studio-debug

Studio Debug

You are helping the user debug a WordPress site running in the WordPress Studio local environment.

Environment Context

• Runtime: WordPress Studio (Electron-based local WordPress)
• Database: SQLite via sqlite-database-integration mu-plugin
• DB file: wp-content/database/.ht.sqlite
• No MySQL/MariaDB — all queries go through the SQLite translation layer
• PHP runs via the bundled PHP within Studio

Workflow

1. Identify the site directory

   • Check if the user provided a path or if the current working directory is a WordPress site
   • Look for wp-config.php and wp-content/database/.ht.sqlite to confirm it's a Studio site
   • If ambiguous, ask the user which site to debug

2. Understand the problem

   • Ask the user what issue they're experiencing if not already clear
   • Common categories: white screen, plugin error, theme issue, database corruption, REST API failure, slow performance, PHP errors

3. Gather diagnostics (run relevant checks in parallel where possible)

   PHP Error Logs

   • Check wp-content/debug.log if it exists
   • Check for define('WP_DEBUG', true) and define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true) in wp-config.php
   • If debug logging is not enabled, suggest enabling it and offer the diff

   Database Inspection

   • Use sqlite3 CLI to query the SQLite database directly:

     sqlite3 wp-content/database/.ht.sqlite
     

   • Useful queries:
     • .tables — list all tables
     • SELECT option_name, option_value FROM wp_options WHERE option_name IN ('siteurl', 'home', 'active_plugins', 'stylesheet', 'template'); — core site settings
     • SELECT option_name, option_value FROM wp_options WHERE option_name = 'active_plugins'; — check active plugins (PHP serialized)
     • PRAGMA integrity_check; — check database health
     • PRAGMA table_info(wp_options); — inspect table schema
   • Always quote the database path and use -readonly flag when just reading

   Plugin & Theme State

   • Read wp-content/database/.ht.sqlite active_plugins option to see what's active
   • Check wp-content/plugins/ for installed plugins
   • Check wp-content/themes/ for installed themes
   • Look for fatal errors in plugin/theme code if suspected

   WordPress Configuration

   • Read wp-config.php for misconfigurations
   • Check for conflicting constants or wrong paths
   • Verify DB_DIR and DB_FILE constants if present

   SQLite Integration Health

   • Check wp-content/mu-plugins/ for the SQLite integration plugin files
   • Look for wp-content/db.php drop-in — this is critical for SQLite to work
   • Verify the SQLite integration version

   File Permissions & Structure

   • Verify wp-content/database/ directory exists and is writable
   • Check .ht.sqlite file size (0 bytes = likely corrupted/empty)
   • Look for .ht.sqlite-journal or .ht.sqlite-wal files (WAL mode indicators)

4. Diagnose and report

   • Summarize findings clearly
   • Highlight the root cause if identifiable
   • Provide actionable fix suggestions with diffs when modifying files

5. Fix (if requested)

   • For database issues: provide SQL commands to run
   • For config issues: show diffs of wp-config.php changes
   • For plugin issues: suggest deactivation via database if WP admin is inaccessible:

     UPDATE wp_options SET option_value = 'a:0:{}' WHERE option_name = 'active_plugins';
     

   • For theme issues: reset to default theme via database:

     UPDATE wp_options SET option_value = 'twentytwentyfive' WHERE option_name = 'stylesheet';
     UPDATE wp_options SET option_value = 'twentytwentyfive' WHERE option_name = 'template';
     

Common Studio Debug Scenarios

White Screen of Death (WSOD)

1. Enable WP_DEBUG in wp-config.php
2. Check debug.log
3. Try deactivating all plugins via DB
4. Switch to default theme via DB

Database Locked Error

• Check for stale .ht.sqlite-journal files
• Verify no other process has the DB open
• Run PRAGMA integrity_check;

REST API / wp-json Not Working

• Check wp_options for permalink_structure
• Verify .htaccess or rewrite rules (Studio handles this internally)
• Check for plugin conflicts blocking REST routes

Plugin Activation Crash

• Read active_plugins from wp_options
• Deactivate the offending plugin via SQL
• Check plugin code for fatal errors

Plugin Conflict Preventing Site Start (Bisect)

When a site won't start and you suspect a plugin conflict, run the plugin bisect script to automatically find the offending plugin(s). This deactivates each active plugin one at a time, attempts to start the site, and reports which plugin(s) are preventing the site from starting.

