There are few situations more alarming than being locked out of your own WordPress admin dashboard. If you've encountered a message reading "Sad, y'all are not allowed to access this page" when trying to log in, y'all know the feeling start hand.

Fortunately, there are several solutions at your disposal for troubleshooting this mistake. With a fiddling patience, y'all can clear up the mistake and go back to managing your WordPress site in no fourth dimension.

In this mail service, we'll dig into the "Lamentable, you are not immune to admission this page" error and what causes information technology to occur. So we'll walk y'all through the many potential solutions to help you find the 1 that addresses your specific state of affairs.

Allow's bound right in!

Understanding the "Pitiful, You Are Non Allowed to Access This Page" Error

Although nosotros're referring to it as an "error" for the purposes of this postal service, the "Sorry, you are non allowed to access this folio" bulletin in WordPress is meant to be a helpful security measure.

Ultimately, seeing this notification simply means at that place's a permissions setting that's blocking you from a certain area.

This becomes a trouble when you're locked out of a office of your site that you should accept permission to enter which, equally an Administrator, is anywhere on the backend. When this situation arises, it is often following a recent update to a theme, plugin, or WordPress core.

You may see the "Sorry, yous are non allowed to access this page" message for a variety of reasons. Information technology might be that WordPress doesn't recognize you as an Administrator. In other situations, the information contained in your site'due south cadre code or in a theme or plugin may not friction match what's in your database.

Additional causes include incorrect data in your wp-config.php file or a site that'south running an outdated version of PHP. Whatever the source, this error may prevent you from accessing the entire admin area or just a portion of it.

Since it's probable that you will non be able to access key settings via the dashboard, you'll need to use File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or phpMyAdmin to resolve this issue. Make sure to back up your site and brush up on using these platforms earlier you lot dive into the troubleshooting process.

The most frustrating thing about encountering the "Sorry, you are non allowed to access this page" notification is that it tin be hard to pin down which of its causes are at play. Fortunately, there are many solutions you lot can test out to find the root of the trouble.

How to Fix the "Sorry, Yous Are Non Allowed to Access This Page" Error in WordPress (11 Potential Solutions)

Due to its many possible causes, the "Pitiful, you are not allowed to admission this folio" fault takes quite a chip of patience to resolve. This long listing of solutions may be intimidating merely information technology also covers a variety of situations to help you find the right i for your site.

1. Restore a Previous Version of Your Site

The simplest and ofttimes the fastest manner to become back into your WordPress dashboard is to restore your site to an earlier version. A recent modify, such as an update, might exist the cause of the error yous're seeing. Undoing your latest modification should enable you to access your site once more.

Kinsta clients accept information technology easy in this regard. You tin can restore a WordPress fill-in in your hosting business relationship with a single click:

Restoring a backup in MyKinsta
Restoring a backup in MyKinsta

The drawback to this solution is that you may lose your recent changes and will have to discover a way to accomplish your goals without causing the same mistake over again.

For this reason, you may want to restore your backup to a staging site instead. You tin then test unlike modifications to determine what caused the trouble. After uncovering the root of the upshot, you can disengage the troublesome modify to regain admission to your site.

2. Disable All of Your Plugins

A specific change that may exist causing the "Sorry, y'all are not allowed to admission this page" message on your site is the recent add-on or upgrade of a plugin. If y'all suspect that this is the case, your best grade of action is to disable your plugins one past one.

In the event that you disable a plugin and the bulletin goes away, you've constitute the source of the problem. You can then troubleshoot the outcome with that plugin (or do without information technology, if it's not crucial to your site's functionality).

Of course, if you lot're locked out of your dashboard entirely, this process gets a fiddling tricky. You'll need to access your site using SFTP via a customer such as FileZilla. In one case you've done so, navigate to wp-content and find the sub-directory labeled plugins:

Disable all plugins by renaming the folder
Disable all plugins by renaming the folder

Enter this folder, and then rename your virtually recently-added plugin to something like "plugin-name_old". Get back to your site and check to run into if the fault is resolved. If non, change the plugin's name back and repeat the process with the next i.

3. Actuate a Default Theme

However another potential cause of this mistake is that you've recently updated or installed a theme. Your best bet for resolving this problem is to activate a default WordPress theme such equally Twenty Twenty or Twenty Nineteen.

