You go to check your WordPress site and—BAM—you’re hit with:
“Briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance. Check back in a minute.”
And then… nothing changes. One minute becomes five. Five becomes “why is my website still down??”
Don’t worry. You haven’t broken the internet (yet). WordPress just forgot to clean up after itself.
Let’s fix it together—with zero drama and just a sprinkle of nerdy charm.
The Quick Fix: Delete .maintenance
When WordPress updates a plugin, theme, or the core, it puts itself into maintenance mode using a little file called .maintenance. Normally, it deletes this file after the update finishes.
But sometimes WordPress trips on its own shoelaces and forgets to take the sign down.
Here’s how to fix it:
- Access your site files (via FTP or your hosting’s file manager)
- Go to the root folder of your WordPress install (where
wp-config.phplives) - Delete the
.maintenancefile - Reload your site—poof, you’re back in business
Why This Happens
WordPress is like that friend who promises to clean up after the party, but then falls asleep on the couch with pizza on their chest.
If an update crashes or times out, WordPress forgets to delete the .maintenance file, leaving your site in limbo.
Bonus Round: Make Sure Everything Updated Properly
After you delete the .maintenance file:
- Head to Dashboard > Updates
- Check if any updates are still pending or got stuck halfway
- Re-run them if needed—this time with fingers crossed
Pro Tip
If this happens often, consider setting up a staging site for updates or using a maintenance plugin that gives you more control (and doesn’t ghost you mid-update).
Need help with WordPress headaches like this? I help businesses save time, cut stress, and look good online—even when WordPress throws a tantrum. Let’s talk.
