With WordPress, many times certain plugins can try to write/add code to the .htaccess file and it can break your overall WordPress site. WordPress has come a long way over the years, but it is not perfect… Yet.
Your .htaccess file is located in your public_html folder, or in the root folder of any Addon domain you might have.
It is a small text file that simply tells the server how to display certain web pages on your account. If you’re using file manager in your cpanel to view it, make sure to click ‘Reset all interface settings’ at the bottom of your main cpanel page. If you are using an FTP client to access your account, you should see the .htaccess file with no issues.
To test your site and see if the problem is indeed .htaccess, Simply rename your current .htaccess file to .htaccess-backup. This way you keep an original copy of this file in case there is any coding in it that you might need. But by renaming it this way, the server will bypass it and not use it.
The next step is to create a blank text file and add the default WordPress .htaccess code to it. The code, as of November 13, 2011 is as follows:
_________________________________________________________
# BEGIN WordPress
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /yourinstallfolder/
RewriteRule ^index\.php$ – [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /yourinstallfolder/index.php [L]
# END WordPress
_________________________________________________________
Copy and paste this code into a notepad and save it as .htaccess
Then upload this file to your server into the folder where your WordPress is installed.
This will normally get your WordPress back up and running.
Best of luck,
Brant Langer
The WordPress Houston Team
