WordPress plugins enhance your website’s functionality, but sometimes, a faulty plugin can break your site or lock you out of the admin dashboard. If you can’t access your WordPress dashboard to disable plugins manually, you can use phpMyAdmin to deactivate all plugins at once.

This guide will show you how to disable all WordPress plugins using phpMyAdmin, step by step.

1. Why Use phpMyAdmin to Deactivate Plugins?

There are several situations where you may need to deactivate all plugins manually:

• White screen of death (WSOD): A faulty plugin may prevent WordPress from loading properly.
• Admin dashboard inaccessible: Some plugins can block access to wp-admin.
• Website crashes after plugin update: A plugin conflict may cause errors.

In these cases, phpMyAdmin provides a quick solution by allowing you to disable all plugins directly from your database.

2. How to Access phpMyAdmin

phpMyAdmin is a database management tool available in most web hosting control panels, such as cPanel and Plesk.

Steps to Open phpMyAdmin

1. Log in to your web hosting account.
2. Navigate to cPanel or your hosting dashboard.
3. Look for the phpMyAdmin option and click it.
4. In phpMyAdmin, locate your WordPress database (its name often includes “wp” or your site name).

3. Deactivating All Plugins Using phpMyAdmin

Once you have access to phpMyAdmin, follow these steps to disable all WordPress plugins:

Step 1: Open the wp_options Table

1. In phpMyAdmin, find your WordPress database in the left panel.
2. Click on the table named wp_options (your table prefix may vary, e.g., wp123_options).
3. Look for the active_plugins row under the option_name column.

Step 2: Edit the active_plugins Row

1. Locate the row with option_name = active_plugins (usually on the first page).
2. Click Edit to modify the value.
3. In the option_value field, delete the current data and replace it with:phpCopyEdita:0:{}
4. Click Save or Go to apply the changes.

Step 3: Check Your WordPress Dashboard

• Go to your website and refresh the page.
• Try logging into your WordPress wp-admin panel.
• If successful, you should now be able to access your site without plugin-related issues.

4. Reactivating Plugins One by One

Once you regain access to WordPress, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins in your WordPress dashboard.
2. Reactivate your plugins one at a time to identify the problematic one.
3. If a plugin causes issues again, deactivate it and look for an alternative or update it.

5. Alternative Methods to Disable Plugins

If you are not comfortable using phpMyAdmin, you can also disable plugins via:

• File Manager / FTP: Rename the wp-content/plugins folder to plugins_disabled.
• WP-CLI (for advanced users): Use command-line tools to deactivate plugins.

Conclusion

Using phpMyAdmin to deactivate all WordPress plugins is a powerful troubleshooting method when you’re locked out of your site. By following the steps above, you can quickly regain access and resolve plugin-related issues.

If this process feels too technical or confusing, I’m here to help! Contact me for expert WordPress support and troubleshooting services.