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[Waiting for user feedback] WPML writes in htaccess, site breaks

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Supporter timezone: Asia/Jerusalem (GMT+02:00)

This topic contains 1 replies, has 0 voices.

Last updated by Itamar 3 days, 9 hours ago.

Assisted by: Itamar.

Author Posts
December 7, 2025 at 3:38 pm #17642043

gerdC-2

Good day, for the last 3 weeks I experienced suddenly that WPML overwrites the htaccess. My server host support told me this: The error is caused by a plugin that modifies the entries in the .htaccess file. I have now reset these entries back to our standard configuration.
Due to this modification, a conflict occurs in the rewrite rules. It is defined that WordPress is installed in a subdirectory /en/, which is not the case.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule .* - [E=HTTP_AUTHORIZATION:%{HTTP:Authorization}]
RewriteBase /en/
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /en/index.php [L]

This configuration is incorrect, as WordPress generates the language URLs itself and does not require a rewrite to /en/.
You therefore need to check which plugin was updated or had its settings changed during the period when the error started to occur.

The website freeze occurs so far only when I worked with WPLM. What can I do?

Greetings, Janine
December 7, 2025 at 4:28 pm #17642152

Itamar
WPML Supporter since 02/2016

Languages: English (English )

Timezone: Asia/Jerusalem (GMT+02:00)

Hi Janine,

Here’s a quick summary of what we discussed and what you should do next regarding the .htaccess issue.

Summary

Your host found incorrect rewrite rules in your .htaccess file, suggesting WordPress was inside an /en/ folder. This caused conflicts and site freezes, particularly while you were working in WPML.

The WPML setting “Use directory for default language” is currently disabled, which is correct, but we don’t know whether it was ever enabled previously.

Complianz is officially compatible with WPML, and there is no clear indication that it is related to the rewrite issue.

Next Steps

1. Re-save permalinks
Go to Settings → Permalinks → Save Changes to regenerate a clean .htaccess file.

2. Check whether the incorrect line returns.

Ask your host to confirm whether or not this line appears again:

RewriteRule . /en/index.php [L]

3. Enable debug logging if the issue returns

Turn on WordPress debug logging in wp-config.php:

define('WP_DEBUG', true);
define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true);
define('WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY', false);
@ini_set('display_errors', 0);

Then repeat the action that causes the freeze and send us the new entries from /wp-content/debug.log.

The chat has now been converted into a ticket, so you can continue there once you have the results.

Best regards,
Itamar