Common Issues & Fixes

This guide covers the most frequently reported issues across all Sera plugins and their solutions.

Installation Issues

White Screen After Activation

Cause: PHP version mismatch or memory limit exceeded.

Fix:

1. Verify your PHP version is 8.0+ (check with your host)
2. Increase PHP memory limit to at least 256MB
3. If you cannot access wp-admin, rename the plugin folder via FTP to deactivate it

"Plugin could not be activated because it triggered a fatal error"

Cause: Missing PHP extension or incompatible WordPress version.

Fix:

1. Check that your WordPress version is 6.0+
2. Ensure required PHP extensions are installed (json, mbstring, curl, openssl)
3. Check the error message for specific details

Sera Hub Not Detecting Spoke Plugins

Cause: Sera Core was not activated before the spoke plugin, or the spoke plugin version is incompatible.

Fix:

1. Deactivate all spoke plugins
2. Verify Sera Core is activated
3. Reactivate spoke plugins one at a time
4. Check that all plugins are the same major version

License Issues

"License key is invalid"

Cause: Typo in the license key, or the key belongs to a different product.

Fix:

1. Copy the license key directly from your sera.guru account (avoid manual typing)
2. Verify the key matches the plugin you are activating
3. Check that your subscription has not expired

"Maximum activations reached"

Cause: Your license has been activated on the maximum number of sites allowed.

Fix:

1. Log into sera.guru and go to Account > License Keys
2. Deactivate the license on a site you no longer use
3. Or upgrade to a higher tier with more site activations

Update Issues

Auto-Updates Not Working

Cause: License expired, server cannot reach sera.guru, or WordPress cron is disabled.

Fix:

1. Verify your license is active in Sera > License
2. Check that your server can reach sera.guru (test with curl https://sera.guru/api/update/check)
3. Verify WP-Cron is working (check with Sera Pulse if installed)
4. Try a manual update check from Sera > License > Check for Updates

Update Fails with "Download failed"

Cause: Server cannot write to the plugins directory, or the download timed out.

Fix:

1. Check file permissions on /wp-content/plugins/ (should be 755)
2. Increase PHP max_execution_time to 300
3. Try updating via FTP by uploading the new plugin zip manually

Performance Issues

Site Slowed Down After Installing Sera

Cause: Multiple Sera plugins running initial scans or building caches.

Fix:

1. Wait for initial scans to complete (Sentinel malware scan, Pulse health check, AI Sitemap rebuild)
2. These are one-time operations that run after installation
3. After initial setup, Sera plugins have minimal performance impact
4. If slowness persists, check Sera > Pulse for specific bottlenecks