deactivating causes a critical error

Hi @leopard-lady,

I think this occurs because you have the latest version of Really Simple SSL (Free) enabled next to a very outdated version of Really Simple SSL Pro (4.1.9, latest version is 7.2.5).

Could you start by either updating Pro to the latest available version, or deleting the Pro plugin manually; prior to your attempt to de-activate the Free plugin and remaining on HTTPS?

Kind regards, Jarno

Thank you so much for your fast reply. This is what I needed to know – which one to remove first.

I found your instructions for manual removal – https://really-simple-ssl.com/when-the-built-in-deactivation-does-not-work-manual-uninstalling/

Since we want to retain HTTPS / SSL should I skip step #4?

In general settings, the site URL is already set to HTTPS.

Hi @leopard-lady,

I would recommend removing the ‘old’ version of the Pro plugin from your site first, and after it has been deleted I suspect that you will be able to de-activate the Free plugin and select the “Stay on HTTPS” option.

Kind regards, Jarno

Hi @jarnovos,

Yes, thank you. I understood from your previous reply that I should remove the old PRO version first.

My question is: Since we want to retain HTTPS / SSL should I skip step #4 in the manual removal of the PRO version?

In general settings, the site URL is already set to HTTPS.

I need to do this as gracefully as possible, with minimal downtime. This is our member site with 40k paying customers on it. There are people logging on and off 24/7.

Thank you

Hi @leopard-lady,

That guide explains how to revert all changes made by the plugin, effectively achieving the same results as deactivating the plugin via WordPress and selecting “Revert to HTTP”.

This is why I would, assuming that you have access to the back-end, recommend to use the option that the plugin displays when you de-activate it in the Installed Plugins overview.

As long as you remove the old 4.1.9 version of the Really Simple SSL Pro plugin before de-activating the Free plugin, the error you initially shared shouldn’t occur anymore.

Kind regards, Jarno

Hi @jarnovos,

Thank you for your fast reply.

As I stated in my original post to this thread, I am NOT able to delete the PRO plugin by deactivating it…

When I click on deactivate for the pro version it instantly results in a critical error and crashes the site – front and back end. I am NOT presented with the option to choose HTTP or HTTPS; it just instantly goes to critical error.

This is why I am trying to figure out how to MANUALLY remove as gracefully as possible.

@leopard-lady you can delete the plugin using ftp. This is the most straightforward solution.

If you rename the plugin folder first, you can check that everything keeps working. Then you can remove the folder entirely.

Thank you @rogierlankhorst! That was simple and it worked without crashing the site.

Alright, so now I have the outdated PRO version removed and out of the way.

Now when I click on deactivate for the free version, the only option presented is “Deactivate and use HTTP” – this is not what we want – we want to keep HTTPS.

I’m wondering if I’m just being confused by the button options??
– One button (white with red text) says “Deactivate and use HTTP”
– The other button (blue button) simply says “Deactivate”

If I click the blue button that says “Deactivate” does that mean it will deactivate the plugin and RETAIN the HTTPS structure?? – we want to keep HTTPS.

Here’s where my confusion is coming from – when I look at your documentation on this page – https://really-simple-ssl.com/can-deactivate-really-simple-ssl-activating-ssl/ – it shows an image with 2 buttons and one of the buttons says very clearly “DEACTIVATE, KEEP HTTPS”

Hi @leopard-lady,

You can indeed select the blue “Deactivate” button in your case.

Kind regards, Jarno

Hi @jarnovos and @rogierlankhorst,

Thank you so much! That worked perfectly.

I really appreciate your assistance. You guys ROCK! ??

I’m marking this as “resolved.”

Have a groovy good day guys!
LL