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Troubleshooting Common WP File Manager Issues: Folders Not Opening, Hidden Files, and Permissions

14 threads Sep 7, 2025 Plugin → File manager

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WP File Manager is a powerful tool, but like any plugin, it can sometimes run into conflicts or configuration issues. Based on community reports, several common problems tend to arise. This guide outlines the most frequent issues and their most effective solutions.

1. Folders Not Opening or Jumping Back to Root

The Problem: Users click on a folder, but it either fails to open, gets stuck on an "Opening folder" message, or instantly closes and returns to the root directory.

Why It Happens: This is most often caused by a conflict with another WordPress plugin or a browser extension interfering with the plugin's JavaScript.

Common Solutions:

  • Browser Extension Conflict: Open your browser in an Incognito or Private window (which disables extensions by default) and test the File Manager. If it works, disable your browser extensions one by one to find the culprit. React Developer Tools has been specifically mentioned as a potential cause.
  • Plugin Conflict: Temporarily deactivate all other plugins on your site except for WP File Manager. If the issue is resolved, reactivate your plugins one by one to identify which one is causing the conflict.
  • Clear Cache: Ensure you clear your browser's cache and any server-side or WordPress caching plugins after making changes.

2. Inability to Create, Delete, or Edit Files/Folders

The Problem: The user does not have the ability to perform basic file operations, or they see a locked icon on folders.

Why It Happens: This is typically a file permissions issue on your server, not a problem with the plugin itself.

Common Solutions:

  • Check Folder Permissions: Using your hosting control panel (e.g., cPanel) or an FTP client, navigate to the problematic folder. The recommended permission for folders is 755. The 'File Manager' team has specifically suggested this solution for locked folders.
  • Missing Trash Folder: If you get an error mentioning the "Trash" folder cannot be found, a system folder may be missing. You may need to manually create a .trash folder within the wp-content/plugins/wp-file-manager/lib/files/ directory.

3. Files or Folders with Special Characters Not Appearing

The Problem: Folders or files that contain special characters (like é, è, º, or ã) are not visible in the file manager list.

Why It Happens: This can be related to how the server's environment handles character encoding.

Common Solutions:

  • The 'File Manager' team has indicated that the feature to support special characters is available. If your existing folders are not showing, try creating a new folder with the special character from within the WP File Manager interface, as this may resolve the encoding issue.

4. Unable to View Hidden Files (e.g., .htaccess)

The Problem: Standard hidden files, which are prefixed with a dot (.), are not visible in the interface.

Why It Happens: Visibility for these files should be enabled by default. If they are not showing, it could be a rare server-specific configuration issue.

Common Solutions:

  • This issue is not widely reported. As a first step, test the plugin on a different site or server to see if the behavior is consistent, which can help determine if the cause is local to one server's configuration.

Next Steps if Problems Persist

If you have worked through these common solutions and your issue remains unresolved, your problem may be more unique. To get further help, be prepared to provide specific details such as:

  • The exact steps you take that cause the error.
  • A screen recording or screenshots of the issue.
  • A list of your active plugins and theme.
  • Your browser and version.

You can seek help from the wider WordPress community on forums like the official WordPress.org support pages for the plugin.

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