writing options ping list 403 forbidden error

Not sure what you’ve actually looked at or tried…

Have you asked your host about mod_security? Is it on for that server? If it is, and you search around here for “403 mod_security” you’ll hit a reasonably recent looong thread that culminates in a work-around.

G’day Handysolo,
What havn’t I tried is more the question ??
All the posts in here I could find including
mod_security one’s related to posts and words
used etc. I have a whm with 100 accounts on it
and mod _security has not been setup as far as
as I can tell, it is listed in the add-ons but
has not been added.
I tried chmod’n things different, I looked at what
appache handlers are on this server and the work’n
wp sites servers, I seem to have checked everything,
I even reloaded wp and reinstalled it, but as I said
I have a few wp sites on this server and they are all
doin the same freak’n problem
My other servers all install wp fine and all work
this 1 lets me install em and all works except saving
anything in the pinglist, sigh.
As I had changed nothing in wp upload and install
from 1 server to another I figure it has to be a
problem on this server that maybe my host needs to fix.
Just thought before I had a serious brain meltdown I
should ask some other more knowlegdibled people ??

Thanks

Dave Underwood

“I have a whm with 100 accounts on it
and mod _security has not been setup as far as
as I can tell, it is listed in the add-ons but has not been added.”

Listed in addons where, and what have you done to verify that it is not installed?

This is an important question because you mentioned that other wp installs on the same box are behaving the same way.

That ought to tell you straight-away that it’s a box problem.

Create a file, add <? phpinfo(); ?> to it, rename it to something that ends in .php (checker.php, etc..)

Upload that file to your server and open it in your browser. Scroll down to where you see Apache in big letters.

Look at the installed modules. Do you see mod_security listed? Yes? No?

G’day,
Well seems it must be this mod_security as
that is not in the other servers whm
Whooami I did as you sugested and made that
file and put it in the root user for whm and
1 of the accounts and could see most things
except appache modules ??
blog.infertility.guide-for-you.com/checker.php
I been at this problem for too long with no
solution, so it is time to get the host to
sort the box, get rid of that mod_security I
beleive is the solution.

Thanks heaps for your prompt and excellent support

Dave Underwood

dave,

I checked that file, and you are correct, oddly enough its not showing the Apache setup anywhere. Thats not normal either ;P

You mentioned that you have a lot of domains on that box, if in fact thats the case, and if mod_security is the problem, your host should probably deal with it.

There is a way to disable mod_security through your .htaccess but for multiple domains (100’s?) it would be a pain in the arse to have edit all those .htaccess.

G’day,
“I checked that file, and you are correct, oddly enough its not showing the Apache setup anywhere. Thats not normal either ;P “
Thanks Whooami I did a phpinfo for the root user too
and IT had no apache info either, I’d used a phpinfo
before and thought it should be there, nice to have
others confirm things when you are work’n alone.
Nice to know I am not completly insane.
I just did 1 for a site on the other server and it has
a whole heap of apache stuff in it
I will hand this problem over to the box host.

Thanks for all your help.

Dave Underwood

you’re welcome, sorry I couldn’t help more. Good luck!

I just ran into this. I believe it has something to do with a domain name that has a slash in it.

Here is a list I was saving…

https://rpc.weblogs.com/RPC2
https://rpc.pingomatic.com/
https://api.moreover.com/RPC2
https://api.feedster.com/ping
https://ping.feedburner.com
https://coreblog.org/ping/
https://ping.cocolog-nifty.com/xmlrpc

which failed
403
Forbidden
You don’t have permission to access /blog/timstidbits/wp-admin/options.php on this server.

But, if I remove the last line (the only one with a dash in the domain) it works!

As I understand it, “xmlrpc” is often one of the “bad words” that mod_security won’t like. And an unhappy mod_security often will explain HTTP 403 responses.

I’m not completely sure, but it also might have something to do with what I found, and documented on my blog:

https://www.sunflowerroad.com/blog/timstidbits/2006/11/30/quick-solution-to-vexing-http-post-problem/