Smash Balloon Manuel

Hi SRD75,

Thanks for posting the exact error. In this case the key part is:

Table “…wp_sbi_instagram_feed_locator” doesn’t exist

means one of the plugin’s own database tables is missing. Our Instagram Feed plugin creates a few small custom tables, and this one (the “feed locator”) simply keeps track of which pages your feeds appear on. The plugin creates it automatically, so when it goes missing it is almost always because the table was not carried over during a site migration, restore, or clone, or because the database user did not have permission to create tables at the time.

It does not harm your content, but it does fill up your error log, and here is how to clear it:

1. Go to Plugins, deactivate Smash Balloon Social Photo Feed, then activate it again. On activation the plugin checks for its tables and recreates this one if it is missing. In most cases that single step stops the errors.
2. Load a page or two that displays a feed, then check whether the error_log entries stop appearing.

If the errors keep coming back after reactivating, it almost always means the database user does not have permission to create new tables (this is common on some managed or recently migrated setups). The fix there is to ask your host to grant the database user the CREATE privilege, then deactivate and reactivate the plugin once more so the table can be created. The plugin will also display a notice in your admin if it tried to create the table and was not allowed to.

If it still will not create after that, or if you would like us to look into the specifics of your setup, please reach out through our support form at https://smashballoon.com/support and include your System Info (and mention this same error). That lets you share your database and hosting details privately rather than on the public forum, and we can take it from there.

Best regards,
Manuel
Smash Balloon Support

Hi @jackoneill,

Thanks for taking the time to flag this, and I’m sorry the offer notice has been getting in your way across the admin area. You’re right that it shouldn’t be this hard to dismiss, and that’s not the experience we want you to have.

We’ve raised this with our development team and have changes on the way to make the notice easier to dismiss and keep it from coming back once you’ve closed it. It should be a much smoother experience in an upcoming release.

In the meantime, if you’d like it gone right now, reach out to us through our support form at https://smashballoon.com/support and we’ll help sort it for your specific site setup.

Really appreciate your patience, and thanks for using Instagram Feed.

The Smash Balloon Team

Hi @debbiemum,

I am really sorry to hear that three of your Instagram accounts were disabled. I want to be clear and straight with you about what is, and is not, connected here.

The most important point first: connecting or reconnecting your account through Smash Balloon does not cause Instagram to disable an account, and it does not put your account in violation of Instagram’s terms or community standards. Our plugin connects using Instagram’s official API through an app that has been reviewed and approved by Meta. It does not log in as you, it does not store your password, and it does not do anything in the background that would breach Instagram’s rules.

It helps to separate the two things that happened, because they are not related to each other:

1. On your website (the plugin side). When a site is moved to a new server, the security keys that WordPress uses can change. Smash Balloon keeps your Instagram connection stored in an encrypted form that is tied to those keys, so after the move the plugin can no longer read the saved connection. That shows up as a local decryption error on your site, and the feed stops until you reconnect. This is purely a local, technical issue on your own website. It has no effect on your Instagram account’s standing and it cannot trigger a disable.
2. On Instagram’s side (the account being disabled). The “community standards” notice, the verification step you were asked to complete, and the disabling of the accounts are all actions taken by Instagram on their end. We have no visibility into, or control over, those decisions, and the plugin cannot cause them. One pattern we do sometimes see is that signing into several Instagram accounts in a short window from a brand new server or location can trip Instagram’s automated security checks. That is a security flag reacting to the new login activity, rather than a sign that you actually broke a community standard, but only Instagram can tell you the real reason, and only Instagram can restore an account.

Because the account status sits entirely on Instagram’s side, the way to challenge it is directly with Instagram. We are genuinely not able to reinstate or appeal an account on your behalf. On the disabled notice (in the Instagram app or at instagram.com) there is normally an option to request a review or verify your identity, and that is the route to take. Instagram’s Help Center also has steps for disabled accounts here: https://help.instagram.com/

For the plugin side, once an account is active again (and for any accounts that are still fine), reconnecting through Smash Balloon is safe. If you see that connection or decryption message again after the move, the fix is simply to reconnect the account in the plugin, which creates a fresh, valid connection on the new server, or follow these other steps: https://smashballoon.com/doc/error-999-access-token-could-not-be-decrypted/

If you would like hands-on help with the reconnection or with getting your feeds working again on the new server, you are very welcome to reach out to our support team through our form here: https://smashballoon.com/support. We would be glad to help with that side of things.

