Internal Server Errors

[robbins]

A couple of months ago one of my sites changed servers at Siteground. Since then I've been getting an abundance of internal server errors. They are random and can't be reproduced at will. Sometimes 5 or 6 a day and sometimes 5 or 6 times a week. Very random. Very strange. Anyone else had this problem with Mambo?

[miguel]

To be honest, it happened once to me too when installing Mambo, right after the installation was complete. Howerver, after refereshing the page, the error never ocurred again - I was unable to reproduce it. This type of error sometimes appears due to incorrect ownership or permissions of the executed php file, since SG servers run phpSuExec, which has enforces limitations on these attributes (the file must be owned by the user, under whose account it runs, and must not have 777 permissions).

[ralkana]

I continue to get exactly the same thing. At one stage, I wasn't able to edit any menu items in my Mambo site due to continual internal server errors. Now they just seem to pop up a random intervals. Just enough to annoy me

They have decreased, but I still get them. A refresh usually works but sometimes not for a few days. Weird.

Is there anything I can do or is it scary server admin stuff?

[miguel]

You can post a support ticket on the topic. Provide the path to your Mambo installation and ask our support to make sure that all permissions and ownership is ok within that path.

[ralkana]

Thanks Miguel, when it happens again, I'll do just that.

To be honest I thought it'd be all too hard, especially if I couldn't duplicate it.

[neednam]

This happens with phpbb as well. Never the same time or place and refreshing always fixes it. I have never really seen it as an issue and have chalked it up to server load.

[Tom]

hm, it is really strange. It sounds like a permission problem, but then it really doesn't sound like one.. if you get it at random stages..

I can think of 2 possible reasons:

1. SuExec - Our servers are running in a SuExec mode, and calling a file with permissions set to more than 755 will produce error 500 (Internal Server Error)
2. The script called uses more memory than it is allowed to in php.ini

As option 1 does not seem to be right (if it is permissions, you will get ISE every time, not just once in a while), I suppose it can be option 2. I will consult with our admin's department tomorrow and see if we can raise the memory limit a bit, and then get back here to see if there is a result....

[ralkana]

I got another 500 error the other day so I created a ticket.

Support responded and fixed the permissions within six minutes! Wow!

It all went well then for a while and I got another one (500 error). Once I refresh though, it all works so I'll probably just soldier on.

I did check my administrator settings though and I had the File Creation settings set to 775. I've changed it to 755 to see if that helps....

[robbins]

Thanks for all the replies. As most have already stated, a refresh normally does the trick. Rarely does it happen consecutively. It's more an annoyance that it happens as it degrades the "expected" quality of the site ... especially if it happens too often.

It doesn't bother myself that much but I'm more concerned for any infrequent visitors that happen upon it and leave without the knowledge that a refresh would have brought them the page they were seeking!

I will see if I can document the exact pages and links when it happens and then let you more knowledgeable PHP'ers take a look!

[neilsborg]

Originally Posted by robbins

Since then I've been getting an abundance of internal server errors. They are random and can't be reproduced at will. Sometimes 5 or 6 a day and sometimes 5 or 6 times a week. Very random. Very strange. Anyone else had this problem with Mambo?

I am experiencing the same problem (but more often) with a small joomla 1.0.11 site. Sometimes the site is very fast and very stable. Sometimes it is slow and unstable (500 error pages). And it is not due to heavily traffic on the site because it can happen when I am the only one logged in as an admin.

[Philippe]

Originally Posted by neilsborg

I am experiencing the same problem (but more often) with a small joomla 1.0.11 site. Sometimes the site is very fast and very stable. Sometimes it is slow and unstable (500 error pages). And it is not due to heavily traffic on the site because it can happen when I am the only one logged in as an admin.

Same with us!
Since we were moved to a new server, joomla became very unstable, we are getting 500 error pages very often... This is very annoying! We've tried to fix it, but I'm starting to think only admins @ siteground can help on this

[neilsborg]

Hi Philippe,

I have already posted 2 or 3 tickets regarding this issue to the technical service and they always say that everything is normal. (ie they can't duplicate the error, or they are doing back-ups on my server etc...). Nothing very convincing at this moment.

Thanks

[tuckerm]

Originally Posted by robbins

A couple of months ago one of my sites changed servers at Siteground. Since then I've been getting an abundance of internal server errors. They are random and can't be reproduced at will. Sometimes 5 or 6 a day and sometimes 5 or 6 times a week. Very random. Very strange. Anyone else had this problem with Mambo?

I need to throw in my 2 cents. I was receiving them A LOT with joomla. To the point I could hardly work on the site. I did as suggested and changed the file permissions across the site to 755 as some were 777. It happens a lot less, however still frequent enough.

I can handle it, but the POINT IS users and customers to our sites. They get jacked off with this and would lose interest. Imagine trying to buy a product online and you kept getting 500's! You'd go elsewhere.

Siteground, please deeply look into this. As WE are the ones losing out on this whether it be potential sales, or just memberships.

[Silvia]

Hello All,

Our SiteGround System Administrators and Tech Support Team Members have looked deeply into the problem that all of you experience. They have tried to recreate the error, unfortunately without any success. They also made an investigation about all that has complained of the error - the servers they are hosted on, the accounts and their size, and much more. However, they could not find anything that might result as a problem.

Unfortunately, the error appears on random basis and our System Administrators were not able to recreate it. That is why, I would like to ask you, next time when the 503 error shows, to send a ticket to the Tech Support Team with the exact time and date of the error. Thus they might be able to get more information about it.

We appreciate your assistance and understanding!