Common Issues and Solutions

Plugin Activation Issues

Plugin Won’t Activate

Symptoms:

1. Error message during activation
2. White screen after clicking Activate
3. Plugin appears inactive after activation attempt

Possible Causes:

4. PHP version too old (requires 7.4+)
5. Insufficient memory
6. File permission issues
7. Conflicting plugins
8. Corrupted files

Solutions:

Check PHP Version:
`

9. Go to Tools → Site Health → Info → Server
10. Look for PHP Version
11. Must be 7.4 or higher
12. Contact host to upgrade if needed

`

Increase Memory Limit:
Add to wp-config.php:
`php
define(‘WPMEMORYLIMIT’, ‘256M’);
`

Check File Permissions:

13. Directories: 755
14. Files: 644
15. Use FTP client or hosting control panel

Disable Other Plugins:

16. Deactivate all plugins except ShahiTranslate Pro
17. Try activating again
18. If successful, reactivate others one by one to find conflict

Reinstall Plugin:

19. Delete plugin completely
20. Re-upload fresh copy from purchase
21. Activate again

Database Errors on Activation


Error: “Cannot create database tables”

Causes:

22. Database user lacks permissions
23. Database full
24. Character set issues

Solutions:

25. Check Database Permissions:

– User needs CREATE and ALTER privileges
– Contact hosting provider

26. Check Available Space:

– Database might be at quota limit
– Clean up unused tables/data

27. Manual Table Creation:

– Run SQL directly in phpMyAdmin
– Find SQL in plugin’s includes/database-migration.php

Language Switcher Issues


Switcher Not Visible


Symptoms:

28. Language switcher doesn’t appear on site
29. Can’t find switcher anywhere

Solutions:

30. Verify Settings:

– Go to ShahiTranslate Pro → Settings → Switcher
– Ensure position is set
– Save settings

31. Check Active Languages:

– Need at least 2 active languages
– Settings → Languages → Active Languages

32. Clear Cache:

– Clear site cache (caching plugin)
– Clear browser cache (Ctrl+F5)
– Purge CDN cache if using one

33. Check Theme Compatibility:

– Some themes hide elements in header/footer
– Try different position (floating button)
– Use shortcode: [shahitranslate_switcher]

34. CSS Conflict:

– Theme CSS might hide switcher
– Add to Customizer → Additional CSS:
`css
.shahitranslate-switcher {
display: block !important;
visibility: visible !important;
opacity: 1 !important;
}
`

Switcher Appears But Doesn’t Work


Symptoms:

35. Switcher visible but clicking does nothing
36. No languages in dropdown
37. JavaScript errors

Solutions:

38. Check Browser Console:

– Press F12, go to Console tab
– Look for JavaScript errors
– Share errors with support if needed

39. Verify JavaScript Loading:

– Settings → Advanced → Enable JavaScript
– Make sure script loading enabled

40. Disable JS Minification Temporarily:

– In caching plugin, disable JS minification
– Test if switcher works
– If yes, exclude ShahiTranslate scripts from minification

41. jQuery Conflict:

– Another plugin might be causing conflict
– Try disabling other plugins temporarily

Flags Not Showing


Symptoms:

42. Language names appear but no flags
43. Broken image icons

Solutions:

44. Enable Flags:

– Settings → Switcher → Display Options
– Check “Show Flags”

45. Check Flag Path:

– Verify flag files exist: /wp-content/plugins/shahitranslate-pro/assets/ShahiFlags/
– Re-upload plugin if files missing

46. File Permissions:

– Flag files need to be readable (644 permissions)

47. CDN/Security Plugin Blocking:

– Whitelist flag directory in security plugin
– Ensure CDN serves flag files

Translation Issues


Content Not Translating


Symptoms:

48. All content stays in default language
49. Language switches but content doesn’t change

Solutions:

50. Check Translation Method:

– Settings → General → Translation Engine
– Make sure not set to “None” or “Manual Only” (unless intended)

51. Verify API Key (for automatic translation):

– Settings → API Settings
– Test API key
– Check Google Cloud Console for API status
– Ensure billing enabled on Google Cloud

