fatal error

@bezego

This is not a bug in iThemes Security. And this issue is also not caused by the 5.1.0 update …
Perhaps the iTSec plugin Database Backup code needs a bit of optimization.

Anyway probably the iTSec plugin SCHEDULED Database Backup process is running out of memory. It could be your database has simply grown too big …

First you need to make sure your issue is caused by scheduled Database Backups. Goto the iTSec plugin Settings screen and disable the Schedule Database Backups setting in the Database Backups section.

If that resolves the white screen fatal error issue you know it was caused by scheduled Database Backups.

The next step is optimize the databas backup process.

In the Exclude Tables setting of the Database Backups section on the iTSec plugin Settings page make sure the:

[prefix]_itsec_temp,
[prefix]_itsec_lockouts,
[prefix]_itsec_log

tables are excluded from the backup.
(Where [prefix] should be substituted with your database tables prefix).

If you have any other log tables in your database (possibly from other plugins) add those tables to the Exclude Tables setting …

Now check for the presence of wp-content/uploads/ithemes-security/backup.lock folder. Delete the folder manually if it exists.

Next login to your database using phpMyAdmin and if necessary select your database.

To view your database structure, click the Structure tab at the top of your phpMyAdmin window. In the Structure window, you can view the table names, the number of records in each table, the size of each table etc.

Identify the table(s) with 10000s or 100000s records.
Exclude that (those) table(s) from the iTSec plugin Database Backup (if not already).

Then try and create a backup manually. Click on the Create Database Backup button in the iTSec plugin Backups page\tab. If the manual Database Backup completes successfully study the excluded tables. Ask yourself: what data is stored in that (those) table(s) ? Is there any point in including the data of those tables in a backup ? Can I delete all records from this (those) table(s)?

In other words try and reduce the database\backup footprint(size) if possible.

Once you are confident the database\backup footprint is minimized and a manual Database Backup works you can try and enable the Schedule Database Backups setting again …

dwinden

wow thank you! it sounds extremely complicated. I have just disabled scheduled Database Backups. If I understand correctly even if it solves the whitescreen problem I still need to go through the rest of steps? I am asking since I have no clue how to do this and will have to emply someone to do it for me.

Do I need to enable the Schedule Database Backups setting again at all, actually? It would be great news if disabling it was just enough ??

Also would disabling the plugin completely remove the problem? I am not into this tech stuff at all and if keeping the plug means I need to learn all this database stuff or pay someone for doing this now and then it is not really worth the hassle for me.

Thank you very much for you assitance! I have copied your answer and ma going to refer it to someone if it needs to be done. Buz honest to God I hope you will tell me I will not have to ??

@bezego

I like your thankfull enthousiasm ??

Just disabling the plugin Schedule Database Backup setting could very well be enough to solve the white screen issue. So no, you don’t have to go through the other steps.

I just assumed you would want to continue making scheduled database backups. So I included detailed instructions to make the plugin’s scheduled database backup feature play nice again …

Keep in mind, if you do not create regular database backups there is nothing to fall back to when disaster strikes … like getting hacked.
That said, the iTSec plugin is not a specialized nor a complete backup solution. There are plenty of other backup options you can choose of …

So you decide …

Deactivating the iTSec plugin entirely will indeed also resolve this issue (Scheduled Database Backups is a feature of the iTSec plugin).
But it would make your WordPress website vulnerable … so it is not recommended.

dwinden

I have a back-up service at my hosting company so will keep the plugin and just go with disabled option.

Honestly – thank you once again ?? I have no idea how to deal with these thigns and you have helped me tremendously ??