First establish the symptoms and scope
Record symptoms and establish the scope of the outage. Repair time depends on the cause. These steps help with initial diagnosis and deciding when to involve a maintainer.
Quick answer: the first three minutes
The first three minutes
- Private window and mobile data open the site outside your usual network and session.
- Error message write it down, each one points somewhere different.
- What changed in the last 24 hours: an update, plugin, DNS change, hosting or domain invoice.
If it loads elsewhere, the difference may involve DNS, a network or cache; record it rather than assuming everything else is fine. Write down the error message (500, 503, 502, "database connection", an expired certificate), it's the first thing anyone helping you will ask for. A recent change is a lead, not proof of the cause.
Don't: install more plugins in a hurry, rewrite configuration blindly, or delete anything. Making it worse is faster than fixing it.
Call immediately when: a live e-shop or booking system is down, you suspect a compromise, or a certificate expired during business hours. My website repair costs €100/hour, minimum one hour. I am available 24/7, including nights and weekends; the budget is confirmed before paid work.
1. Confirm whether the problem is on your end
Before you do anything, find out whether the site is really down for everyone, or just for you. The most common false alarm is your own connection or your browser cache.
Quick steps:
- Open the site in an incognito window (Ctrl+Shift+N), this reduces the influence of the previous session, not CDN caching or network faults.
- Try the site on mobile data instead of Wi-Fi.
- Enter the site's address into a tool like "is it down right now", it checks access from another location, not from every visitor.
Access from another network suggests a limited problem, not necessarily your computer. DNS, CDN, routing or another dependency may be involved; record the difference for the maintainer.
2. Read the error message
The error message isn't your enemy, it's a clue. It often lets you guess the cause quickly.
What each error suggests
- 500 Internal Server Error an error on the server or in the code, typically after a plugin update.
- 502 / 503 / 504 an upstream response problem, unavailable service or timeout.
- Secure connection error check certificate, hostname and device time.
- A white screen typically a PHP error in WordPress.
- Database connection error the site can't connect to the database.
For 502, 503 and 504, logs are needed to establish the cause. For a secure connection error (NET::ERR_CERT), also check the trust chain; expiry is only one possible cause.
Worked example: Two responses, different first steps
verified HTTP example
| Request | HTTP status | First diagnostic step |
|---|---|---|
| GET /missing | 404 | Check address and page existence |
| GET /error | 500 | Inspect error in server log |
| Problem scope | Still to determine | One URL or the whole site? |
The fixture returns these statuses intentionally. An HTTP code alone does not prove an outage’s cause.
3. Think about what changed
Start with recent changes, but also consider provider outages, capacity problems or incidents without a change on your side:
- An update to a plugin, theme, or system (WordPress, a Shoptet module).
- A code change or a settings tweak.
- An expired domain or hosting.
- Someone changed the DNS records.
If you know what changed right before the outage, the cause is often already on a plate in front of you.
4. What you can safely try yourself
Start with read-only checks. Cache changes and restoration can affect live operation:
- Clear the cache, both the website cache and the CDN (Cloudflare), if you use one.
- Check your payments, an expired domain or an unpaid hosting invoice are surprisingly common causes. Check your emails from the registrar.
- Backup restoration: preserve the current state and logs first. Test a copy separately and account for orders or data created after the backup. Restore production with the responsible maintainer; restoration can overwrite newer data.
What NOT to do: don't edit the theme code or the database unless you know exactly what you're doing. For a non-expert, a small outage can easily turn into a big problem.
5. When to call a specialist
Call when:
- The site is mission-critical (e-shop, bookings, leads) and every hour costs money.
- The error message points to the server, the database, or SSL and you don't know where to start.
- The site has been hacked or infected with malware (Google may drop it from the index).
- You've tried the basic steps and nothing helped.
With website repair, I first confirm availability and we agree on a paid diagnosis budget. Repair time depends on the cause and access. Requests can be sent anytime, but receiving one does not mean an immediate intervention.
How to prevent outages
Backups, tested restoration, monitoring and staged updates can reduce outage risk and duration, not eliminate them. Agree checks, response and ownership in website maintenance.
Worked example: An alert needs a next step
worksheet
| Step | Specific check | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Monitoring | Check / and /booking | Verify configuration |
| Notification | Test alert to administrator | Verify delivery |
| Backup | Record latest restorable version | To record |
| Recovery | Test booking on a site copy | Not performed |
Enabled monitoring is not proof of a delivered alert or a successful restore.
What to take away
- First establish whether the site is down for everyone: a private window and mobile data show a difference, not the cause.
- Write down the error message, the time and the latest changes; they are leads, not proof of the cause.
- Do not install plugins in a hurry, rewrite configuration blindly or delete anything.
- Restore a backup with the responsible maintainer, because it can overwrite newer data.
- Call immediately when a live e-shop or booking system is down, you suspect a compromise or a certificate has expired.
- Backups, tested restoration, monitoring and staged updates reduce the risk of an outage, they do not eliminate it.
Frequently asked questions
My website is down, what should I do first?
Compare access from different networks and devices. A difference helps establish scope but does not rule out a CDN or DNS fault. Record time, URL, error and recent known changes.
What does a 500 error mean?
The server could not fulfil the request because of an unexpected condition. The code alone does not establish a plugin, configuration or dependency fault; the maintainer needs logs and request time.
The site says "not secure", what now?
It may use ordinary HTTP or have a certificate, hostname or TLS configuration problem. Do not bypass warnings when signing in or paying. Send the exact message to the maintainer; repair duration needs diagnosis.
What does an urgent website fix cost?
My rate is €100/hour, minimum one hour, then actual minutes. Availability and budget are confirmed before paid diagnosis. Consultation costs €60/hour, minimum 30 minutes. Details on the emergency website help page.
How do I prevent outages?
Backups you have actually restored at least once, uptime monitoring, updates tested on a staging environment, and watching domain and certificate expiry. That's exactly what website care (pricing explained here) from €60 a month covers, the point of a retainer isn't that nothing breaks, but that responsibility and the response arrangement are agreed.
Conclusion
When your site goes down, stay calm: confirm the problem isn't on your end, read the error message, recall what changed, and try the safe steps. If you're not sure, or the outage is costing you money, get in touch, we will confirm availability and a paid diagnosis budget before starting.