To do so without admission to your admin area, you'll demand to apply FTP once more. Connect to your server with FileZilla and so navigate to wp-content > themes:

Disable your current theme by renaming the folder
Disable your current theme past renaming the folder

The residual of the process is fairly like to the i described higher up for disabling your plugins.

Rename the folder for your active theme, and so return to your site and log in. Y'all should see a notification telling you lot that the active theme is broken, and a default theme has been reactivated.

Then you lot tin troubleshoot the theme. Your site should at least be accessible, albeit with the incorrect theme activated.

4. Brand Certain You lot're an Administrator

Another possibility is that your user function has been inadvertently inverse and you are no longer listed as an Ambassador. This is a mutual problem with multisite installations. To determine if this is the example, you lot'll need to admission phpMyAdmin and look for the wp_users tabular array:

The WP users table
The wp_users tabular array in phpMyAdmin

Find your username and note your ID. Then, navigate to the wp_usermeta table and discover the wp_capabilties row:

The wp_usermeta table in phpMyAdmin
The wp_usermeta table in phpMyAdmin

If you have Ambassador privileges, the meta_value in this row will read:

a:1:{s:13:"administrator";due south:1:"ane";}

If your wp_usermeta table says something else, you can click on the Edit link and change it. Alternatively, you can also create an entirely new Ambassador account from phpMyAdmin. To take this route, render to the wp_users tabular array and click on the Insert tab at the top of the table:

Change user information in wp_users table
Change user information in wp_users table

And then, fill in the fields with your new user data. Once you're done, click on the Go button and your new user should appear in the table. Next, yous'll need to make a note of the ID for this account and head back to the wp_usermeta tabular array.

Click on Insert once more, and fill in the resulting fields with the following information:

  • Unmeta_id: Leave this field blank; it will be filled in automatically for you.
  • User_id: Use the ID from the WP Users tabular array.
  • Meta_key: Set this value every bit "wp_capabilities".
  • Meta_value: Add the line mentioned above.

You should at present exist able to use your new credentials to log in to your WordPress admin area. Delete your quondam account or change its user part dorsum to Ambassador from the dashboard and delete the new i instead.

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5. Check Your Fault Log to Pinpoint the Crusade

A smart fashion to streamline troubleshooting whatsoever problem on your site is to check your server's mistake log. This may indicate plugin or theme compatibility issues, database errors, or problems with your site'south files that are causing the "Lamentable, yous are not immune to access this folio" message to appear.

How you view your server's error log will vary depending on who your hosting provider is. For Kinsta customers, this process is as uncomplicated as logging into your MyKinsta dashboard. At that place, select the site that's experiencing problems and navigate to Logs:

MyKinsta logs tab
MyKinsta logs tab

Choose error.log from the drib-down menu. If you see one of the causes of the alert in your log, and so you tin can go almost fixing it. Otherwise, you'll demand to try another solution on this list.

6. Ensure That Your Database Prefix Is Right

Every MySQL database has a prefix. If this i listed in your website's files doesn't match the 1 listed in phpMyAdmin, then y'all may see the "Pitiful, you are non allowed to admission this page" message.

This can occur when migrating your site, including if yous've used a local staging site for development and are at present moving to a live server. To check for discrepancies, you'll demand to access your wp-config.php file.

Yous can practise this via SFTP every bit we've described in previous solutions. Once y'all're in your wp-config.php file, you should await for your database'southward prefix (the default is "wp_"):

Database prefix
Database prefix

So, log in to phpMyAdmin and await at the prefixes for your database'south tables. They should match the ones listed in your wp-config.php file, like in the image below:

Prefixes should match those in your wp-config.php file
Prefixes should match those in your wp-config.php file

If they don't match the prefix in your wp-config.php file, then you'll need to edit it then that they do.

seven. Look for Changes in Your wp-config.php File

On a similar note, you should also look for any changes to your WordPress configuration file. This is especially true if you were editing this file shortly before you received the "Deplorable, you are not immune to admission this page" message or if you suspect that your WordPress site has been hacked.

Yous tin can access your wp-config.php file using SFTP and look for anything that seems amiss. Notwithstanding, this process is much easier if you have some kind of file integrity monitoring or modify detection characteristic in identify.