52. Check API Quota:

– You might have exceeded API limits
– Check Google Cloud Console for quota usage
– Increase quota or wait for reset

53. Clear Translation Cache:

– Settings → General → Cache Settings → Clear Cache
– Try switching languages again

54. Check Excluded Content:

– Settings → Advanced → Exclusions
– Make sure you haven’t excluded the content accidentally

Poor Translation Quality


Symptoms:

55. Translations are incorrect
56. Gibberish or wrong language
57. Missing context

Solutions:

58. Switch to Manual Translation:

– For important content, use manual translation
– Settings → General → Hybrid Mode
– Override poor automatic translations

59. Add to Glossary:

– Define key terms, brand names, technical vocabulary
– Settings → Advanced → Glossary

60. Improve Source Content:

– Use clear, simple language in source
– Avoid idioms and slang
– Break up long, complex sentences

61. Use Google Translate API V3:

– Higher quality than V2
– Settings → API Settings → API Version → V3

62. Set Context (API V3 only):

– Provide industry/domain context
– Improves translation accuracy

Partial Translation


Symptoms:

63. Some content translates, some doesn’t
64. Mixed languages on page

Solutions:

65. Check Content Type Settings:

– Settings → Advanced → Content Settings
– Ensure all desired content types are enabled

66. Theme-Specific Content:

– Some theme elements may not be auto-translated
– Use theme’s translation files or translate manually

67. Excluded Elements:

– Check if content has .notranslate class
– Review exclusion settings

68. Custom Fields:

– Settings → Advanced → Custom Fields
– Add custom field names that should be translated

69. Builder Content:

– Page builders (Elementor, etc.) may need special handling
– Check builder-specific integration settings

Performance Issues


Slow Page Loading


Symptoms:

70. Pages load slowly after installing plugin
71. Timeout errors
72. High server load

Solutions:

73. Enable Caching:

– Settings → General → Cache Settings
– Enable Translation Cache
– Set appropriate cache duration

74. Enable Object Cache:

– Install Redis or Memcached
– Install Redis Object Cache plugin
– Dramatically improves performance

75. Reduce Active Languages:

– Only activate languages you actually need
– Each language adds overhead

76. Optimize Database:

– Use database optimization plugin
– Or phpMyAdmin: Select tables → Optimize

77. Use CDN:

– Serve flag images and scripts from CDN
– Cache translated pages at edge

78. Limit Translation Scope:

– Don’t translate everything
– Exclude comments, archives, search results

High API Costs


Symptoms:

79. Unexpectedly high Google Translate API bills
80. Rapid API quota depletion

Solutions:

81. Enable Aggressive Caching:

– Increase cache duration to 90 days
– Ensure cache is working (check stats)

82. Reduce Translated Content:

– Exclude unnecessary content types
– Don’t translate comments, user-generated content

83. Implement Translation Memory:

– Reuses common phrases
– Settings → Advanced → Translation Memory

84. Use Manual for Key Pages:

– Translate important pages manually
– Let automatic handle less critical content

85. Set Budget Alerts:

– Google Cloud Console → Billing → Budget Alerts
– Get notified before spending too much

SEO Issues


Duplicate Content Warnings


Symptoms:

86. Google Search Console shows duplicate content
87. Multiple URLs for same content

Solutions:

88. Enable hreflang Tags:

– Settings → SEO → hreflang Tags
– Automatically tells Google about language versions

89. Set Canonical URLs:

– Settings → SEO → Canonical URLs
– Points to original version of content

90. Use Correct URL Structure:

– Subdirectory structure (example.com/es/) is best for SEO
– Settings → Advanced → URL Settings

91. Submit Multilingual Sitemap:

– Settings → SEO → Generate Sitemap
– Submit to Google Search Console

Pages Not Indexing in Google


Symptoms:

92. Translated pages don’t appear in search results
93. Low organic traffic to translated versions

Solutions:

94. Check Robots.txt:

– Ensure not blocking language URLs
– Visit: yoursite.com/robots.txt

95. Verify hreflang Implementation:

– Use Google Search Console → International Targeting
– Check for hreflang errors

