Skip to main content

Debug System

When something on your site misbehaves — a blank screen, a checkout that won't complete, a page that won't save — it can be hard to tell why from the outside. The Debug System is a built-in diagnostic tool that records what your theme, your store plugin and Flavor Core are doing behind the scenes, and shows it to you in a single screen at Flavor → Debug.

It's meant for troubleshooting. You turn it on while you reproduce a problem, read (or export) what it captured, and turn it off again. When it's off, it does nothing at all — no logging, no files, no effect on your site's speed.

note

The Debug Viewer is available on every site running Flavor Core, on all plans. You need to be logged in as an administrator to see it.

When to use it​

Turn on the Debug System when:

  • Something fails silently and you can't tell what went wrong.
  • You're about to open a support ticket and want to include useful details.
  • Our support team asks you to "enable debug and send us the logs."

The rest of the time, leave it off.

Turning debug logging on​

Nothing is recorded until you switch debug logging on. There are two ways to do it — pick whichever suits you.

Method 1 — from the Debug screen (easiest)​

  1. Go to Flavor → Debug.
  2. Open Settings.
  3. Switch Debug logging on.

That's it — new activity starts being recorded right away. This is the quickest option and doesn't involve editing any files.

Method 2 — in wp-config.php (stays on until you remove it)​

If you prefer a switch that lives in your site's configuration — for example, so it can't be changed accidentally from the admin, or if you're working with your host or developer — add one line to wp-config.php:

define('FLAVOR_DEBUG', true);

Add it above the line that says /* That's all, stop editing! Happy publishing. */.

caution

wp-config.php is a core WordPress file. Edit it carefully (keep a copy first), and add only the line shown above. When this line is present it takes priority, and the on-screen Debug logging switch will show as on and locked to match it.

Safe to leave off

When debug logging is off, the system writes nothing — it doesn't even create a log folder, and there's no effect on performance or privacy. So there's no reason to leave it running on a live site: switch it on only while you're chasing a problem.

Reading the Debug Viewer​

Open Flavor → Debug. Each line is one recorded event — an entry — newest first. An entry shows:

  • Time — when it happened.
  • Level — how important it is, from routine information up to warning, error and critical. Errors and critical entries are the ones usually worth looking at.
  • Channel — which part of the system produced it (see below).
  • Message — a short description. Click any entry to open it and see the full details.

Channels — where an entry came from​

Every entry is tagged with a channel: a label that tells you which area of the system it came from. Channels are grouped, so you can zoom in on one area at a time. The main ones you'll see:

ChannelWhat it covers
themeYour theme — layout, page builder, modules
pluginYour store — products, orders, cart, checkout, payments, shipping, ERP
coreFlavor Core — licensing and updates
restBehind-the-scenes API requests
react / jsThings happening in the browser, including JavaScript errors
phpPHP warnings and notices from your site (only when the advanced option below is on)

Because channels are grouped, filtering by plugin shows everything from your store, while a more specific channel like plugin.gateway.stripe narrows it to a single payment method.

Focusing on what matters​

The filters at the top let you cut through the noise:

  • Level — show only, say, Error and Warning entries.
  • Channel — show only one area (for example, everything from your store, or just updates).
  • Time range — last hour, 24 hours, 7 days or 30 days.
  • Search — type any word to find matching entries.

Watch it live​

Turn on auto-refresh (live tail) to watch new entries appear as they happen. This is the easiest way to catch a problem: start live tail, then reproduce the issue in another tab and watch what shows up.

Sending logs to support​

The Debug System is at its most useful when you capture a problem as it happens and send the result to our support team.

  1. Go to Flavor → Debug and make sure Debug logging is on (see above).
  2. (Optional but recommended) Click Clear to empty the log first, so you send a clean capture.
  3. Reproduce the problem — repeat the exact steps that trigger it.
  4. Come back to Flavor → Debug. Filter to Error / Warning, or to the area where the problem happened.
  5. Send us the details in one of two ways:
    • Download — exports all your log entries as a single .zip file. Attach it to your support ticket. This is the most complete option.
    • Copy an entry — click the entry that looks relevant and copy its details straight into your message.
Your private data is protected

Before anything is written to the log, sensitive values — passwords, API keys, tokens, card numbers and similar — are automatically hidden and shown as [REDACTED]. You can share logs with support without exposing your secrets.

Turning it off when you're done​

Once you've captured what you need, turn debug logging back off — especially on a live site.

  • If you turned it on from the Debug screen, open Settings and switch Debug logging off.
  • If you added the line to wp-config.php, remove define('FLAVOR_DEBUG', true); (or set it to false).

With it off, recording stops immediately and there's no ongoing cost. You can also click Clear to delete the log files you captured.

Good to know​

  • Logs clean themselves up. Old entries are removed automatically after about 30 days, and you can clear everything at any time with the Clear button.
  • Where the logs live. Files are stored privately inside your site under wp-content/flavor-logs/ and aren't publicly accessible. You normally never need to open them directly — the Debug Viewer is the place to read them.
  • It's per-site. What you capture stays on your own site until you export it.

Advanced: capturing errors from the rest of your site​

By default the Debug System records activity from your Flavor theme, store plugin and Flavor Core. If you (or our support team) also need to capture PHP warnings and errors from WordPress itself and other plugins, there's an optional add-on you can switch on in wp-config.php:

define('FLAVOR_DEBUG', true);
define('FLAVOR_DEBUG_BRIDGE', true);

With this on, general PHP errors from across your site start appearing in the Debug Viewer too, under the php channels. It only captures errors that occur after you switch it on — it doesn't pull in past ones. This is an advanced troubleshooting option; most people won't need it unless support asks.

Last updated on