"My Website is Down" Checklist¶

A systematic guide to diagnose why a website isn't loading.

Quick Checks (30 seconds)¶

Before diving deep, rule out the obvious:

Try a different browser - Could be a browser cache issue
Try incognito/private mode - Rules out extensions and cache
Try on your phone (mobile data) - Rules out your network
Ask someone else to try - Confirms if it's just you
Check isitdownrightnow.com - Third-party confirmation

Step 1: Is It Just You?¶

Check from multiple locations¶

Down for Everyone or Just Me: - isitdownrightnow.com - downforeveryoneorjustme.com

If it's just you: - Clear browser cache - Flush DNS: ipconfig /flushdns (Windows) or sudo dscacheutil -flushcache (Mac) - Try a different network - Check if your IP is blocked

Step 2: What Error Are You Seeing?¶

Error	Likely Cause	See Section
"This site can't be reached"	DNS or network issue	DNS Checks
"Connection refused"	Server not running	Server Checks
"Connection timed out"	Firewall or server overload	Server Checks
"SSL certificate error"	Certificate issue	SSL Checks
500 Internal Server Error	Application error	Application Checks
502 Bad Gateway	Backend server issue	Application Checks
503 Service Unavailable	Server overloaded	Server Checks

Step 3: DNS Checks¶

DNS translates your domain name to an IP address. If this fails, the site won't load.

Check DNS Resolution¶

Using nslookup:

nslookup example.com

Using dig:

dig example.com

Expected: Should return an IP address

Common DNS Issues¶

Problem	Symptom	Solution
No DNS record	"Server not found"	Check DNS configuration
Wrong IP	Wrong site loads	Update A record
DNS not propagated	Works for some, not others	Wait (up to 48 hours)
DNS provider down	No resolution	Check provider status

Check DNS Propagation¶

Use whatsmydns.net to see if DNS has propagated globally.

Step 4: Server Checks¶

Can You Reach the Server?¶

Ping the server:

ping example.com

Check if port 80/443 is open:

# Check HTTP
nc -zv example.com 80

# Check HTTPS
nc -zv example.com 443

Or use an online port checker.

Server Status¶

Check hosting provider status page - Many providers have status.provider.com
Check server resources - CPU, memory, disk space
Check if services are running - Web server, database

Common Server Issues¶

Problem	Symptom	Solution
Server offline	No response	Contact hosting provider
Web server stopped	Connection refused	Restart Apache/Nginx
Server overloaded	Timeouts, slow	Scale up or optimise
Firewall blocking	Connection refused	Check firewall rules
Disk full	Various errors	Free up disk space

Step 5: SSL/HTTPS Checks¶

Check SSL Certificate¶

Using openssl:

openssl s_client -connect example.com:443 -servername example.com

Online checkers: - SSL Labs (ssllabs.com/ssltest) - SSL Shopper Checker

Common SSL Issues¶

Problem	Error Message	Solution
Certificate expired	"Certificate has expired"	Renew certificate
Wrong domain	"Certificate name mismatch"	Get cert for correct domain
Self-signed	"Not trusted"	Use a proper CA
Mixed content	Padlock warning	Fix HTTP resources on HTTPS page
Chain incomplete	"Unable to verify"	Install intermediate certificates

Quick SSL Fixes¶

Check expiry:

echo | openssl s_client -connect example.com:443 2>/dev/null | openssl x509 -noout -dates

For Let's Encrypt, renew:

sudo certbot renew

Step 6: Application Checks¶

If the server responds but you see an error page.

Check Application Logs¶

Apache:

tail -f /var/log/apache2/error.log

Nginx:

tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log

Application logs: Check your app's log directory

Common Application Issues¶

Problem	Symptom	Solution
Database down	500 error	Restart database
Out of memory	500/502 error	Restart app, add memory
Code error	500 error	Check logs, fix code
Permissions	403/500 error	Fix file permissions
Missing files	404/500 error	Check deployment

Database Checks¶

MySQL:

sudo systemctl status mysql

PostgreSQL:

sudo systemctl status postgresql

Step 7: Quick Fixes to Try¶

Restart Services¶

# Restart web server
sudo systemctl restart nginx
# or
sudo systemctl restart apache2

# Restart application
sudo systemctl restart your-app

# Restart database
sudo systemctl restart mysql

Clear Caches¶

WordPress: - Clear cache plugin (W3 Total Cache, WP Super Cache, etc.) - Clear object cache

Cloudflare: - Dashboard → Caching → Purge Everything

Server-side:

# Clear PHP opcache (restart PHP)
sudo systemctl restart php-fpm

Step 8: Still Down?¶

Gather Information¶

Before contacting support, collect:

Contact¶

Hosting provider - Server issues, network issues
Domain registrar - DNS configuration issues
Your developer - Application issues
CDN provider - If using Cloudflare, etc.

Prevention¶

Monitoring¶

Set up monitoring to catch issues early:

Uptime monitoring - UptimeRobot, Pingdom
SSL monitoring - Get alerts before certificates expire
Server monitoring - CPU, memory, disk alerts

Backups¶

Ensure you have:

Regular automated backups
Tested restore procedure
Off-site backup copies

Documentation¶

Keep records of:

Server access details
DNS configuration
SSL certificate renewal process
Contact information for all providers