[Resolved] trying to update the site goes to timeout due to long execution

Problem:
The client was experiencing timeouts when trying to save products on their website. After disabling plugins one by one, they identified that WPML was causing the issue.

Solution:
First, we recommended disabling Cloudflare temporarily and enabling PHP error logging to share the error logs. We provided resources on how to enable error logs:

• Debugging WPML
• WordPress Logs on Cloudways
• Checking PHP Error Logs in WordPress

After analyzing the logs, we found database errors related to W3 Total Cache plugin interfering with database queries. We suggested disabling W3 Total Cache temporarily, clearing the DB cache, and adding "WP_ADMIN" in the "Reject constants" to prevent caching of admin requests.

Additionally, our second tier support identified a small database corruption. The client needed to remove the postmeta value with the key name "_icl_lang_duplicate_of" where the meta value was the post ID causing the issue. The SQL query provided was:

DELETE FROM `wp_postmeta` WHERE `meta_key` = '_icl_lang_duplicate_of' AND `meta_value` = '22037';

It was important to adjust the table prefix to match the client's site database prefix and to make a database backup before executing the query.

We also provided information on the tools and techniques used for debugging, including the use of a local server stack, Xdebug, and an IDE for step debugging.

If the solution provided here is not relevant due to being outdated or not applicable to your case, we highly recommend checking related known issues at WPML Known Issues, verifying the version of the permanent fix, and confirming that you have installed the latest versions of themes and plugins. If you still need assistance, please open a new support ticket in the WPML support forum.