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How to deactivate all plugins when not able to access the administrative menus? Sometimes it may be necessary to deactivate all plugins, but you can’t access the Administration Screens to do so. One of two methods are available to deactivate all plugins.

Use phpMyAdmin to deactivate all plugins.

In the table wp_options, under the option_name column (field) find the active_plugins row Change the option_value field to: a:0:{}

Obviously, the article is written with the assumption it is being read by someone experience in phpMyAdmin, because there is absolutely no explanation on how to find the enumerated table.

I’ve spent 17 years in IT and it always amazes me how so many people author a “How To” article that assumes the reader knows the same things the author knows.

By https://profiles.wordpress.org/scootertrash/

[github-actions[bot]]

Heads up @WordPress/docs-issues-coordinators, we have a new issue open. Time to use 'em labels.

[karthick-murugan]

Please update the content of How to deactivate all plugins when not able to access the administrative menus? with the following and easier to understanding instructions.

How to deactivate all plugins when not able to access the administrative menus?

Sometimes it may be necessary to deactivate all plugins, but you can’t access the Administration Screens to do so. There are two methods available to deactivate all plugins:

Method 1: Use phpMyAdmin to deactivate all plugins

If you're familiar with phpMyAdmin, you can use this method to deactivate all plugins directly in the database. If you're unfamiliar with phpMyAdmin, ask your hosting provider for assistance or refer to their documentation.

Log in to phpMyAdmin: Access phpMyAdmin via your web host's control panel.

Select your WordPress database: In the left panel, click on the database that your WordPress site uses.

Find the wp_options table: In the list of tables, look for the wp_options table. This table contains various configuration options for your WordPress site.

Locate the active_plugins row: Inside the wp_options table, find the row with the option_name column labeled as active_plugins. This row contains information about which plugins are currently active.

Change the option_value field: In the option_value column of the active_plugins row, change the value to: a:0:{} This will deactivate all plugins on your site. If you are unsure how to edit the value, you can click "Edit" on the row and replace the value in the option_value field with a:0:{}.

Save changes: After changing the value, click "Go" to save your changes. All plugins will now be deactivated.

Note: If you are not familiar with phpMyAdmin, you may want to reach out to your hosting provider or a developer for assistance in using this tool.

Method 2: Use FTP or File Manager to deactivate all plugins

This method allows you to disable plugins by renaming the plugins folder, which preserves plugin settings but requires plugins to be manually reactivated.

Access your website files: Using FTP (via a client like FileZilla) or your hosting provider’s file manager, navigate to the wp-content directory of your WordPress site.

Rename the plugins folder: In the wp-content folder, locate the plugins folder. Rename it to something like plugins.hold. This will disable all plugins.

Log in to WordPress: Now, try to log in to your WordPress admin page (/wp-admin/plugins.php). WordPress will show a message indicating that plugins are missing, effectively deactivating them.

Rename the folder back: After logging in, use FTP or the file manager to rename the plugins.hold folder back to plugins. This restores the folder, but all plugins will remain deactivated, and you can reactivate them individually.

[karthick-murugan]

/assign

[github-actions[bot]]

Hey @karthick-murugan, thanks for your interest in this issue! 🍪🍪🍪
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask them in our #docs Slack channel.
Enjoy and happy contributing ❤️

[github-actions[bot]]

Heads up @docs-reviewers - the "[Status] Review" label was applied to this issue.