How to Fix the WordPress “Briefly Unavailable for Scheduled Maintenance. Check Back in a Minute.” Error 

Have you ever refreshed your WordPress website, only to see a blank page with the following message? “WordPress briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance. Check back in a minute.” 

It’s frustrating and alarming to get any message that prevents you from viewing your website. Any amount of downtime isn’t ideal, especially when it means users who visit during that time will bounce.

Bounce equals potential lost opportunities and sales, which can impact your bottom line.

The good news is that this “unavailable for scheduled maintenance” alert is NOT actually an error message. However, if it hangs around for longer than a few minutes, there could be a problem with your WordPress website that you need to fix.

In other words, your site might be stuck in maintenance mode.

Luckily, this scheduled maintenance error is an issue that’s pretty simple to repair. Let’s jump right into it.

Just A Routine Message, Or A Major WordPress Site Error? 

Most of the time, this maintenance mode message is just temporary. It’s actually an indication that your WordPress site is updating.

While the update is in progress, your website will automatically switch into WordPress maintenance mode. As a result, you (or any of your site visitors) will see this message. 

If you see this message in the middle of scheduled maintenance, wait until your update is complete, then refresh your WordPress site. Once maintenance mode has switched off, the alert message should disappear and your site should function as usual.

WordPress maintenance mode occurs whenever you update a plugin or a theme. However, sometimes WordPress websites get stuck in Maintenance Mode. This can happen for a number of reasons, such as:

• Running too many plugins
• Using plugins that are incompatible with your version of WordPress
• Exiting your browser tab in the middle of a WordPress update
• Trying to update too many plugins at once
• A glitch in the process of updating your WordPress theme

In this case, getting the “unavailable for scheduled maintenance” message for a prolonged period of time does indicate an error.

Maintenance mode should have switched off automatically once your updates were finished. If it didn’t, your WordPress site is stuck in maintenance mode.

What To Do When Your WordPress Site Is Stuck In Scheduled Maintenance

There are a few ways to investigate whether your WordPress site is stuck in maintenance mode. Once you’ve determined that it’s stuck, disabling maintenance mode is simple. You’ll likely need to delete a specific file from your site’s root directory, which should correct the error message.

Before we jump into your site’s file manager, though, we’re going to look at one potential fix inside the NameHero dashboard.

If you host your WordPress site through NameHero, this is an easy solution that might save you some time.

Let’s take a look at how it works.

#1. How to Toggle Maintenance Mode Off in Your NameHero WordPress Manager

You can potentially fix the WordPress maintenance mode error in your NameHero WordPress manager. If you’re getting the “briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance” error message, this is where you should start.

1. First, login to your NameHero dashboard and navigate to MyCloud.

2. Click on My Services.

3. Select your site entry to view your custom maintenance mode page.

4. On this page, you’ll see a number of options for site maintenance, including a wrench icon that allows you to turn on WP maintenance mode. Alternatively, you can also use it to exit maintenance mode.

5. Click the wrench icon. This icon allows you to enable maintenance mode, or to disable it.

6. You’ll see a popup window that will indicate whether your site is in maintenance mode or not. If you’re getting the scheduled maintenance error on your website, you might see that maintenance mode is currently active.

7. Click Change to disable maintenance mode.

Now, maintenance mode should be disabled. Try refreshing your website to see if the “unavailable for scheduled maintenance” message is still displayed.

If you need to enter maintenance mode, you can return to this page and repeat the steps to manually turn it on.

If you’re still getting the “briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance” error, it’s time to look for (and delete) your .maintenance file.

#2. Delete the .Maintenance File From Your File Manager to Turn Off Maintenance Mode

Sometimes, when a gets stuck in the WordPress maintenance mode error, that means the site update process left a specific file in your root directory: the .maintenance file.

Deleting the .maintenance file should resolve the “briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance” alert.

You can find and delete this file one of two ways: by navigating to your website’s root folder via the cPanel file manager or by using FTP (file transfer protocol).

Both approaches are fairly similar. You’ll be locating your site’s root folder, then deleting the .maintenance file.

Here’s how to delete the .maintenance file and turn off maintenance mode using your web host file manager feature.

1. From the NameHero dashboard, navigate to MyCloud, then My Services.

2. Click on cPanel. (If you need help logging in, we’ve created a guide for you here.)

3. From your cPanel dashboard, click File Manager.

4. Now, find the public_html folder in your directory. This is the site’s root folder. It’s also where your main php file is located.

5. Most likely, you’ll need to toggle your settings to view hidden files. The .maintenance file is often hidden until you change the settings in the directory.

To change those settings, click Settings in the upper right-hand corner.

6. Check the box beside Show Hidden Files, then click Save.

7. Now, the .maintenance file should appear in the root directory. (If you don’t see it, you can always use the search bar in the top right corner to locate it.)

8. Delete the .maintenance file from your root directory.

9. Try refreshing your site. The briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance alert should now be fixed.

#3. Use FTP to Delete the .Maintenance File From Your Site

Finally, you can use an FTP client such as FileZilla, CoreFTP, or Cyberduck. To get to your FTP client, you can access it via cPanel. On the NameHero dashboard, it looks like this:

If you need help learning how to configure your FTP client, we’ve created a guide for you here.

Once you’ve logged into FTP, you’ll follow the same steps as you followed from your File Manager to correct the maintenance mode alert:

1. Locate your public_html root directory.

2. If you don’t see the correct file, force showing hidden files.

3. Locate and delete your .maintenance file.

4. Refresh your site to ensure the “briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance” error is gone.

Best Practices for Avoiding the WordPress Maintenance Mode Error Message

Now you know how to get your site unstuck from maintenance mode! There are a few best practices you’ll want to follow to avoid repeating the issue in the future. By avoiding the error, you’ll save downtime–and hopefully, help your bottom line!

• Leave your browser tab open to the WordPress dashboard during your theme or plugin update
• Check for compatibility issues when installing new themes, or before you install additional plugins – the WordPress version you’re using matters
• Plan for site downtime and try to schedule anticipated updates during that time

Make Downtime More Attractive With a WordPress Maintenance Mode Plugin

Did you know that you can create a custom maintenance mode design for your website? A WordPress maintenance mode plugin for your maintenance process could help to improve your user experience while your site is briefly unavailable. Here are a few plugins to choose from:

• LightStart, a free plugin you can use to build a maintenance mode page for WordPress sites
• SeedProd, a plugin with free and pro versions that features a drag-and-drop page builder
• Site Offline Or Coming Soon Or Maintenance Mode, which features an attractive maintenance mode page, site maintenance countdown timer, a free version, and a paid pro version
• Minimal Coming Soon, which features free and paid versions and allows you to build simplistic landing pages, such as a page that alerts WordPress users when your site is briefly unavailable

Whether you choose your own maintenance mode design or stick with the default alert message, it’s great to have options!

Conclusion: You Don’t Have to Stay Stuck in Maintenance Mode

Now that you know what the WordPress maintenance mode error means and how to remove it, there’s no need to stress. Your site’s likely updating automatically and the problem will resolve on its own. Or, you’ll need to dig in and delete your .maintenance file. Fixing this issue is pretty straightforward–if it doesn’t fix itself first.