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Practical field guide

When your website goes down: a small-business recovery guide

A site outage is stressful, but guessing can make it last longer. Start with what you can observe: the exact error, the time it began, which address failed, and what changed recently. Then work through the likely layers, from domain settings to hosting to the site itself.

Four common causes to check

The same blank page can have different causes. These clues help you narrow the search before changing settings.

01

The host cannot answer requests

The server that runs your site may be offline, overloaded, slow, or refusing connections. For example, Cloudflare documents error 522 when it times out while contacting an origin server; an overloaded or offline origin is one possible cause.

What to do: Check your host’s status page and account notices. If you see a server error, send support the exact code, time and affected URL. Avoid changing DNS until you know the origin address is correct.

Sources:Error 522: connection timed outCloudflare 5xx errors: details to share with your host

02

DNS points to the wrong place—or nowhere

DNS connects a domain name to the service hosting your site. A missing record, a typo, or nameservers that no longer point to the DNS provider can make the domain fail to resolve.

What to do: Compare the domain’s current records and nameservers with the values from your host. Check both the main domain and its www version, and keep a copy of the working settings before editing them.

Sources:General DNS issuesDebug network and DNS errors for Google's crawlers

03

The HTTPS certificate is invalid or out of date

Browsers and network services rely on a valid certificate for secure HTTPS connections. Cloudflare’s 526 error, for example, means it cannot verify the origin certificate; expiry, a hostname mismatch or an incomplete certificate chain can be involved.

What to do: Ask your host to check the certificate’s expiry, covered hostnames and full certificate chain, and confirm that renewal is enabled. Do not switch off HTTPS as a workaround.

Sources:Error 526: invalid SSL certificate

04

A recent update or code change broke the site

On WordPress, a fatal error can come from an incompatible plugin, theme or custom code and stop normal site operation. A deployment or configuration change can also be the first clue when an outage starts just after an edit.

What to do: Note the last change and its time. Use the platform’s recovery steps or ask your developer or host to roll back that specific change; then test the homepage and key customer paths before trying another update.

Sources:Recovery Mode

A calm response when the site is down

A short incident note gives you and your provider something concrete to investigate.

  1. Confirm what is failing

    Try the homepage from another device or network. Check both the main domain and www address, and record whether the whole site or one page is affected.

  2. Capture the evidence

    Save the visible error, exact URL, time and time zone, plus any recent DNS, hosting or site changes. Cloudflare recommends sharing the status code, time and URL with a hosting provider when investigating a 5xx error.

    Sources:Cloudflare 5xx errors: details to share with your host

  3. Ask the right provider

    Contact your host for server or 5xx errors, your DNS provider for name resolution, or your developer for a recent release. Ask what they found before making several changes at once.

    Sources:Debug network and DNS errors for Google's crawlers

  4. Restore carefully, then retest

    If a recent change caused the problem, roll it back or restore a known-good backup with your provider’s help. Afterward, load the site and test the action customers rely on, such as calling, booking or sending a message.

    Sources:Backups

Small habits that prevent repeat outages

  • Keep backups you can restore

    Schedule backups, keep a copy separate from the website host, and practise restoring one. WordPress recommends regular backups and backing up before upgrades.

  • Make changes one at a time

    Before an update or deployment, note how to roll it back. Check the homepage and the customer journey immediately after the change so you can connect a new error to a specific cause.

  • Keep access and renewals current

    Turn on renewal reminders for the domain and certificate where your providers offer them. Store registrar, DNS and hosting recovery details somewhere more than one responsible person can reach.

  • Check the pages that earn trust

    From time to time, open your homepage and the pages customers use to contact or buy from you. After an outage, Google notes that network and DNS errors can prevent crawling, so review Search Console if search visibility is important to your business.

WordPress explains how backups support recovery. Google documents how network, DNS and HTTP server errors affect its crawlers; that guidance describes crawling, not a guaranteed ranking change from every short outage.

Sources:BackupsDebug network and DNS errors for Google's crawlersHow HTTP status codes affect Google's crawlers

Where Rivetune fits

Rivetune’s homepage describes one saved site, checks of homepage uptime and status, up to 20 links found on that homepage, and basic homepage response time and HTML received. The homepage also says scans and reports require an active monitoring subscription, and checkout is unavailable pending plan and payment confirmation. This guide does not promise subscription access or checkout.

Read Rivetune’s current scope

Sources

Primary documentation linked beside the related guidance above.