[Escalated to 2nd Tier] Translation Dashboard not loading
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Background of the issue:
I am trying to access the Translation Management Table in WPML, but I am greeted with a constant 'Loading Items'. I have inspected the Browser Console Logs and the PHP Logs, and I could see that apparently the 'wp_icl_translations' table is missing. I confirmed that I could not find the table in phpMyAdmin, but the translations still work, which makes it hard to understand how the issue works. Link to a page where the issue can be seen: hidden link
Symptoms:
Constant 'Loading Items' when trying to access the Translation Management Table. The 'wp_icl_translations' table is missing according to logs and phpMyAdmin.
Questions:
Why is the Translation Management Table not loading?
How are translations still working if the 'wp_icl_translations' table is missing?
Allow me to summarize the issue to confirm we are on the same page:
• The Translation Management Table displays a constant ‘Loading Items’ message.
• The wp_icl_translations table is missing from the database, as confirmed via phpMyAdmin and error logs.
•Despite this, translations on the site are still functioning.
Why is the Translation Management Table not loading?
The Translation Management Table relies on the wp_icl_translations table to manage and display translation relationships. If this table is missing, the system cannot retrieve the necessary data, resulting in the ‘Loading Items’ message.
How are translations still working if the wp_icl_translations table is missing?
It’s possible that the translations are being served from cached data or that the site is using a different method to handle translations temporarily. However, without the wp_icl_translations table, the translation management functionalities will not operate correctly.
Recommended Solution:
To resolve this issue, you can attempt to recreate the missing WPML tables by following these steps: 
1. Backup Your Site: Ensure you have a complete backup of your website, including the database and files. 
2. Add the following code to the bottom of your theme’s functions.php file: 
3. Visit Your Site’s Homepage: Load the homepage of your website to trigger the function that recreates the missing tables. 
4. Remove the Code: After confirming that the tables have been recreated, remove the code from the functions.php file to prevent it from running on every page load. 
This method has been effective in similar cases where WPML tables were missing. 
If the issue persists after following these steps, please let us know, and we can explore further troubleshooting options.
I added the code to my functions.php and loaded the homepage -> It broke my website (Website wouldn't load), and no database tables were created. (I still don't have wp_icl_translations table), I do have "kQZCv_icl_languages_translations", but that's not related?
I would like to request temporary access (wp-admin and FTP) to your site to take a better look at the issue.
It would be better to a testing site where the issue is replicated.
The information you will enter is private which means only you and I can see and have access to it.
Maybe I'll need to replicate your site locally. For this, I'll need to temporarily install a plugin called “Duplicator” or "All in One WP Migration" on your site.
This will allow me to create a copy of your site and your content.
Once the problem is resolved I will delete the local site.
**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.
On your test site I reinstalled WPML manually to recreate the tables following these steps:
1.Backup Your Site: Before making any changes, ensure you have a complete backup of your website, including the database and files.
2. Deactivate WPML Plugins: In your WordPress dashboard, navigate to the Plugins section and deactivate all WPML-related plugins.
3. Delete WPML Plugins: Still in the Plugins section, delete all WPML plugins. This action removes plugin files but retains your site’s content.
4. Reinstall WPML Plugins: Download the latest versions of the WPML plugins from your WPML account. Upload and install them via the WordPress dashboard.
5. Reactivate WPML Plugins: After installation, activate the WPML plugins. During activation, WPML should automatically recreate any missing database tables.
6. Check for Table Creation: Use a tool like phpMyAdmin to verify that the missing tables have been recreated in your database.
Then I went to WPML -> Translation Management, and the error persists. So I made a copy of your test site and deployed it locally. And locally it works (please check the screenshot attached). I checked locally, and the tables were created properly. We may be facing a new problem now.
Can you please confirm that the tables were created on your test site?
Related to the new problem, it may be a problem with the sitekey because of the messages I can see in WPML -> Support -> ATE Error Logs.
Can you please try this:
Please go to http://www.wpml.org/account/sites and delete the URL of the test site.
Then add it back. This will generate a new site key.
Then, go to Plugins -> Add New -> Commercial and click the link to unregister WPML from your site.
You will then see the field where you can enter the new site key to re-register the new key.
I have checked my test site (test.gpdstore.net) and I can see that:
1. hidden link -> Still does not work
2. The necessary tables are still not created in the database. (No changes are made in the database)
So, essentially - Nothing worked.
Can we please focus on fixing this database / Translation Management issue on the test.gpdstore.net first, and then we can look into the other issue as well?
I deactivated all the plugins and reinstalled the WPML plugin again. And it didn't work. But the same procedure worked on a copy of your site that I deployed on one of our servers here: hidden link
You can log in using your credentials.
This makes me think that there may be some hosting limitation that is not allowing WPML to create the tables. As both in my local environment and our servers, it worked properly.
Can you please check with your hosting? Maybe the max execution time is too low and it's killing the process too early, or some other restriction that may cause the problem.
Best Regards,
Otto
The copy of your site will be online, but search engines won't index it (the copy), so you don't have to worry about duplicate content.
Based on our extensive testing, we successfully recreated the missing WPML database tables both in our local environment and on our Cloudways server using the exact same copy of your site. This strongly suggests that the issue is specific to your hosting environment's configuration.
While the debug logs provide some insights, they may not reveal all critical server-level limitations that could be affecting the table creation process. At this point, we kindly recommend reaching out to your hosting provider for further investigation.
Thank you for your reply. Seeing as WPML is the only plugin having issues on our website/server, I would assume that you could help with debugging and ensuring your plugin would work on our setup?
Could you at least try to identify it? Since you have access to the whole development website.
I get this suggestion from our second tier support:
It is possible that the current mysql user does not have some permissions - either to checking database tables or to creating them.
You try getting a fresh structure of the tables and add it via Database Manager - WP Adminer, or a similar plugin.
I installed WP Adminer, but the plugin can't access the DB (probably due to some server security restrictions).
Can you provide us with access to the DB of the test site to give it a try?
Then I went to WPML -> Translation Management, and the error persists. So I made a copy of your test site and deployed it locally. And locally it works (please check the screenshot attached). I checked locally, and the tables were created properly. We may be facing a new problem now.
Can you please confirm that the tables were created on your test site?
Related to the new problem, it may be a problem with the sitekey because of the messages I can see in WPML -> Support -> ATE Error Logs.
Can you please try this:
Please go to http://www.wpml.org/account/sites and delete the URL of the test site.
Then add it back. This will generate a new site key.
Then, go to Plugins -> Add New -> Commercial and click the link to unregister WPML from your site.
You will then see the field where you can enter the new site key to re-register the new key.
Can you give that a try?
Best Regards,
Otto
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