Are you seeing the ‘Failed to open stream’ error in WordPress?
This error message usually points to the location of the scripts where the error has occurred. However, it can be quite difficult for beginner users to understand it.
In this article, we will show you how to easily fix the WordPress ‘Failed to open stream’ error.
Why Does the Failed to Open Stream Error Occur in WordPress?
Before we try to fix it, it is helpful to understand what causes the ‘Failed to open stream’ error in WordPress.
This error occurs when WordPress is unable to load a file mentioned in the website’s code. When this error occurs, sometimes WordPress will continue loading your website and only show a warning message. Other times, WordPress will show a fatal error and will not load anything else.
The message phrasing will be different depending on where the error occurs in the code and the reason for failure. It will also give you clues about what needs to be fixed.
Typically, this message will look something like this:
Warning: require(/home/website/wp-includes/load.php): failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/website/wp-settings.php on line 19
Fatal error: require(): Failed opening required ‘/home/website/wp-includes/load.php’ (include_path=’.:/usr/share/php/:/usr/share/php5/’) in /home/website/wp-settings.php on line 19
Here is another example:
Last Error: 2023-04-04 14:52:13: (2) HTTP Error: Unable to connect: ‘fopen(compress.zlib://https://www.googleapis.com/analytics/v3/management/accounts/~all/webproperties/~all/profiles?start-index=1): failed to open stream: operation failed’
Having said that, let’s take a look at how to troubleshoot and fix the ‘Failed to open stream’ error in WordPress.
Fixing the Failed to Open Stream Error in WordPress
As we mentioned earlier, the error can be caused by a variety of reasons, and the error message will be different depending on the cause and location of the file that’s causing the error.
In each instance, the ‘Failed to open stream’ message will be followed by a reason. For example, it might say ‘permission denied’, ‘no such file or directory’, ‘operation failed’, and more.
Fixing ‘No Such File or Directory’ Error Message
If the error message contains ‘no such file or directory’, then you need to look in the code to figure out which file is mentioned on that particular line.
If it is a plugin or theme file, then this means that the plugin or theme files were either deleted or not installed correctly.
You will simply need to deactivate and reinstall the theme/plugin in question to fix the error. If it is a plugin, please see our guides on how to deactivate WordPress plugins and how to install a WordPress plugin.
If it is a theme, please see our guides on how to delete a WordPress theme and how to install a WordPress theme.
However, WordPress may also be unable to locate the files because of a missing .htaccess file in your root folder.
In this case, you need to go to the Settings » Permalinks page in your WordPress admin and just click on the ‘Save changes’ button to regenerate the .htaccess file.
Fixing ‘Permission Denied’ Error Message
If the error message is followed by ‘Permission denied’, then this means that WordPress does not have the right permission to access the file or directory referenced in the code.
To fix this, you need to check WordPress files and directory permissions and correct them if needed.
Fixing ‘Operation Failed’ Error Message
Finally, some WordPress plugins load scripts from third-party sources like Google Analytics, Facebook APIs, Google Maps, and more.
Some of these APIs may require authentication or might have changed the way developers can access them. A failure to authenticate or an incorrect access method will result in WordPress failing to open the required files.
To fix this, you will need to contact the plugin author for support. They should be able to help you fix the error.
If none of these tips help you resolve the issue, then follow the steps mentioned in our WordPress troubleshooting guide. This step-by-step guide will help you pinpoint the issue and easily find the solution.
We hope this article helped you fix the WordPress ‘Failed to open stream’ error. You may also want to bookmark our list of the most common WordPress errors and how to fix them, along with our expert picks for the must have WordPress plugins to grow your website.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
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milad says
thank you it was so helpful
WPBeginner Support says
Glad to hear our guide was helpful!
