WordPress Login Issue and Shield Security File Errors

  • Resolved Amanda

    (@amahend)


    5 months, 1 week ago

    I recently experienced an issue logging into my WordPress admin. Every attempt redirected me to the homepage with ?redirect_to=…&reauth=1 appended to the URL. I tried troubleshooting by disabling all plugins, turning off Shield Security, and checking folder permissions, but the problem persisted. My error logs repeatedly show file write errors in wp-content/uploads/shield/ and wp-content/shield/, along with some cron-related errors.

    Specific log line is:

    [17-Dec-2025 19:05:22 UTC] PHP Warning: file_get_contents(/home1/ildnhbmy/public_html/wp-content/uploads/shield/test_write_file.txt): Failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home1/ildnhbmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/wp-simple-firewall/src/lib/vendor/fernleafsystems/wordpress-services/src/Core/Fs.php on line 329

    I was able to repair my core files and login is now working, but I would prefer not to keep Shield Security deactivated. I wanted to report this issue and ask if you could review why the plugin could be causing these errors and advise on next steps or recommended settings.

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)
  • Plugin Support Jelena

    (@jmisic)

    5 months, 1 week ago

    To function correctly, Shield will try to write to its own plugin directory, as well as 1 of:
    wp-content/shield/
    wp-content/uploads/shield/

    Based on what you described, the issue is likely occurring because Shield is unable to write and then read its required test files in any of its supported storage locations:
    the plugin directory, wp-content/shield/, or wp-content/uploads/shield/.

    When this happens, Shield treats the environment as unstable and repeatedly triggers re-authentication, which causes the redirect back to the homepage with reauth=1 instead of allowing access to the WordPress admin. The specific error in your log shows that Shield tried to read a test file in wp-content/uploads/shield/, but the file was not found, which indicates the initial write test failed.

    Even if permissions on the folders appear correct, Shield can still fail its file tests if the PHP process cannot actually write to the folder, if server security restrictions block file creation, or if the folder doesn’t exist or is partially damaged for some reason. This could explain why checking permissions alone wasn’t enough to resolve the issue…

    To fix this, you can remove both wp-content/shield/ and wp-content/uploads/shield/. It’s safest to do this while Shield is deactivated, but even if the plugin is active, removing these folders is generally safe and shouldn’t affect your site or content. After removing them, simply re-enable Shield and it will automatically recreate the folder and its test file. Once this is successful, the login redirect issue and related errors should stop.

    If the folders are not recreated after re-enabling Shield, this usually indicates that the server environment is preventing the plugin from writing its own files. Common causes include file system restrictions set by the hosting environment, security modules that block file writes, or the PHP process not having permission to write to the WordPress directories. In this case, you may need to check with your hosting provider to ensure Shield can write to one of its supported storage locations.

    Also, make sure that caching isn’t causing the troubles.

    Hope this helps.

    Thread Starter Amanda

    (@amahend)

    5 months, 1 week ago

    Thank you for your help! The login redirect issue has been resolved.

    Plugin Support Jelena

    (@jmisic)

    5 months, 1 week ago

    You’re very welcome! 🙂 Glad it’s all resolved now.

    And thank you as well for the thorough explanation and logs. These were incredibly helpful.

    Cheers!

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)

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