{"id":7501,"date":"2026-04-08T09:30:40","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T07:30:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/?post_type=manual_kb&#038;p=7501"},"modified":"2026-04-08T09:30:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T07:30:42","slug":"how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp","status":"publish","type":"manual_kb","link":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/","title":{"rendered":"How to disable a WordPress plugin via FTP"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When a plugin conflict causes a &#8220;Fatal Error&#8221; or the &#8220;White Screen of Death,&#8221; you are often locked out of the WordPress admin dashboard (the backend). In these cases, you can use the <strong>mybox<\/strong> infrastructure&#8217;s file access to manually &#8220;deactivate&#8221; the faulty plugin by renaming its folder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WordPress looks for plugins in specific folders. If you change the name of a plugin&#8217;s folder, WordPress will fail to find it and automatically skip loading it, effectively disabling the plugin without deleting any data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_86 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/#Step_1_Identify_the_Faulty_Plugin\" >Step 1: Identify the Faulty Plugin<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/#Step_2_Disable_the_Plugin_via_FTP\" >Step 2: Disable the Plugin via FTP<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/#Step_3_Verify_and_Cleanup\" >Step 3: Verify and Cleanup<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/#Distinction_Block\" >Distinction Block<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/#Practical_Implications\" >Practical Implications<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/how-to-disable-a-wordpress-plugin-via-ftp\/#Summary\" >Summary<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Step_1_Identify_the_Faulty_Plugin\"><\/span>Step 1: Identify the Faulty Plugin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n<div id=\"mybox-3300680046\" class=\"mybox-content mybox-entity-placement\"><div class=\"early-access-banner-inpost\">\r\n  <div class=\"banner-left-inpost\">\r\n    <div class=\"icon-box-inpost\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/square-info-icon.svg\" alt=\"Info\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"text-box-inpost\">\r\n      <span class=\"label-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Early access<\/span><\/span>\r\n      <h4><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Still need help?<\/span><\/h4>\r\n      <p><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Contact our customer service team.<\/span><\/p>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <div class=\"banner-right-inpost\">\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/panel.mybox.com\/helpdesk2\/v\/list\/\" class=\"banner-button-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Message us<\/span><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\"><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before disabling anything, you need to know which plugin is causing the crash. You can do this by enabling <strong>WP_DEBUG<\/strong> in your <code>wp-config.php<\/code> file (located in your <code>public_html<\/code> folder).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Connect to your server via <strong>FTP<\/strong> or <strong>SFTP<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Edit <code>wp-config.php<\/code> and change <code>define( 'WP_DEBUG', false );<\/code> to <code>true<\/code>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Refresh your website. Look for a &#8220;Fatal error&#8221; or &#8220;Parse error&#8221; that contains a path like this: <code>...\/wp-content\/plugins\/plugin-name\/filename.php<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The folder name immediately following <code>\/plugins\/<\/code> is the one you need to target.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Step_2_Disable_the_Plugin_via_FTP\"><\/span>Step 2: Disable the Plugin via FTP<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once you have identified the culprit (e.g., a plugin named <code>hello-dolly<\/code>), follow these steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In your FTP client (like FileZilla or WinSCP), navigate to the directory: <code>yourdomain.com\/public_html\/wp-content\/plugins\/<\/code><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Locate the folder belonging to the faulty plugin.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Right-click the folder and select <strong>Rename<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Add a suffix to the name, such as <code>.old<\/code> or <code>.off<\/code> (e.g., rename <code>hello-dolly<\/code> to <code>hello-dolly.off<\/code>).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Save the change.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Step_3_Verify_and_Cleanup\"><\/span>Step 3: Verify and Cleanup<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After renaming the folder, try to load your website or the <code>\/wp-admin<\/code> login page again. If that plugin was the sole cause of the crash, the site should now load normally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Login to WordPress:<\/strong> You will see a notification in the &#8220;Plugins&#8221; section stating that the plugin has been deactivated because &#8220;the file does not exist.&#8221;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Reverting:<\/strong> If you want to try fixing the plugin or updating it, you can simply rename the folder back to its original name.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Disable Debugging:<\/strong> Once the site is back up, remember to go back into <code>wp-config.php<\/code> and set <code>WP_DEBUG<\/code> back to <code>false<\/code> to keep your site&#8217;s technical details hidden from public view.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Distinction_Block\"><\/span>Distinction Block<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Deactivate vs. Delete<\/strong> Renaming the folder <strong>deactivates<\/strong> the plugin but keeps all its files and settings safe. <strong>Deleting<\/strong> the folder removes the plugin entirely from your <strong>mybox<\/strong> server. It is always safer to rename first.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practical_Implications\"><\/span>Practical Implications<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Bulk Deactivation:<\/strong> If you don&#8217;t know which plugin is the problem and the error message isn&#8217;t specific, you can rename the entire <code>plugins<\/code> folder to <code>plugins.old<\/code>. This will disable <strong>all<\/strong> plugins at once, allowing you to see if the core site still works.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Theme Conflicts:<\/strong> The same logic applies to themes. If your theme is broken, you can find it in <code>wp-content\/themes\/<\/code> and rename its folder to force WordPress to revert to a default theme (like Twenty Twenty-Four).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Caching:<\/strong> After renaming a folder, you might need to clear your browser cache or any server-side caching (like LiteSpeed or Varnish) to see the changes immediately.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Summary\"><\/span>Summary<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Disabling a plugin via FTP is the &#8220;emergency brake&#8221; for WordPress. By renaming the plugin folder in the <strong>mybox<\/strong> file system, you bypass the broken code and regain access to your website&#8217;s backend.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","manualknowledgebasecat":[23,25,58],"manual_kb_tag":[],"class_list":["post-7501","manual_kb","type-manual_kb","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","manualknowledgebasecat-ftp","manualknowledgebasecat-hosting","manualknowledgebasecat-web-applications-cms"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/7501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/manual_kb"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/7501\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7502,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/7501\/revisions\/7502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"manualknowledgebasecat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manualknowledgebasecat?post=7501"},{"taxonomy":"manual_kb_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb_tag?post=7501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}