8. Upgrade to the Latest Version of PHP

If your WordPress site is running an outdated version of PHP, this could be the source of your troubles. With that said, fifty-fifty if upgrading PHP doesn't solve this issue for you, it should better your site'south overall security and performance.

Before y'all start the upgrade process, create a backup of your site. You lot can do this manually or from your MyKinsta dashboard, even if you're locked out of your admin area. One time you've saved your backup, you'll want to examination to see whether your account is compatible with the latest version of PHP. 1 way to do this is with a WordPress staging site.

Bold that all goes well, you can run the update. Kinsta customers can easily do then by logging into the MyKinsta dashboard and navigating to the relevant site. So go to Tools > PHP Engine > Modify, and select the newest version from the drop-down menu:

How to upgrade PHP version in MyKinsta
How to upgrade PHP version in MyKinsta

If you're with some other provider, you may be able to follow a similar process via your own control panel. Information technology's recommended that you contact your web host for more information.

ix. Evaluate Your File Permissions

It's besides possible that your site'southward file permissions have been tampered with. In this instance, WordPress may consider you unauthorized to view certain areas of your site, even if you're still listed as an Administrator.

To check your site's file permissions, you'll need to use SFTP to access your server. Once you're logged in, enter the public_html directory and bulk-select wp-admin, wp-content, and wp -includes. Right-click on these folders and choose File Permissions:

Checking file permissions
Checking file permissions

In the resulting window, make sure the following options are selected:

  • The Numeric Value is fix to 755.
  • Recurse into subdirectories is checked.
  • Apply to directories simply is selected.

Click on OK when you're done. And so, highlight all the other files in public_html, right-click on them, and select File Permissions again:

Setting new file permissions
Setting new file permissions

This fourth dimension, set the options in the permissions window to the following:

  • The Numeric Value should be 644.
  • Recurse into subdirectories should still exist checked.
  • Apply to files just should be selected.

Then, return to your site to see if this solves the problem and the "Sorry, you are not allowed to access this page" message is gone.

10. Create a New .htaccess File

If none of the above strategies have worked, you may need to reset your .htaccess file. To exercise so, launch FTP and navigate to your public_html binder. You should see your .htaccess file there, only if you don't, follow instructions for showing hidden files in FileZilla.

Next, you'll need to rename your existing .htaccess file, similar to how we renamed plugin and theme files in earlier solutions. Something recognizable such as .htaccess_original or .htaccess_backup is ideal.

So, right-click on the file and select Download. Open the file in a text editor and supervene upon its contents with the following:

          #BEGIN WordPress  RewriteEngine On  RewriteBase /  RewriteRule ^index\.php$ - [L]  RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f  RewriteCOnd %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d  RewriteRule . /alphabetize.php [L]  #Terminate WordPress        

Rename this file .htaccess and upload it to your server. If this file was the source of the "Distressing, you are not allowed to admission this page" error, then it should now be stock-still.

eleven. Reset Your WordPress Site

In the worst-case scenario, there may be an installation issue. To fix it, yous'll have to reset your WordPress site. It's vital that you take a recent backup you can restore after this process is complete, as resetting your site volition cause you to lose all posts, pages, and user comments.

There are several methods for doing this, including via your MyKinsta dashboard, using a WordPress plugin, and past using WP-CLI (the WordPress command line). It's best to salve this route as a last resort, so yous don't risk losing your site's content.

Are you getting the awfully alarming *Sorry, You Are Not Allowed to Access This Page* message? Try 1 of these methods to go your admission back! 🙅‍♂️🔑 Click to Tweet

Summary

Being locked out of your admin dashboard in WordPress is nerve-wracking, to say the least. Apace finding the right solution to the "Pitiful, yous are non immune to access this page" error is vital to both your site and your peace of mind.

In this postal service, nosotros covered a broad range of possible causes and fixes for this result. Let's recap them quickly:

  1. Restore a previous version of your site.
  2. Disable all of your plugins.
  3. Activate a default theme.
  4. Make sure yous're an administrator.
  5. Check your error log to pinpoint the cause.
  6. Ensure that your database prefix is correct.
  7. Look for changes in your wp-config.php file.
  8. Upgrade to the latest version of php.
  9. Evaluate your file permissions.
  10. Create a new .htaccess file.
  11. Reset your WordPress site.

Happy fixing!


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