GridPane compatibility

GridPane manages WordPress debug settings differently from standard hosting environments. Instead of defining WP_DEBUG, WP_DEBUG_LOG, and WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY directly in wp-config.php, GridPane uses a separate file called secure-debug.php. The wp-config.php file includes secure-debug.php, which contains the actual debug constant definitions.

WP Debug Toolkit (WPDT) detects GridPane environments automatically and handles this configuration transparently.

How GridPane manages debug settings

On a GridPane server, wp-config.php includes a line like:

require_once '/var/www/example.com/secure-debug.php';

The secure-debug.php file contains the define() statements for WP_DEBUG, WP_DEBUG_LOG, and WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY. GridPane’s control panel reads and writes to this file when you toggle debug settings through the GridPane dashboard.

This separation prevents accidental overwrites of debug settings during WordPress updates or wp-config.php modifications.

For GridPane’s documentation on this feature, see WordPress Debug and Query Monitor and Do I leave Secure Debug on?.

How WPDT handles GridPane

WPDT detects the presence of secure-debug.php during initialization. When detected, all debug constant operations — reading current values, toggling switches, WP-CLI commands — target secure-debug.php instead of wp-config.php.

This detection is automatic. You do not need to configure anything. The admin dashboard toggle switches, the standalone viewer settings panel, and wp dbtk debug on/off/status commands all work the same way whether the site runs on GridPane or on a standard configuration.

What works automatically

All WPDT features work on GridPane without special configuration:

• Toggling debug constants (WP_DEBUG, WP_DEBUG_LOG, WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY, SAVEQUERIES)
• Standalone viewer installation, removal, and repair
• Error log viewing and parsing
• Query logging and the db.php drop-in
• Email notifications
• WP-CLI commands
• Crash Recovery

Known considerations

Uninstall behavior

When you uninstall WPDT, the plugin preserves secure-debug.php. Deleting this file would break the require_once statement in wp-config.php, causing a fatal error and taking the site offline. WPDT only removes its own files and settings — it does not modify secure-debug.php during uninstallation.

Path traversal protection

WPDT’s path traversal protection blocks access to secure-debug.php in the File Viewer. This file contains configuration data that should not be exposed through the viewer interface. This is intentional security behavior, not a bug.

GridPane dashboard vs WPDT dashboard

Both GridPane’s control panel and WPDT’s dashboard can toggle debug constants. They write to the same file (secure-debug.php). Changes made through either interface are reflected in both. There is no conflict — both tools read and write the same constants in the same file.

Log paths

GridPane may store debug logs in a location other than the default wp-content/debug.log. Common GridPane log paths include /logs/debug.log or a path within the site’s log directory.

If WPDT does not find the log file at the default path, configure the custom path:

• Admin UI — go to Settings > Viewer > File Paths and enter the full absolute path
• Constant — define DBTK_LOG_PATH in wp-config.php (above the secure-debug.php include):

define( 'DBTK_LOG_PATH', '/var/www/example.com/logs/debug.log' );

After changing the log path, repair or reinstall the standalone viewer to sync the new path to the viewer’s config.php.