Brand Your WordPress Blog’s Database Error Page
Written by Pradeep Kumar in Featured, WordPress - Print This Post
The hardest part for a blogger would be satisfying readers faced with downtime. You have to convince them in a manner they won’t get frustrated and also please them visit again.
Whenever your WordPress has a problem connecting to your database, you can display a custom database error page to your readers. You can make those pages branded so that your blog can still shine during that downtime.
Creating Custom WordPress Database Error Page
1. Open any Text Editor – Notepad or Notepad ++ (Check some alternatives here). Now it’s time to play with your creativity and imagination. Create a creative custom Database error page now, don’t forget to use your blog’s logo there and also some apologies for the downtime.
Also if you have a status blog, ask your readers to check that, so that they can know the cause of the downtime and when your blog will be up again.
2. Save that file as db-error.php.
3. Now move this file to your wp-content section. Use FTP Client like Filezilla (check alternatives here) for doing that.
Why wp-content folder? Even if you upgrade WordPress, the contents will be still present there.
4. That’s all, bingo! You can check HBB’s Custom Database Error page using this URL :
http://hellboundbloggers.com/wp-content/db-error.php
Most of us lose our blog readers because of downtime, you can also create a Status Blog for communicating with your readers during that downtime.
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Will the blog be redirected to the db-error page automatically in case of actual database error?
Yes Sidhant, it will be automatically redirected.
Okay, cool!:-)
Creating site's database error page is a brilliant idea. However, how do I know if the page shows up when the site is down?
Itachi, when your blog is down due to database issues, you won't get the default error page, you will get your custom error page.
You can use the normal web browser to check that.
Nice option…May be we can add up our social media links to redirect people there ,that would be more awesome
There is a typo in the word "Administrator" on the DB-error.php page…
Ha ha.. not that much perfect in English.
Awesome…tweak gonna do it for my blog
Thanks for sharing
cool man.very intersting
super tutorial
hehe….
its a good alternative as showing branded errors can make users think that we know about the error and are fixing it…
Interesting post that will prove invaluable in making sure an error page is not just the bland default. I've showcased on my scoop.it site
Surely gonna try this on my blog.
It's really good package
Thank you so much for given great post on here 
Keep rocking 
Error page of your website is very very important.As if an error page encounters in front of a visitor ,it may leave the site if that error page doesn't have same look and some interesting information.
Thatswhy its very important to make your error page informative and interesting.
awesome dude, can we put a wallpaper here ?
wow.. its really cool let me do for my blog
This is a nice trick. But how exactly does it work ? I guess the file name db-error.php is the key here. Maybe there is some default WordPress function to catch this name during a db error isn't it ?
Hi Mani,
That was the simplest method to replace default database error page with custom one, but still not all the DB errors can effect. You can check this for more info :
http://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/10883
And you can make it work for every error by this,
http://yoast.com/custom-wordpress-database-error-pages/