Blank WPML Setup Page – Troubleshooting After Installation

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

Problem:
The client installed WPML and registered their site, but the WPML setup page was blank. Despite following troubleshooting steps like adjusting wp-config, deactivating caching plugins, and reinstalling everything, the issue persisted. No errors were visible in the Chrome developer console.
Solution:
The client switched from PHP 8.2 to 8.1, which resolved the problem and the WPML setup page reappeared. Additionally, we recommended checking the debug.log for potential issues and provided a link to a known issue that might be relevant: https://wpml.org/errata/custom-database-prefix-and-having-a-30-languages-can-cause-a-database-error-when-visiting-translation-dashboard/. We advised the client to back up their database before attempting any fixes suggested in the link.

If this solution does not apply to your case, or if it seems outdated, we highly recommend checking related known issues at https://wpml.org/known-issues/, verifying the version of the permanent fix, and confirming that you have installed the latest versions of themes and plugins. If issues persist, please open a new support ticket at our support forum.

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Tagged: Exception

This topic contains 4 replies, has 0 voices.

Last updated by Andrey 2 months, 1 week ago.

Assisted by: Andrey.

Author	Posts
June 13, 2025 at 11:44 am #17133135
andreac-36	Background of the issue: I installed WPML and registered the site, but when I go to the setup page, it's blank. I've read the troubleshooting posts on your blog and followed the procedure via the wp-config, but no issues or errors are showing up in the Chrome developer console. The memory is already correctly set, and I've tried deactivating the caching plugins, reinstalling everything, and even deregistering the site, but the issue still persists. Link to a page where the issue can be seen: hidden link Symptoms: The WPML setup page is blank, and no issues or errors are showing up in the Chrome developer console. Questions: Why is the WPML setup page blank despite following troubleshooting steps? What additional steps can I take to resolve the blank setup page issue?
June 14, 2025 at 8:50 am #17135157
Andrey WPML Supporter since 06/2013 Languages: English (English ) Russian (Русский ) Timezone: Europe/Kyiv (GMT+03:00)	Thank you for contacting WPML support. Did I understand correctly that you have enabled WordPress debugging, but the debug.log file is not being created? Just to be sure, here are the correct steps to enable debugging and logging: 1. Open your wp-config.php file and find this line: define('WP_DEBUG', false); Change it to: define('WP_DEBUG', true); 2. To enable logging errors to a file, add this line right after it: define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true); This will save any PHP errors and warnings to a debug.log file located in the /wp-content/ directory. https://wpml.org/documentation/support/debugging-wpml/ If you have just activated WPML and suspect there’s an issue with the setup, you may want to reset WPML and reconfigure it: 1. Go to WPML → Support and click the Troubleshooting link. 2. In the Reset section at the bottom of the page, check I am about to reset all translation and language data, then click Reset and deactivate WPML. https://wpml.org/documentation/getting-started-guide/language-setup/deleting-languages-and-plugin-data-by-doing-a-wpml-reset-on-your-site/#step-3-do-the-wpml-reset Please backup your database before making any changes.
June 16, 2025 at 2:16 pm #17139448
andreac-36	hi, i try to reset and to clean everything it is the debug.log. thanks
June 16, 2025 at 2:34 pm #17139481
Andrey WPML Supporter since 06/2013 Languages: English (English ) Russian (Русский ) Timezone: Europe/Kyiv (GMT+03:00)	Thank you for your feedback and for providing the log. The debug.log indicates that this could be related to the following issue: https://wpml.org/errata/custom-database-prefix-and-having-a-30-languages-can-cause-a-database-error-when-visiting-translation-dashboard/ Could you please try the workaround from the link above and let me know how it goes? Please ensure that you back up your database first.
June 16, 2025 at 5:10 pm #17140037
andreac-36	Hi, in the end the issue was just the PHP version. I remembered that I had similar problems with WooCommerce on another site using PHP 8.2, so I switched to 8.1 and the configuration reappeared. Are there any sensitive data in the log file that could make my site vulnerable? If so, I’d kindly ask you to hide the chat or those specific messages. Thanks so much for the support, as always.
June 16, 2025 at 7:13 pm #17140212
Andrey WPML Supporter since 06/2013 Languages: English (English ) Russian (Русский ) Timezone: Europe/Kyiv (GMT+03:00)	I am glad that the issue was resolved. It should not be, but I have removed it just in case. Have a nice week!