Unable to open second language on backend

This thread is resolved. Here is a description of the problem and solution.

Problem:
The client was experiencing an HTTP ERROR 500 when trying to switch to the French language in the Admin dashboard.
Solution:
We identified that the issue was related to a known problem with the Kadence Blocks and Kadence Blocks Pro plugins. We provided a workaround that involves the following steps:
1. Temporarily deactivate the Kadence Blocks and Kadence Blocks Pro plugins.
2. Activate WPML String Translation.
3. Delete the problematic strings as described in the errata page: https://wpml.org/errata/kadence-pro-plugin-sprintf-too-few-arguments/.
After applying this workaround on a staging site, the issue was resolved, and we advised the client to test it on their staging site before applying it to the live site.

Please note that this solution might be outdated or not applicable to your case. If the issue persists, we highly recommend checking the related 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.

This is the technical support forum for WPML - the multilingual WordPress plugin.

Everyone can read, but only WPML clients can post here. WPML team is replying on the forum 6 days per week, 22 hours per day.

Tagged: Known issue

This topic contains 22 replies, has 2 voices.

Last updated by Lauren 9 months ago.

Assisted by: Lauren.

Author	Posts
February 28, 2024 at 8:01 pm #15355722
michelR-20	When I try to switch to 2nd language (French) in the Admin dashboard I get the following error: This page isn’t workingamacorprintz.com is currently unable to handle this request. HTTP ERROR 500
February 28, 2024 at 9:03 pm #15355777
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	I would like to request temporary access (wp-admin and FTP) to your site to take better look at the issue. You will find the needed fields for this below the comment area when you log in to leave your next reply. The information you will enter is private which means only you and I can see and have access to it. Our Debugging Procedures I will be checking various settings in the backend to see if the issue can be resolved. Although I won't be making changes that affect the live site, it is still good practice to backup the site before providing us access. In the event that we do need to debug the site further, I will duplicate the site and work in a separate, local development environment to avoid affecting the live site. Privacy and Security Policy We have strict policies regarding privacy and access to your information. Please see: https://wpml.org/purchase/support-policy/privacy-and-security-when-providing-debug-information-for-support/ IMPORTANT - Please make a backup of site files and database before providing us access. - If you do not see the wp-admin/FTP fields this means your post & website login details will be made PUBLIC. DO NOT post your website details unless you see the required wp-admin/FTP fields. If you do not, please ask me to enable the private box. The private box looks like this: hidden link
March 1, 2024 at 6:19 pm #15364520
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	Thanks for sending credentials. In some cirumstandes I was getting the error when accessing any language of the backend. To rule out the issue of a conflict, we need to test your site in minimal settings, meaning only WPML plugins active with a default theme. Do you have a staging system where we can test that? if not, just let me know and I'll send instructions for how to get a copy of your site where we can test this.
March 1, 2024 at 6:23 pm #15364536
michelR-20	Hi, No I don't have a staging site set-up. Please send me instructions to create one. Thx
March 1, 2024 at 8:43 pm #15364955
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	Please see my previous private reply and let me know once the migration is completed.
March 4, 2024 at 7:47 pm #15371864
michelR-20	Hi Lauren, I migrated the site but I can't see it. Can you?
March 4, 2024 at 7:50 pm #15371865
