How to Find and Read Error Logs in cPanel

When a website shows 500 Internal Server Error, a blank white page, “There has been a critical error on this website” or 403 Forbidden, the real reason is written in an error log. Reading the log usually points straight to the broken file, plugin or setting. cPanel gives you several places to look.

1. The Errors page (web server log)

Log in to your FimuroHost client area at https://app.fimurohost.com.
Go to Services and select your cPanel Hosting plan.
Click Login to cPanel. cPanel opens in a new tab, already signed in.
In the Metrics section, click Errors.
Choose the domain if asked. The page shows the most recent entries (up to the last 300) from the web server error log, newest first.

Reproduce the problem (reload the broken page), then refresh the Errors page and read the newest lines. Each line shows the time, the visitor’s IP and the message. This log is best for permission problems, .htaccess mistakes and blocked requests.

2. PHP error_log files

PHP errors are usually written to a file called error_log in the same folder as the script that failed, for example public_html/error_log or public_html/wp-admin/error_log.

Open Files » File Manager and go to the site’s document root.
Look for error_log. Select it and click View or Download (large files are easier to read on your computer).
Scroll to the bottom for the newest errors.

A large error_log file uses disk space. Once you have fixed the cause, delete the file; PHP creates a new one if errors happen again.

3. WordPress debug log

For WordPress, turn on logging temporarily by editing wp-config.php and replacing define( 'WP_DEBUG', false ); with:

define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );
define( 'WP_DEBUG_LOG', true );
define( 'WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY', false );

Reload the broken page, then open wp-content/debug.log. Set WP_DEBUG back to false and delete debug.log when you are done, as it can reveal information about your site.

What common messages mean

Message (shortened)	Likely cause and fix
`PHP Fatal error: Allowed memory size of … exhausted`	Raise `memory_limit` in MultiPHP INI Editor, or find the plugin named in the file path.
`PHP Fatal error: Uncaught Error: Call to undefined function …`	Code needs a different PHP version or a missing extension. Check the PHP version in MultiPHP Manager.
`… in /home/username/public_html/wp-content/plugins/name/…`	That plugin is the problem. Rename its folder in File Manager to disable it.
`Invalid command '…', perhaps misspelled` / `RewriteRule: bad flag`	A mistake in `.htaccess`. Undo your last edit.
`… is writable by group` / `SoftException`	Permissions too open. Set folders to `755` and files to `644`.
`client denied by server configuration`	Access rule or blocked file type. Check `.htaccess` and IP Blocker.
`Error establishing a database connection`	Wrong database name, user, password or host in the configuration file.

Other logs

Metrics » Raw Access lets you download the full visitor access log for a domain, useful for spotting bots and attacks.
Email » Track Delivery shows whether messages from your account were delivered, deferred or rejected.

Tips

Never leave display_errors on for a live site; log errors instead.
When you open a ticket about an error, copy the exact log lines (with times) into it. This speeds up the fix a lot.

Need help?

If anything in this guide does not match what you see, or you get stuck, open a support ticket (choose the Support department) or message us on WhatsApp at 01818160926. Tell us your domain name and what you have tried so far, and never send your password in a ticket or chat.

FimuroHost Team

Technical Writer