Connection Issues

Fresh

Site Won't Connect

Checklist

1. MainWP Child plugin installed and activated on the child site
2. Unique Security ID matches between Dashboard and child (if used)
3. OpenSSL enabled on both servers (php -m | grep openssl)
4. cURL enabled on Dashboard server (php -m | grep curl)
5. No firewall blocking Dashboard → Child HTTP requests
6. No WAF rules blocking MainWP POST requests (Cloudflare, Sucuri, Wordfence)
7. SSL valid on both Dashboard and child site

Common Causes

Cause	Symptom	Fix
Child plugin not active	"MainWP Child not detected"	Activate the plugin on the child site
Security ID mismatch	"Unauthorized"	Reset Unique Security ID on both sides
Firewall blocking	Timeout errors	Whitelist Dashboard IP in child site firewall
Cloudflare WAF	403 errors	Create WAF rule to allow Dashboard IP
.htaccess blocking	403 or 500 errors	Check for IP-blocking rules in .htaccess
Plugin conflict	Connection drops	Deactivate other plugins, test, reactivate one by one
Wrong URL	"Site not found"	Verify URL is correct (with or without www, https)
Hosting limits	Random disconnects	Upgrade hosting or increase resource limits

Cloudflare Configuration

If child sites are behind Cloudflare:

Option 1: IP Whitelist (Recommended)

1. Get your Dashboard server IP
2. Cloudflare → Security → WAF → Tools → IP Access Rules
3. Add Dashboard IP with action "Allow"

Option 2: Page Rule

1. Cloudflare → Rules → Page Rules
2. URL: *example.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php*
3. Settings: Security Level = Essentially Off, Disable Security

Option 3: Firewall Rule

(http.request.uri.path contains "/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php" and ip.src eq YOUR_DASHBOARD_IP)

Action: Allow

Wordfence Configuration

If Wordfence is blocking MainWP:

1. Wordfence → Firewall → Manage Firewall
2. Whitelisted IPs → Add Dashboard server IP
3. Save Changes

Security Plugin Conflicts

Plugin	Issue	Fix
Wordfence	Blocks POST requests	Whitelist Dashboard IP
iThemes Security	Rate limiting	Whitelist Dashboard IP in Lockout settings
All In One WP Security	Firewall blocks	Add Dashboard IP to whitelist
Sucuri	WAF blocks	Whitelist in Sucuri dashboard
Shield Security	Rate limiting	Add exception for MainWP

Reconnection Steps

If a previously connected site loses connection:

1. Try Sync first — Dashboard → Sites → site → Sync
2. If sync fails, try Reconnect — Dashboard → Sites → site → Reconnect
3. If reconnect fails, remove and re-add the site
4. If re-add fails, check all items in the checklist above

Via API

# Check site connection status
curl -u "admin:xxxx" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"input":{"site_id": 123}}' \
  "https://your-dashboard.com/wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/mainwp/get-site-v1/run"

# Reconnect a site
curl -X POST -u "admin:xxxx" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"input":{"site_id": 123}}' \
  "https://your-dashboard.com/wp-json/wp-abilities/v1/abilities/mainwp/reconnect-site-v1/run"

Timeout Issues

Setting	Where	Recommended
max_execution_time	php.ini on Dashboard	300
default_socket_timeout	php.ini on Dashboard	300
cURL timeout	MainWP Settings	300
Proxy timeout	Nginx/Apache on child	300
Cloudflare timeout	Cloudflare dashboard	300 (Enterprise only)

Still Not Working?

1. Enable debug logging on both Dashboard and child
2. Check wp-content/debug.log for error details
3. Test direct connectivity:

   # From Dashboard server
   curl -I https://child-site.com
   curl -I https://child-site.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php

4. Contact MainWP support with the debug logs