One of the more frustrating things about blogging with WordPress is finding a plugin you think will do just what you need... only to find that it doesn't work. When things don't behave like you expect them to, it can be hard to know just where to start trouble-shooting. So here are some suggestions:

Is the plugin uploaded to the right place?

If you uploaded via FTP (rather than installing through the WP admin section), did you upload the plugin to the right directory? It should be in wp-content/plugins/PLUGIN-FILE.php or wp-content/plugins/PLUGIN-FOLDER/ If you have a plugin folder, check that *that* contains the .php files: if there's another folder before you get to any .php files, you've uploaded it incorrectly, so try it again.

If the folder or single .php file seems to be there,

Is the plugin activated?

Go to WP admin > Plugins > Installed, and make sure that you can see the plugin, and that it's activated. If it's not activated, activate it.

If it's there, and activated,

Do you need to do something else?

Some plugins work straight out of the box. Many do not. Some require you to add information to a settings page (probably under Settings in WP admin, but sometimes under Plugins or Tools). Some will require you to edit the theme itself. If your plugin has a readme file, read it - or check the "installation" and "faqs" tabs on the plugin's page in the plugin directory, or the developer's page if it's linked from your installed plugins list.

This is the most common cause of things "not working", so it's worth spending a little time checking you haven't missed something.

If you're sure you've done everything you need to and it still isn't working, or something that used to work just stopped,

Are you running the latest version, and will that work with your WP version?

Sometimes WP upgrades break plugins, and not all plugin developers are actively maintaining their work (maintaining something forever, for free, is a big ask). Check your plugin's page in the directory: just because it says it's compatible up to 2.7.1 doesn't mean it won't work with 2.8 - but if it says it's compatible up to 2.5, it may not be being actively maintained anymore, and you might like to look for an alternative.

Many developers, of course, *are* actively maintaining their work, but if you're not using the latest version of the plugin, it won't work with the latest version of WordPress. So if you're getting a message to upgrade on in your plugin admin, do so.

And if everything is up to date but things still aren't right,

Is the plugin conflicting with something else?

If you just installed plugin B and plugin A suddenly stopped working, that could mean that the two don't play well together. It's not that common, but it does happen. So disable plugin B and see if A starts working again.

Alternatively, if you're sure you installed B correctly, but it just doesn't work, it's worth disabling other plugins one by one and seeing if that fixes things. At least then you'll know where the conflict is and can make an informed decision about which plugin to stick with and which to dump.

And if it's none of the above,

Ask for help!

The WordPress plugins directory often has helpful support forum threads linked from plugin pages: chances are if you have a problem, someone else has it too, and someone *else* has a fix. If not, start your own support thread - and don't forget to tag it with the plugin name.

Alternatively, many developers offer some form of support for their work. It's important to remember that you're getting a free product, so be nice when asking for help (clicking the "donate" button when you've gotten help is a good idea too).

And if all of the above fails drop me a line or leave me a comment and I'll do my best to help.

Tags: plugins, troubleshooting, WordPress

Posted by Sue on July 8, 2009 in Plugins, WordPress.