardening plugins

4. Check .htaccess and ModSecurity. Bluehost sometimes enables ModSecurity rules on shared hosting which, in combination with Wordfence, can block or interfere with legitimate traffic. Ask Bluehost support if ModSecurity is enabled and if they see logs showing blocks related to Wordfence. You can also temporarily disable ModSecurity from your cPanel (under “Security”) if accessible.
5. Check Browser Dev Tools. Open the browser dev console → Network tab and look for the 409 responses. Inspect the request headers and payload—this might reveal what specifically is being blocked or conflicting.

If going through these suggestions does not remedy the 409 errors, other things to consider would be to reinstall Wordfence from scratch after cleaning out its config files (.htaccess, user.ini, and database entries), and reaching out directly to Wordfence support as they’re usually helpful with edge cases like this.

Thank you for sharing the great news that you’re back on track! Glad to hear our support agent was able to assist with a solution too. We’ll be sure to pass your feedback along to the team as well.

Looks like you’re on the right track for help. If there is anything we can do to help, let us know!

Hello there! First of all, please accept our condolences for your loss. There are a few ways to handle this depending on what information you have.  

I realize it’s a long shot, but, If you have access to his passwords for his hosting account, you can go to https://www.bluehost.com/my-account/login in order to log into his account. If you don’t have his password but have access to his email, you can click the Forgot User ID link and follow the steps to create a new password. Then, once in the account, you can give our support team a call and they can walk you through the steps of turning off the auto renewal for the account or you can follow the steps found at this link: https://www.bluehost.com/help/article/how-to-cancel-my-hosting-account 

If you do not have access to anything, you will need a couple of things to prove ownership and gain access to the account. Those documents and any additional information can be found on our Account Recovery link: https://www.bluehost.com/manage-it/account-recovery.jsp 

Just keep in mind these requests can take up to 72 hours to be reviewed and processed by our ownership team. They will follow up via the email you provide on the form after the review is completed and let you know if any additional documentation may be required. Our support team is available 24/7 through the chat icon located at the bottom right of our website or by phone. Let us know if there is anything we can do to help!  

Migrating from WordPress.com to Bluehost can already be tricky, and adding these loading issues on top of it is super frustrating. There could be a few common issues that would potentially cause the slow load times and errors. We don’t have a lot to go off of but here are few things you can try before reaching out to our support team:

1. DNS Propagation: If you just transferred from WordPress.com, the DNS might still be propagating. Which can cause intermittent errors while it is still syncing up across servers. I highly recommend checking DNS propagation with a 3rd party tool like WhatsMyDNS.
2. PHP & Timeout Issues: Kindly check your PHP settings, especially max_execution_time and memory_limit. Sometimes these settings are too low for WordPress, which leading errors. You can adjust it through Bluehost’s cPanel under the MultiPHP INI Editor. You may try setting  max_execution_time to 120 seconds and memory_limit to at least 256MB.
3. Caching problems: Kindly clear your cache and cookies because caching can be a likely culprit when sites don’t load properly. You can also try another browser
4. Plugin Conflicts: I highly recommend disabling all plugins and seeing if the problem still persists, If it’s working fine, try to reactivate them one by one to see the culprit. Keep in mind excessive plugins may also cause issues.
5. Optimize your database, which is sometimes a heavy database can cause the slowness of your website.
6. Reset Perma Links: Often times when migrating the references in your database will no longer match up and return errors on links. This can typically be resolved by resetting permalinks in the WordPress dashboard.

If all else fails, please reach out to our support team via phone or chat and we would be happy to help further.