If this notice appeared on your Plugins screen, Meta for WooCommerce (formerly Facebook for WooCommerce) has switched itself off. Here is what that means, what stops working, how long it lasts, and what to do before you press "Re-enable plugin".
Since version 3.6.4, Meta for WooCommerce watches for fatal errors in its own code. When one happens it writes a small crash record to wp-content/uploads/facebook-for-woocommerce/.disabled (or, if that file cannot be written, to a database transient) and, on the next page load, skips starting up. It does this so a crash in the plugin cannot keep taking the whole site down.
| Crashes recorded | Switched off for |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10 minutes, then it tries again |
| 2 | 1 hour, then it tries again |
| 3 or more | Until someone clears the record |
So a store with three crashes stays disconnected from Meta indefinitely, and the only sign is that notice on the Plugins screen - which nobody opens while things seem to be working.
Re-enabling without fixing the cause just starts the count again. While it is off, Meta for WooCommerce writes its crash reports to the server's PHP error log, with lines starting Meta for WooCommerce disabled-mode crash report or Meta for WooCommerce crash capture. Your host's control panel usually shows that log, or it is in wp-content/debug.log if WP_DEBUG_LOG is on.
The report names the file the error came from. If it is another plugin, update or deactivate that plugin. If it is Meta for WooCommerce itself, update it, and check that the server's PHP version is one it supports.
Press Re-enable plugin in the notice on the Plugins screen. If the button is gone or does nothing, delete the .disabled file above over FTP or your host's file manager. If it crashes again within minutes, the cause is still there.
StallRadar Sync Doctor for Meta for WooCommerce is a free plugin that reads the crash record, the connection, the product feed file, Meta's background jobs and its logs, and tells you in one line what is blocking the sync and what to do. It works while Meta for WooCommerce is switched off, and has a "Switch it back on" button of its own.
Download the free pluginNot affiliated with Meta, Facebook or WooCommerce.
They stay in the catalog as they were, but nothing is updated. Prices and stock drift from the store, and products you add or remove are not reflected until it is running again.
Because whatever caused the crash is still there. Each new crash adds to the count, and after three it stays off. Find the error in the PHP error log first.
Yes. It only holds the crash count and the time of the last crash. Deleting it is exactly what the "Re-enable plugin" button does, together with clearing the backup transient.
Meta for WooCommerce 3.6.4 and newer. Older versions do not switch themselves off; a crash in them shows as a site error instead.