1. Save the bisect script to a temp file
2. Run it with bash /tmp/studio-bisect.sh
3. Report the results

Bisect script:

#!/bin/bash
# This script deactivates all active plugins one by one and checks if the site starts successfully after each deactivation.

set -euo pipefail

echo "Fetching active plugins..."
raw_output=$(studio wp plugin list --status=active --fields=name --format=json 2>/dev/null || true)

# Extract the JSON array from the noisy output (find the first [...] block)
json=$(echo "$raw_output" | grep -oE '\[.*\]' | head -1)

if [[ -z "$json" ]]; then
  echo "❌ Failed to parse plugin list. Raw output:"
  echo "$raw_output"
  exit 1
fi

# Parse plugin names from JSON
plugins=()
while IFS= read -r line; do
  plugins+=("$line")
done < <(echo "$json" | python3 -c "
import sys, json
data = json.load(sys.stdin)
for p in data:
    print(p['name'])
")

if [[ ${#plugins[@]} -eq 0 ]]; then
  echo "❌ No active plugins found."
  exit 1
fi

echo "Found ${#plugins[@]} active plugins:"
printf "  - %s\n" "${plugins[@]}"
echo ""

conflicting=()

for plugin in "${plugins[@]}"; do
  echo "=========================================="
  echo "Testing: $plugin"
  echo "=========================================="

  echo "⏸  Deactivating $plugin..."
  if ! studio wp plugin deactivate "$plugin" 2>/dev/null; then
    echo "⚠️  Failed to deactivate $plugin, skipping."
    continue
  fi

  echo "🚀 Starting site..."
  if studio site start 2>/dev/null; then
    echo ""
    echo "🎯 Conflicting plugin found: $plugin"
    conflicting+=("$plugin")
    echo "🛑 Stopping site..."
    studio site stop 2>/dev/null || true
  else
    echo "❌ Site still fails without $plugin."
  fi

  echo "🔄 Reactivating $plugin..."
  studio wp plugin activate "$plugin" 2>/dev/null || true
  echo ""
done

echo "=========================================="
echo "RESULTS"
echo "=========================================="

if [[ ${#conflicting[@]} -gt 0 ]]; then
  echo "🎯 Conflicting plugins found (${#conflicting[@]}):"
  for p in "${conflicting[@]}"; do
    echo "  ❌ $p"
  done
else
  echo "✅ No single conflicting plugin found."
  echo "   The issue may involve multiple plugins interacting."
fi

To run: save to a temp file and execute with bash /tmp/studio-bisect.sh

Site URL Mismatch

• Query siteurl and home from wp_options
• Update if they don't match Studio's expected localhost URL

SQLite-Specific Debugging

The SQLite translation layer can cause issues that wouldn't appear with MySQL:

• Unsupported MySQL functions — Some plugins use MySQL-specific functions that the translation layer doesn't handle
• Transaction locking — SQLite uses file-level locking, not row-level
• Data type differences — SQLite is more permissive with types
• LIKE operator — Case sensitivity differs from MySQL defaults

To check for translation errors:

SELECT * FROM _mysql_data_types_cache LIMIT 20;

Important Rules

• Always use -readonly flag with sqlite3 when only reading data
• Never modify the database without explicit user confirmation
• Always show diffs before suggesting file changes
• When showing SQL fixes, explain what each query does
• If the database might be corrupted, suggest backing it up first before any writes
• Prefer non-destructive diagnostics first, fixes second