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Briefly Unavailable For Scheduled Maintenance: Here’s The Fix

Many users often report that they are unable to update some specific WordPress plugins. Usually, it happens when the updating process is not completed successfully. 

At this juncture, you might notice the error message “Briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance. Check back in a minute.” This error indicates that WordPress is somehow stuck in the maintenance mode. 

If you are experiencing this problem, have a look at the rest of this post to restore the WordPress site in its working state. Here, we are going to discuss some of the most effective ways to solve this error in minutes. So, let’s start. 

Quick Fixes for the “Briefly Unavailable for Scheduled Maintenance. Check Back in a Minute” Error

When WordPress gets stuck into the maintenance mode, it creates some “.maintenance” files in its directory. Once you complete the updating process, it deletes those files automatically. 

But, if the updating gets interrupted in the middle of the process, it doesn’t get enough time to delete the .maintenance files. Then, this error starts to pop-up constantly. 

Hence, one of the simplest ways to solve this problem is by deleting the .maintenance files manually from the WordPress directory. Below are some of the most appropriate ways to perform this task. So, you can perform the hacks explained below: 

Solution 1: Using FTP

First, you can delete the .maintenance files by using the FTP. Here are the steps you can follow to do this: 

  1. First and foremost, log into the WordPress directory using a third-party FTP client. In such applications or software, you will find several folders and files such as WP-Content, WP-admin, etc. 
  2. Now, search for the .maintenance files and right-click on them. Choose the ‘Delete’ option from the list. 
  3. Afterward, refresh the website and check if the .maintenance file is deleted. 

Note: If you are unable to locate the .maintenance file inside the WordPress directory, you can navigate to the ‘Server on FTP client’ menu. Then, select the ‘Force Showing Hidden Files’ option. 

Now, if you see that the error message persists, move on to the further solutions provided below. 

Solution 2: Using the File Manager

If you don’t have the access to your FTP server, you can delete the .maintenance file from the File Manager. To do this, you can take a glance at the steps mentioned below: 

  • In the beginning, log into the web hosting account you are using and click on the File Manager icon. 
  • Click on the ‘Upload Files Now’ from the next page to open the File manager. 
  • Now, search for the .maintenance file from the WordPress directory and right-click on it. 
  • Select the ‘Delete/Remove’ option from the list. 

Afterward, refresh the page to check whether the error message “Briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance” is solved. Otherwise, you can go to the next solution described below. 

Solution 3: Using SHH

By using Command-Line, you can delete the “.maintenance” file as well. To try this fix, you have to create an SHH connection to the webserver. 

First, tap on the ‘+’ symbol from the Connection browser. It will open the SSH Connection pop-up box. Now, fill the Name, Host, Port, User, SCI properly and check the ‘Forward Agent Connection’ box. Tap on the Save button to complete this process. 

After that, go as per the below-discussed steps to delete the “.maintenance” file from the WordPress directory: 

  1. Go to the WordPress directory. You can find this easily from the ‘public_html’ folder. If you are unable to get this, then you can search for the ‘cd public_html’ folder instead. 
  2. Afterward, locate the “.maintenance” file by using the appropriate command.
  3. Right-click on that file and click on the Delete option. 

Now, you can refresh the site to check if the issue is resolved. Else, you can check out the next method stated below. 

Solution 4: Using WP-ACTIVATE.PHP

If the above methods don’t help you to get rid of the “Briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance” error message, you can try this method. 

First, download the wp-activate.php from the WordPress directory to the system using File Manager. Afterward, open the wp-activate.php by using an open-source text and source code editor. Then, search for the ‘define (‘WP_INSTALLING’, true).’

Next, replace the variable true by including ‘false’ in the code like ‘define (‘WP_INSTALLING’, false).’ Save the changes and upload the wp-activate.php in the WordPress directory. As a result, it will delete the .maintanence file automatically. 

Now, refresh the website and check if the error is resolved. 

Wrapping Up

This error message may put you in panic in the first look. However, here, we have presented some effective ways to fix this server error due to scheduled maintenance. We hope that this guide will be helpful to resolve the WordPress issue. 

In addition, you can share your valuable feedback regarding the solutions in the comment section. It is given at the end of this post. 

For more updates on troubleshooting tips for scheduled maintenance error, keep visiting our posts regularly. 

 

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