If you get FTP in can you look at the error log, that will have the exact error causing the 500 server error.

Mike

Thank you for responding. Where do I find the error log?

I logged into server and did a search for "error" in my FTP client. The only file I could find was an error.html located in /concrete/libraries/3rdparty/JSON/doc. I don't think that is what I am looking for.

If someone could please point me to the file that I am looking for, I would really appreciate it.

Thank you!
Melissa

According to my hosting provider, the php scripts running on my website (Concrete5) are not compatible with php 5.5.

I upgraded my server to use PHP version 5.5 recently, after my host informed me that I would start incurring a monthly fee if I continued to use the old version of PHP.

I'm not sure what to do now. Everything was working fine until this PHP version thing happened.

5.6* should still work fine on PHP 5.5, you should ask your host for a specific error,

He didn't give me a specific error, but he put me on hold for long time while he "recreated the problem on their computers" then he came back and said:
"The php scripts running on your server don't work with PHP 5.5. You need to go back to version 5.4"

So I set the server back to version PHP 5.4 and it is working okay now. But this means I am going to get slapped with monthly service fee for running the old version of PHP.

Also, he said he renamed my php.ini file... not sure why he did that.

I'd rather not sit on hold again for 20 minutes and then have to re-explain the situation ten times to someone who hardly speaks english.

Is there a way I can get access to the error log files myself?

I logged into the server via FTP earlier but I didn't see anything that was obviously marked as an error log. In the root directory, there is a folder called /logs and in it there are some access logs and traffic logs.

Some search could help you out:
https://www.google.com/webhp?tab=ww&ei=FS-3VKG4BMLqaqfygfgE&...

Or search for the hosters reviews, could be something with your hosting provider.

While I appreciate you taking the time to reply, it wasn't very helpful. I've already used google search and wasn't able to find anything useful.

Secondly, I did research hosting providers before I set this server up last year. And everything was great... until recently.

My main issue right now (now that the site is working again) is that I can't seem to access or find my error logs. If I could find out the exact error(s) that are happening, then I think you guys could probably help me figure this out. No one seems be able to point me in the right direction.

I would really have the answer for you.
You give not much information to help you correctly.
What is the domains url? And where are you hosting this website?
...
ps.

Concrete5 Version 7 requires the following:

PHP 5.3.3. or greater
The following PHP modules:
MySQL (with PDO extensions)
DOM
SimpleXML
GD Library with Freetype
CURL
Mcrypt
PHP Safe Mode Off
PHP Memory Limit at least 64 MB (more might be required for the processing and handling of large image files.)
MySQL 5.1.5 or Higher
MySQL InnoDB Table Support
Concrete5 is run mostly on Apache 2, but will also work on IIS and Nginx.

--------------------------

concrete5 5.6 and Earlier

PHP 5.2.4 or greater (PHP >= 5.3 recommended)
PHP Modules: CURL, zip, mcrypt, openssl, GD (with freetype), mysql, mbstring, iconv (iconv needed for Zend Locale)
PHP settings (primarily for file uploads) post_max_upload_filesize = 20, post_max_size = 20, php memory limit to 64 (More may be needed for memory intensive operations, such as upgrading.)
PHP Safe Mode Off
MySQL 5.x or higher.
Apache/IIS (Apache recommended)

-------------------------------------------------

Bad Ideas

Some of these setups can be made to work, but really why create problems you don't need?

Cloud Computing is hit or miss. We've seen decent performance out of some providers, and horrible performance out of others. Whatever you may have read, "the cloud" is not magical and won't help you perform better out of the box. A well provisioned unix server will do a great job of running your website. Unless you really expect huge spikes in demand, you're not really taking advantage of the true benefit of cloud computing. Just sayin'.

Budget Webhosting is great, but it's also a race to the bottom. Those companies have to keep their VC masters happy in what is quickly becoming a commodity market, so something has to give. What we find typically gives is the quality of service. Sure you may have found a sweet deal on unlimited bandwidth for a buck twenty per month, but your site is on a server with four thousand other sites and MySQL is crying under the load. concrete5 is always going to bring a lot more overhead to your website than just a static webpage would have. If your budget webhost offers concrete5 and it works well, more power to you. If your site seems slow, chances are there's not much we can do beyond suggest you get on a server that isn't over sold.

.

The domain URL was the first thing I posted.

As for the rest, well, my client is just a SMALL local karate school and while you might frown on shared hosting, that is all that he can afford. And frankly, it's not like they will ever have super large volume of traffic anyway as the number of people searching for karate school information in our rural area is extremely finite. Basically, the site is going to be more for current students so they can check class schedules and see if class is still on during bad weather, etc.

If there is information you need that I did not provide, then just ask for it. Please don't lecture me on how to pick a host when you know nothing of the needs of my client. I am aware of the concrete5 system requirements, as I checked all of these things before setting up the server last year. And I already know that an enterprise class dedicated server would be better. However, it is not in the budget.

Again, when I set up this server last year I made sure that it met all the requirements and that it had good reviews. Additionally, I haven't had one single problem until now. The site was running perfectly and I had no complaints until I was forced to upgrade to PHP 5.5 to avoid incurring an additional monthly fee.

The site is now working again, which is good. But the issue at hand, is why did my site stop working when I switched over to using PHP 5.5? It *should* have worked, since the requirements for concrete5 5.6* recommends PHP 5.3 or higher. Unfortunately, without access to the error logs, I don't think any of you will be able to help me.

It looks like my hosting provider will not allow me access to the error logs? Something about shared hosting... blah blah blah.

So I guess, my only option at this point is to keep using PHP 5.4 while paying a service fee every month for using the old version of PHP.

OR move to another hosting provider...

What a pain in the buttocks. :/

Can you create, then run from a browser a simple PHP script like this



when PHP 5.5 is enabled to make sure that all requirements are still met? Yes, the PHP version itself may be fine, but it is possible that the newer PHP build the host deployed is missing some modules that concrete5 needs (like gd, mbstring, etc.). I would think they would deploy a pretty generic build, but perhaps they didn't, or perhaps an extension inclusion is commented out in the php.ini. I suppose another way to test this is to start to install a new instance of concrete5 (the same version you have deployed currently) and make sure that the installation requirement checks all pass initially. You may not have the luxury to do this though, depending on your setup.

And yes, it is unfortunate you cannot get at the error logs. They would likely tell you right away what is causing the problem so that it could be addressed without a bunch of trial and error.