Troubleshooting and FAQ
Find your symptom, try the fixes in order.
The plugin or SLB Editor menu is not showing
- Open . Is SLB listed and active?
- If not listed, the upload failed. Re-upload the zip. The zip must contain a single
slbfolder at its top level. - Your account must be able to edit pages to see SLB Editor, and be an administrator to see Settings and Developer Mode.
- Check PHP is 7.4 or newer ().
The editor is blank or stuck on loading
- Reload with Ctrl+F5.
- Disable browser extensions (ad blockers sometimes interfere) or try a private window.
- Check you are still logged in. A timed-out session can leave the editor blank.
- Check that your host or a security plugin is not blocking the WordPress REST API ( will warn).
- Deactivate other plugins briefly to find a conflict.
Changes do not save or will not publish
- Session expired: reload, log in, redo the change (use Undo history before reloading if possible).
- Security plugin or firewall blocking the save request: ask your host to allow the REST route
/wp-json/slb/. - Required section missing or a field has an invalid value: look for red messages on the section.
A section I expect is missing
See Adding sections.
MCP errors
| Message or symptom | Fix |
|---|---|
| 404 and "slb_dev_disabled" | Turn Developer Mode on (how). If locked by SLB_DEV_MODE, ask your host. |
| 401 or 403 | Check WP_USER and WP_APP_PASSWORD. Make sure the user is an administrator. Some hosts strip the login header; ask the host to pass the Authorization header through. Regenerate the credential in Settings. |
| "no_draft" | Ask Claude to create the draft theme. |
| "Theme not compatible" | Activate an SLB-compatible theme such as the starter (how). |
| Connection refused or refuses plain http | Use an https address. For a local test site add ALLOW_INSECURE_HTTP=true to .env. |
| Password rejected as too short | It must be at least 20 characters; copy it in full. Spaces are ignored. |
| Tools do not appear in Claude | Run npm install in the mcp folder, check the path in the add command, restart Claude Code. Set DEBUG=true in .env for more detail. |
Application Password problems
- No MCP Connection button, or Application Passwords unavailable: needs WordPress 5.6+ over HTTPS, and a security plugin may be disabling them.
- The password was only shown once. Click Regenerate for a new one.
- To revoke: .
Audit will not run
- The audit needs Chrome or Edge on the computer running the MCP.
- If it cannot find it, set
SLB_BROWSER_PATHin.envto the browser program, for exampleC:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe. - If a "playwright-core" error appears, run
npm installagain in themcpfolder.
New sections have no styling, or CSS not updating
- Ask Claude to run
slb_build_css. New sections need their styles added to the compiled stylesheet. - Clear your site cache (cache plugin, host or CDN) and your browser cache.
- Check the preview link rather than the live site if you are working on a draft.
FAQ
- Does SLB work with any theme?
- Pages with SLB sections render on any theme, but Claude's draft workflow needs an SLB-compatible theme such as the starter.
- Will my pages survive if I remove SLB?
- Only if you turned on Keep pages readable without SLB and republished. Even then, shop features and styling are lost.
- Can I use shortcodes?
- SLB does not use shortcodes for its own content.
- Can clients set different mobile layouts?
- No. Responsive layout is built into sections.
- Can Claude publish by itself?
- No. You publish in the browser.