How to Detect Website Errors
Owning a website is vital for most companies these days. Businesses and personal brands can see exponential growth from a well-designed website. But a website has the power to hurt your business if it’s not fully functional. As a professional business owner you should know basic things about website errors ans can learn some simple guide about how to detect website errors. so that you can easily tackle the situation. With web hosting management features available both online and for-hire, you can check your website for errors and rectify them. Here are some of the common errors your website may have and what problems they can indicate.
Web Hosting Management Numbered Errors
When trying to access a website or certain features of a website, users may come across a variety of numbered issues. These issues usually indicate an error in the server or website code and should be addressed as soon as possible. As a website owner or manager, checking your pages regularly for these errors is important.
- 500 – Internal Server Error
Error 500 is the most common error that users see. It doesn’t point to a specific problem, but rather is an umbrella error for any internal problems the server may be having. The most common cause for a 500 error is a server that is overloaded. To rectify this error, contact your hosting provider to have them check the server and ensure that everything is working properly. If you run a website through WordPress, you can also experience this error if a third-party plug-in is having issues, and you should check each one to see if they are the problem.
- 404 – Not Found
Error 404 is the second most common error and indicates that a web page does not actually exist. This can be from user error (such as when a user stops a webpage from loading too soon or has a typo in the URL). But sometimes, the error can be made when a server is running slowly, or the web page file is too large to load. Having 404 web pages on your website can negatively affect your bounce rate, lowering your online presence and reducing the effectiveness of your website. If you encounter a 404 error on your website, check to make sure that the files are loaded correctly and aren’t too big.
- 501 – Not Implemented
A user can get a 501 error when their browser does not support a certain webpage feature. When hosting or managing a website, it’s important to check all pages from a variety of browsers, or at least the main three (Google Chrome, Edge, Firefox) to ensure that all features show up properly. Many HTML and CSS guidelines have alternate coding you can use to support features on different browsers.
- 502 – Service Temporarily Overloaded
Error 502 indicates a serious problem: server overload. When the server becomes too busy or there is too much traffic on a website, the hardware is unable to handle the workload and can cause the site to crash. The error will resolve itself as time goes on and traffic decreases. However, if you find this error frequently occurring on your website, you’ll want to consider upgrading your hosting plan to help accommodate more web traffic on your site.
- 408 – Request Time-Out
A 408 error can also occur when there are high levels of traffic to your website. If you continue to see or get reports about 408 errors, it’s a good idea to look into upgrading your account and server resources to help alleviate the problem.
- 503 – Service Unavailable
A 503 error means that the server is down. If you host through a hosting provider, this error should rarely be seen and will be rectified as soon as possible. However, if you see the error persisting, it’s a good idea to contact your provider to inquire about the issue.
Other Web Hosting Management Errors
Not every error will show up in a big way that requires a number identification. In fact, some of the smaller, feature-based errors can often negatively influence your website the most. It’s important to check for these errors regularly to ensure that your website is running smoothly and helping your business or brand grow.
- Broken Links
Links on web pages are at the heart of your online presence. These links can send users to your web pages that can boost business, and they can also lead users to affiliate sites that can boost partnerships with other companies. However, having a broken link on your website is worse than having no links at all.
When a search engine considers who to display in a search result, they take the number and quality of website links into consideration. If your website has a link that doesn’t lead anywhere (such as if the website it links to is no longer active), then the webpage may be flagged as spam. Not only will you lose search results, but you’ll also lose the confidence of your users if they attempt to access the broken link.
- Accessibility
Although it’s not necessarily a make-or-break decision, making sure that your website has functional accessibility features is important to maintaining user satisfaction. Having accessibility ensures that all website users can browse your website, providing a larger pool of customers and clients.
A common accessibility feature many website owners miss out on is the alternate description of images. Providing an alternate description allows screen readers to describe the photo to sight-impaired users. It’s also a useful tool that can help boost your SEO score when utilized properly.
Web Hosting Management with Cirrus Hosting
Managing a website takes a lot of work. If you’re a business owner, you may not have the time and energy available to devote to website management. At Cirrus Hosting, we provide web hosting management services that help detect and rectify errors as they occur on your website. With our constant monitoring and communication, we’ll help ensure that your website is running smoothly at all times. To begin your web hosting journey, you can browse our available plans online or give us a call at 1-647-478-9984 to learn more about our management options.