Again, I am sorry you are dealing with this, and I hope Instagram restores your accounts quickly.

Best regards,

Hi @bastings,

Thank you so much for the kind words and the 5-star review! We’re glad to hear the plugin was easy to configure and is working well for you. If you ever need any help or have suggestions for improvements, don’t hesitate to reach out to our support team. We’re always happy to help!

Best regards,

Hi @missodessa

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience; we’re sorry to hear about the frustration with the frequent reconnection prompts.

The message you’re seeing about “future activity history off Meta technologies” is actually a setting controlled by Meta/Instagram on their end, not something caused by our plugin directly. However, we understand that it makes the experience much more difficult, and we want to help you get this sorted out.

Here’s what we’d suggest:
1. Go to your Instagram Account Center (you can find it in the Instagram app under Settings > Accounts Center > Your Information and Permissions) and make sure “Future activity” from third-party apps is toggled ON for your connected account.
2. After adjusting that setting, reconnect your account through the plugin; this should resolve the recurring disconnection issue.

If you continue to experience problems after making that change, we’d love to help you further. Please don’t hesitate to open a support ticket at smashballoon.com/support, and our team will work with you directly to get everything running smoothly.

We appreciate your patience and want to make sure the plugin works as seamlessly as it used to for you!

Hi @matthewstrange

Thank you for taking the time to share such a detailed and thoughtful review. We genuinely appreciate the time and care you put into outlining your experience, even though it was a frustrating one.

First, we’re sorry that the process ended up being so time-consuming and disappointing. That’s never the experience we want for our users.

Regarding syncing issues, you’re correct that limitations and occasional delays can occur with the free version due to API restrictions from Facebook. That said, the experience you described, especially the inconsistency, is something we continue to monitor and improve. We understand how that uncertainty can create unnecessary stress.

On the licensing and feature differences between plans, we hear your feedback clearly. Our intention is to provide scalable options depending on site needs, but we recognize that the way features are presented can sometimes feel confusing or overly segmented. Your comments about the “Pro Basic” expectations versus what was accessible are especially helpful. Clarity around feature access and plan comparisons is something we are actively working to refine.

We also appreciate your candid feedback about the installation flow, naming structure, and website navigation. As a product team, it’s easy to become deeply familiar with our own systems, and your suggestion about outside UI testing is a fair and valuable one. Constructive feedback like this genuinely helps us identify blind spots and improve both product and purchasing experience.

Regarding support, we’re glad we were able to honor the refund promptly, but we regret that the earlier communication issues contributed to your frustration. That is not the standard we aim for, and we’re continuing to improve internal processes to prevent situations like that.

While it sounds like the plugin ultimately wasn’t the right fit for your specific use case, we do appreciate you acknowledging the functionality where it worked well. We’re constantly evolving the product, and feedback like yours directly informs those improvements.

Thank you again for sharing your experience so thoroughly. Even when critical, thoughtful feedback helps us grow, and we truly value that.

Kind regards,

Hi @satollo,

Thanks a lot for your report. This notice was introduced with WordPress 6.7, and we’ve recently released updates to improve how the text domain is loaded and address the _load_textdomain_just_in_time warning. Could you please confirm that you’re running the latest version of the plugin? The most recent versions include improvements specifically related to this notice.

If you’re already on the latest version and still seeing the message, would you mind reaching out to us via our support form here so we can take a closer look? Please include your system info / debug log in the message so we can review the environment details and share everything directly with our developers if needed.

We’ll be happy to investigate further and make sure this is fully resolved in an upcoming update if necessary.

Kind Regards,

Hi @ineews,

Thank you for the 5-star review, we really appreciate it! We’re glad you’re enjoying the plugin. If you ever need help with anything or have suggestions for improvements, our team is always here and happy to assist.

Kind Regards,