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Troubleshooting

This page lists the issues we see most often and the fastest way through them.

"REST returns 404 / nothing loads in the admin"

Symptom: The admin React shell shows blank panels; the network tab shows 404 for /wp-json/sikshya/v1/....

Cause: Pretty permalinks are off, or a security plugin is blocking REST.

Fix:

  1. Go to Settings → Permalinks. Pick Post name (or any non-Plain). Click Save Changes.
  2. Visit /wp-json/sikshya/v1/ in a browser. You should see JSON, not 404.
  3. If you have Wordfence, iThemes Security, etc., temporarily allow wp-json for your IP.

Symptom: /courses/, /cart/, /checkout/, /my-learning/ all return 404.

Fix: Open Settings → Permalinks and click Save Changes (no need to change anything; saving flushes rewrite rules). Or run wp rewrite flush via WP-CLI.

"Stripe doesn't show up under Settings → Payment" PRO

Symptom: PayPal is listed, but you can't find Stripe — or you see only an "Upgrade to enable" prompt where Stripe should appear.

Cause: Stripe is a Pro-only add-on — it isn't bundled with the free Sikshya plugin. The gateway list under Settings → Payment only contains the gateways your Pro license unlocks.

Fix:

  1. Install Sikshya Pro alongside the free plugin and activate your license under Sikshya → License.
  2. Open Sikshya → Add-ons, find Stripe, and toggle it on.
  3. Stripe now appears under Sikshya → Settings → Payment — paste your keys and webhook secret.
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"PayPal webhook shows but no order is fulfilled"

Symptom: PayPal logs show 200 from your site, but the order stays pending.

Cause: Webhook ID mismatch (sandbox vs live), missing client id / secret, or REST routes blocked by security.

Fix:

  1. Open Sikshya → Settings → Payment → PayPal. Confirm Mode matches the webhook (sandbox vs live), and Webhook ID matches the PayPal dashboard.
  2. Confirm REST is reachable — visit /wp-json/sikshya/v1/webhooks/paypal (you should get a 405 method-not-allowed for a GET, not a 403).
  3. Check Tools → Activity log for webhook errors.

"Stripe webhook signature mismatch"

Symptom: Stripe says webhook delivery failed; Sikshya logs say "invalid signature".

Cause: Webhook secret in Sikshya doesn't match Stripe's webhook signing secret.

Fix:

  1. In Stripe → Developers → Webhooks → click your endpoint → Reveal secret under Signing secret (whsec_...).
  2. Paste it into Sikshya → Settings → Payment → Stripe → Webhook secret.
  3. Save. Re-send a test event in Stripe.

"Emails aren't arriving"

Symptom: No enrollment / receipt / completion emails reach the learner.

Fix:

  1. Install a transactional email plugin: WP Mail SMTP, FluentSMTP, or Post SMTP.
  2. Connect to a transactional ESP: SendGrid, Postmark, Amazon SES, Mailgun.
  3. Set From name and From email to a noreply@ on your sending domain.
  4. Configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC on the From domain.
  5. Test deliverability via mail-tester.com.
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"Apply to teach doesn't grant the role"

Symptom: A user submits the instructor application but doesn't get the sikshya_instructor role automatically.

Cause: This is by design. Applications are recorded as pending — an admin must approve them.

Fix: Go to Sikshya → People → Applications and click Approve.

"Setup wizard never finishes"

Symptom: After activation, you can't get past the setup wizard.

Fix:

  1. Make sure your account has manage_options.
  2. Disable WAF / Security plugins temporarily, run the wizard, re-enable.
  3. If still stuck: open Sikshya → Tools → Maintenance → Open setup wizard to re-run.

"I deactivated Pro and lost some data"

Symptom: After turning off Sikshya Pro, gradebook / drip / advanced certificates disappear.

Cause: Pro features render only when their add-on is on. Stored data is preserved.

Fix: Re-enable the add-on under Sikshya → Add-ons to bring back the UI.

"Course content shows but progression is locked"

Symptom: A learner is enrolled but can't open the next lesson.

Cause: Sequential progression is on (default in free) and a previous lesson hasn't been completed; or a Pro drip or prerequisite rule applies.

Fix: Have the learner mark the current lesson complete. Or, as admin, manually mark lessons complete.

"Cache plugin breaks checkout / login"

Symptom: Login form keeps showing logged-out state; checkout looks blank.

Cause: Page cache is serving the logged-out version of a session-specific page.

Fix: Exclude these from your page cache:

  • /cart/, /checkout/, /my-learning/, /learn/, /order/, /login/
  • /wp-json/sikshya/v1/checkout/*, /wp-json/sikshya/v1/me/*

"PHP fatal errors after enabling Pro"

Symptom: White screen of death right after activating Sikshya Pro.

Cause: Mismatched plugin versions, or Pro was activated before Free.

Fix:

  1. Add define('WP_DEBUG', true); define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true); to wp-config.php.
  2. Re-read the error in wp-content/debug.log.
  3. Update both plugins to the latest versions.
  4. Activate Sikshya first, then Sikshya Pro.

"I'm on a case-sensitive Linux host and templates don't load"

Symptom: A template override in your theme isn't picked up.

Cause: macOS dev is case-insensitive; production Linux is case-sensitive. A template with the wrong case in the path silently fails.

Fix: Match Sikshya's exact casing — templates/single-course.php, templates/partials/courses/card.php, etc.

"REST returns 403 for an admin user"

Symptom: Admin REST routes return rest_forbidden.

Cause: Cookie session expired, missing X-WP-Nonce, or a role plugin removed a capability.

Fix:

  1. Refresh the WordPress admin page (re-issues a fresh nonce).
  2. Confirm your user has manage_sikshya and sikshya_access_admin_app.
  3. Check that a role plugin (Members, User Role Editor) didn't remove those caps from administrator.

"Pro license shows valid in Mantrabrain dashboard but Sikshya says invalid"

Symptom: Account dashboard says Active; Sikshya → License says invalid.

Cause: License key activated on too many sites, or the site URL differs (www. mismatch).

Fix:

  1. Open the Mantrabrain account dashboard and confirm site limits.
  2. Deactivate old / dev URLs.
  3. Click Check status in Sikshya → License.

Diagnostics tools

  • Sikshya → Tools → System status — PHP, WP, server, plugin versions.
  • Sikshya → Tools → Maintenance — clear cache, reset settings, import sample data.
  • Sikshya → Tools → Activity log PRO — webhook + email + general logs.

When to file a bug

Before filing, please:

  1. Update both Sikshya and Sikshya Pro to the latest.
  2. Disable other plugins one by one to rule out conflicts.
  3. Switch to a default theme briefly to rule out theme conflicts.
  4. Capture the exact steps + a WP_DEBUG log of the error.

Then file a bug on GitHub (free) or open a priority support ticket (Pro).

What's next