michelR-20	Also I opened a ticket with my website service provider InMotion and the provided this report by enabling PHP debugging in my php.ini file, the generic 500 displays this specific error: Fatal error: Uncaught ValueError: Unknown format specifier "t" in /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/translations-file-scan/wpml-st-translations-file-registration.php:100 Stack trace: #0 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/translations-file-scan/wpml-st-translations-file-registration.php(100): sprintf('/home/wordpress…', 'en_US') #1 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/translations-file-scan/wpml-st-translations-file-registration.php(65): WPML_ST_Translations_File_Registration->save_file_info('%TEXTDOMAIN%', '%TEXTDOMAIN%', '/home/wordpress…') #2 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/class-wp-hook.php(326): WPML_ST_Translations_File_Registration->cached_save_mo_file_info(false, '%TEXTDOMAIN%', '/home/wordpress…') #3 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/plugin.php(205): WP_Hook->apply_filters(false, Array) #4 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/l10n.php(755): apply_filters('override_load_t…', false, '%TEXTDOMAIN%', '/home/wordpress…', NULL) #5 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/MO/JustInTime/MO.php(90): load_textdomain('%TEXTDOMAIN%', '/home/wordpress…') #6 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/sitepress-multilingual-cms/vendor/wpml/collect/src/Illuminate/Support/Collection.php(228): WPML\ST\MO\JustInTime\MO->WPML\ST\MO\JustInTime\{closure}('/home/wordpress…', 0) #7 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/MO/JustInTime/MO.php(89): WPML\Collect\Support\Collection->each(Object(Closure)) #8 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/MO/JustInTime/MO.php(71): WPML\ST\MO\JustInTime\MO->loadTextDomain() #9 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/MO/JustInTime/MO.php(48): WPML\ST\MO\JustInTime\MO->load() #10 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/l10n.php(186): WPML\ST\MO\JustInTime\MO->translate('License Key') #11 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/l10n.php(297): translate('License Key', '%TEXTDOMAIN%') #12 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/kadence-blocks/vendor/vendor-prefixed/stellarwp/uplink/src/Uplink/Admin/License_Field.php(84): __('License Key', '%TEXTDOMAIN%') #13 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/kadence-blocks/vendor/vendor-prefixed/stellarwp/uplink/src/Uplink/Admin/Provider.php(106): KadenceWP\KadenceBlocks\StellarWP\Uplink\Admin\License_Field->register_settings() #14 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/class-wp-hook.php(322): KadenceWP\KadenceBlocks\StellarWP\Uplink\Admin\Provider->admin_init() #15 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/class-wp-hook.php(348): WP_Hook->apply_filters(NULL, Array) #16 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-includes/plugin.php(517): WP_Hook->do_action(Array) #17 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-admin/admin.php(175): do_action('admin_init') #18 /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-admin/index.php(10): require_once('/home/wordpress…') #19 {main} thrown in /home/wordpress/doc_root/wp-content/plugins/wpml-string-translation/classes/translations-file-scan/wpml-st-translations-file-registration.php on line 100
March 5, 2024 at 4:14 pm #15375486
michelR-20	Hello, Are you still working on this ticket?
March 5, 2024 at 8:22 pm #15376486
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	Thanks for your patience while I was troubleshooting. I am able to see the copy of your site and when I disabled non WPML plugins and switch to a default theme, there is no problem switching to French. You can login and see it working here: hidden link Feel free to enable plugins again and see if the issue returns on the test site, and if so we can troubleshoot with the conflicting plugin.
March 5, 2024 at 8:24 pm #15376491
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	In regards to the error with String Translation, please try deactivating and deleting the String Translation plugin on your live site. Then, go to your dashboard and go to Plugins -> Add New -> Commercial tab and from there, try installing a new copy of String Translation. Then check to see if the error is still showing.
March 5, 2024 at 8:42 pm #15376507
michelR-20	Hmm When I was testing the site I activated the "User Registration" plugin. Can you deactivate it please?
March 5, 2024 at 8:45 pm #15376508
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	I renamed the plugin to deactivate it.
March 5, 2024 at 8:54 pm #15376527
michelR-20	That plugin is still causing a redirect of wp-admin to my-account. Could disable all plug-ins? thx
March 6, 2024 at 1:38 pm #15379674
michelR-20	Ya I still can't login to the test site. I am getting redirected: hidden link Could you disable all the plugins? Thx
March 6, 2024 at 2:33 pm #15380044
Lauren Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: America/New_York (GMT-05:00)	I have renamed the plugins folder again to disable all plugins. Keep in mind that there is FTP information in the ticket reply with the steps to migrate the site, so you are welcome to access via FTP and rename/disable plugins as needed. Please let me know if you find one that returns the issue.