Admin
mukesh says
when i open error file in file manager then show error:-
PHP Warning: Unknown: failed to open stream: Permission denied in Unknown on line 0
PHP Fatal error: Unknown: Failed opening required ‘/home/printwow/public_html/site/index.php’
(include_path=’.:/opt/alt/php54/usr/share/pear:/opt/alt/php54/usr/share/php’) in Unknown on line 0
please help
WPBeginner Support says
For a permissions error, you would want to take a look at our article here: https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/how-to-fix-file-and-folder-permissions-error-in-wordpress/
Admin
Ong says
Please Help Me
[15-Jun-2019 07:05:54 UTC] PHP Fatal error: require(): Failed opening required ‘/public_html/CMS/wp-includes/post-thumbnail-template.php’ (include_path=’.:/opt/alt/php70/usr/share/pear’) in /public_html/CMS/wp-settings.php on line 175
WPBeginner Support says
For that error, you would want to first try updating your WordPress using FTP: https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/ultimate-guide-to-upgrade-wordpress-for-beginners-infograph/
Admin
Tamsyn says
All this is well and good – but what if you can’t even get into your dashboard/admin space?
WPBeginner Support says
You could try the steps in our article here: https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/beginners-guide-to-troubleshooting-wordpress-errors-step-by-step/
Admin
Christina says
Please help! I can’t even log into my site to try the suggestions in this article!
WPBeginner Support says
If you’re unable to log in you could try the recommendations in our article here: https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/beginners-guide-to-troubleshooting-wordpress-errors-step-by-step/
Admin
Estefania B says
Please help:
Fatal error: require(): Failed opening required ‘/home/content/01/14040901/html/wp-blog-header.php’ (include_path=’.:/usr/local/php5_6/lib/php’) in /home/content/01/14040901/html/index.php on line 30
how do i fix it? and what could be the probable cause of it?
WPBeginner Support says
For fixing that issue, you would want to go through the troubleshooting steps in our article:
https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/beginners-guide-to-troubleshooting-wordpress-errors-step-by-step/
to find the culprit
Admin
Sikander Azam says
Please help me :
Fatal error: require(): Failed opening required ‘/wp-includes/post.php’ (include_path=’.:/opt/cpanel/ea-php56/root/usr/share/pear’) in /public_html/wp-settings.php on line 178
WPBeginner Support says
If the method in this article was not able to assist you, we would recommend going through our troubleshooting steps here: https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/beginners-guide-to-troubleshooting-wordpress-errors-step-by-step/
Admin
Harsh says
*Please Help*
Fatal error: require_once(): Failed opening required ‘/public_html/wp-content/plugins/amp/includes/widgets/class-amp-widget-media-video.php’ (include_path=’.:/opt/php56/lib/php’)
What do i do? I am not able to access my dashboard as well my site
WPBeginner Support says
It looks like your AMP plugin is having trouble, you should be able to deactivate it using: https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/how-to-deactivate-all-plugins-when-not-able-to-access-wp-admin/
to be able to log back into the site.
Admin
Qumber Rizvi says
Three of my WP sites are hosted on the same hosting. All of them are giving the same error:
Warning: require(/home/selfsbsr/public_html/pulse/wp-includes/post.php): failed to open stream: Permission denied in /home/selfsbsr/public_html/pulse/wp-settings.php on line 166
Warning: require(/home/selfsbsr/public_html/pulse/wp-includes/post.php): failed to open stream: Permission denied in /home/selfsbsr/public_html/pulse/wp-settings.php on line 166
Fatal error: require(): Failed opening required ‘/home/selfsbsr/public_html/pulse/wp-includes/post.php’ (include_path=’.:/opt/alt/php56/usr/share/pear:/opt/alt/php56/usr/share/php’) in /home/selfsbsr/public_html/pulse/wp-settings.php on line 166
Note that these three sites are single sites and NOT part of Multisite Network. They do NOT share databases or directories.
All they have in common is the host.
I’ve tried to resolve this by resetting permissions of all the files and directories, disabling plugins by renaming folders of each of em, disabling theme by renaming its folder. I’ve checked the htaccess file. Nothing is out of the ordinary. And yet, I can’t do anything bring it back up.
What should be the probable cause?
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Qumber,
Please contact your hosting provider. It seems like a hosting issue.
Admin