Key facts
- Check from mobile data first: if the site loads there, the problem is your office network, not the website
- DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN usually means the domain has expired or its DNS records have changed
- A 500 Internal Server Error is almost always the website's own code, a plugin or a broken .htaccess file
- 502, 503 and 504 errors and timeouts usually point to the hosting server
- An 'account suspended' page normally means an unpaid hosting bill or a resource limit breach
- Uptime monitoring tells you a site is down before your customers do
- dijitul fixes downed websites at £45 an hour + VAT, with a 30-minute minimum
Step 1: check whether it is down for everyone
Before anything else, rule out your own connection. Turn Wi-Fi off on your phone and load the site over mobile data. If it works there, the website is fine and the problem is your office network, router or DNS cache. Restarting the router or running ipconfig /flushdns on a Windows PC often clears it.
If the site fails on mobile data too, ask someone in another location to try it, or use a free 'is it down' checker. Once you know it is down for everyone, write down the time it started and anything that changed recently: a plugin update, a new theme, a hosting renewal, a DNS change. That one detail often halves the time it takes to fix.
Step 2: read the error message properly
The error your browser shows is the biggest clue you have. Here is what the common ones mean:
| What you see | Likely cause |
|---|---|
| DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN or 'server IP address could not be found' | Domain expired, nameservers changed, or DNS records deleted |
| 500 Internal Server Error | Faulty plugin, theme, code change or .htaccess rule |
| 502 Bad Gateway, 503 Service Unavailable, 504 Gateway Timeout | Server overloaded, PHP processes stuck, or a host outage |
| ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT or ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED | Server offline, firewall blocking you, or wrong IP in DNS |
| 'Your connection is not private' | Expired or mismatched SSL certificate |
| 'Account suspended' or a host's holding page | Unpaid invoice, resource abuse or a malware report |
| 'There has been a critical error on this website' | A PHP fatal error in WordPress |
If you see the WordPress critical error, follow our WordPress critical error guide. A completely blank page is covered in our white screen of death guide. Certificate warnings are explained in website not secure warnings.
Step 3: check your domain and hosting
Expired domains are one of the most common reasons a small business site vanishes overnight. Look up your domain on a WHOIS service (Nominet's lookup for .uk addresses) and check the expiry date. If it has lapsed, renew it with your registrar straight away; most give a short grace period before the domain is released.
Next, log in to your hosting control panel. Check for unpaid invoices, suspension notices, disk space that has hit 100%, or an email from the host about malware. Look at the host's status page for a wider outage. If you have cPanel or Plesk, open the error log: the last few lines often name the exact file and line that is failing.
Step 4: undo the last change
If the site broke straight after an update, roll that change back. For WordPress, rename the folder of the plugin you just updated inside wp-content/plugins using your host's file manager or SFTP. That deactivates it without needing the dashboard. If a developer edited code, ask them to revert it. If you have a recent backup, restoring it to a staging copy first lets you confirm it works before you overwrite the live site.
Avoid making several changes at once in a panic. Change one thing, test, then move to the next, so you know what actually fixed it.
When to call dijitul
Call us if the error log means nothing to you, if you cannot get into your hosting or domain account, if the site has been hacked, or if every hour offline is costing you orders. We work remotely, find the root cause, fix it and tell you in plain English what went wrong. One-off fixes are £45 an hour + VAT, with a 30-minute minimum then 15-minute blocks. See our emergency website support page or get in touch.
To stop it happening again, our Essential plan at £25 a month + VAT includes uptime monitoring, daily backups and checked updates, so we usually spot the outage before you do.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my website down but working for other people?
If others can reach it but you cannot, the issue is on your side: your router, a stale DNS cache, a VPN or your IP being blocked by the server's firewall after failed logins. Try mobile data, flush DNS and restart the router. If your IP is blocked, your host or dijitul can whitelist it.
How do I know if my domain has expired?
Look up the domain on a WHOIS service. For .uk domains, Nominet's lookup shows the expiry date and registrar. An expired domain usually shows a DNS error or a registrar parking page. Renew it with your registrar immediately, because domains are released after the grace period ends.
What does a 503 Service Unavailable error mean?
A 503 means the web server is running but cannot handle the request right now. Common causes are a traffic spike, PHP worker limits on shared hosting, a stuck maintenance mode file in WordPress, or the host carrying out work. If it lasts more than a few minutes, contact your host or dijitul.
How long does it take to fix a website that is down?
Simple causes such as an expired domain, a faulty plugin or a stuck maintenance file are often fixed within an hour once diagnosed. Hacked sites, corrupted databases or failed server migrations take longer. dijitul charges £45 an hour + VAT and tells you upfront if a fix looks like a bigger job.
Can I stop my website going down again?
You cannot prevent every outage, but you can catch them fast and recover quickly. Uptime monitoring, daily off-server backups, tested updates and keeping your domain on auto-renew cover most causes. dijitul's Essential plan at £25 a month + VAT includes all of these.
Should I contact my host or a developer first?
Check your host's status page and account first. If the host reports a problem or your account is suspended, they are the ones to fix it. If the server is fine but the site shows a 500 error or critical error, the fault is in the website itself, which is where dijitul helps.
Related
Get it fixed
One-off fixes are £45 an hour + VAT. You'll know the likely cost before we start.