96. Submit Sitemap:

– Generate multilingual sitemap
– Submit to Google Search Console
– Each language version should be included

97. Check Meta Robots Tag:

– Ensure pages aren’t set to “noindex”
– Verify in page source:

98. Build Backlinks:

– Create content specifically for target language audience
– Get links from sites in target language

Compatibility Issues


Theme Conflicts


Symptoms:

99. Site layout breaks
100. Styling issues after activation
101. Theme features stop working

Solutions:

102. Disable Theme CSS Override:

– Settings → Advanced → Disable Theme Styles
– See if issue resolves

103. Update Theme:

– Ensure using latest theme version
– Check theme documentation for multilingual support

104. Contact Theme Developer:

– Report compatibility issue
– Ask for integration guidance

105. Use Child Theme:

– Create child theme
– Add custom CSS/PHP to fix conflicts

Plugin Conflicts


Common Conflicts:

106. Other translation plugins (WPML, Polylang)
107. Caching plugins (can cause issues if not configured)
108. Security plugins (may block API calls)
109. Page builders (may need special handling)

Solutions:

110. Deactivate Conflicting Plugin:

– Can’t use two translation plugins simultaneously
– Choose one

111. Configure Caching Plugin:

– Exclude dynamic translation elements from cache
– Set up language-specific caching

112. Whitelist API Calls:

– In security plugin, allow Google Translate API domain
– Allow plugin’s AJAX endpoints

113. Check Plugin Documentation:

– Look for known conflicts
– Follow integration guides

WooCommerce Issues


Symptoms:

114. Product pages not translating
115. Cart/checkout in wrong language
116. Email notifications untranslated

Solutions:

117. Enable WooCommerce Integration:

– Settings → Integrations → WooCommerce
– Enable all necessary options

118. Translate Product Data:

– Products → Edit Product → ShahiTranslate section
– Add translations for title, description, short description

119. Translate WooCommerce Strings:

– Settings → String Translation
– Find and translate WooCommerce strings (Add to Cart, Price, etc.)

120. Email Templates:

– Requires manual translation or template customization
– Use plugin like “WooCommerce Multilingual Emails”

RTL (Right-to-Left) Issues


RTL Layout Not Working


Symptoms:

121. Arabic/Hebrew text displays left-to-right
122. Layout doesn’t flip for RTL languages

Solutions:

123. Enable RTL Support:

– Settings → Languages → RTL Settings
– Enable RTL for Arabic, Hebrew, etc.

124. Check Theme RTL Support:

– Not all themes fully support RTL
– May need custom CSS

125. Add Custom RTL CSS:

– Settings → Advanced → Custom RTL CSS
– Add theme-specific RTL fixes

126. Force RTL Direction:

`css
body.rtl {
direction: rtl;
text-align: right;
}
`

Mixed Text Direction


Symptoms:

127. English words in Arabic text display wrong
128. Numbers in wrong direction

Solutions:

129. Use Unicode Directionality:

– Plugin handles this automatically
– If issues persist, wrap mixed content:
`html
English text
`

130. Configure Mixed Content Handling:

– Settings → Languages → RTL → Mixed Content
– Choose automatic or manual handling

Getting More Help


Before Contacting Support


131. Check Documentation: Review all relevant KB articles
132. Check Error Logs: Tools → Site Health → Info
133. Test with Default Theme: Switch to Twenty Twenty-Four
134. Disable Other Plugins: Test with only ShahiTranslate active
135. Clear All Caches: Site, browser, CDN

Information to Provide


When contacting support, include:

136. WordPress version
137. PHP version
138. Plugin version
139. Active theme
140. Active plugins list
141. Error messages (exact text)
142. Steps to reproduce issue
143. Screenshots if applicable

Support Channels


144. Documentation: Check KB articles first
145. Support Ticket: Through your account dashboard
146. Email: support@shahitranslate.com
147. Priority Support: Available with certain licenses

Next Steps


148. Advanced Troubleshooting
149. Performance Optimization
150. Installation Guide