Getting message Forbidden when Saving an iFAQ Article

I am creating new iFAQ articles by copying the HTML code from articles in an existing website. I create the Title, Alias, select a Category and then add the code into the Code window (see screen shot forbidden1.png). This generally happens after I have been working a while. At this point when I try to Save, the article I get a blank browser window with the word "Forbidden" (see screen shot forbidden2.png). I can back out of this by hitting the Browser Back Arrow, but the code is always gone.

This does not happen every time and when this happens, I am able to limit the text in the Code window to a few text characters and then it will save (screen shot forbidden3.png). However, it still will not let me add the rest of my code and save the article. I have even tried to paste my article in plain text and it still will not accept it.

Is there some type of limit of Categories, articles or something else that I am encountering? So far, I have about https://staging.geotech.com/resources/faqs/pre-purchase-questions20 categories and subcategories and about 90 articles. If I am not hitting a limit, what is going on.

Joomla 5.0.3 and iFAQ 5.0

Thanks,
Walter

Dear Walter,

The issue you're encountering with saving articles and the subsequent error appears to be unrelated to iFAQ. Since iFAQ utilizes Joomla's core content articles to present FAQ items, the problem you've described during the article save process seems to originate elsewhere within the Joomla ecosystem.

This type of error, especially when it occurs within the Joomla Administrator area (back-end), is quite unusual. Joomla typically provides more specific error messages. The cause might be a third-party plugin that's executing during the article's onSave or onAfterSave event, affecting the process.

To get to the root of the issue, I recommend increasing the error reporting level to 'Maximum' and enabling system debug in the Joomla global configuration settings, then attempt to save an article again. This could provide more insight into what's going wrong.

Should the problem persist, a systematic approach would be to temporarily disable all non-core content and system plugins, then attempt the article submission again. If this resolves the issue, reactivate the plugins one at a time to identify which one is causing the conflict.

While this issue is not caused by iFAQ, I am committed to assisting you in resolving it. Please try the suggested steps and let me know how it goes or if you need further assistance.

Best regards,

First, I really appreciate your help with this issue. I am not under any deadlines to get this working so this is not a pressing issue, just a PITA.

For a little background on me, I have only created a couple of Joomla sites, so I am by no means an expert web builder. However, I am very computer literate with 30+ years' experience. My background is as a hydrogeology and working with contamination issues. This site is for my part-time employer, a mom-and-pop business, because they do not have the resources to hire a developer. The site has been moved a couple of times and started out in Joomla 3 and is using SP Page Builder.

Based on your suggestions I removed the old FAQ Book Pro extension which is being replaced by iFAQ. I turned off Admin Tools (which I suspected of cause a prior issue). I am not sure what else to turn off, any suggestions?

I set Error reporting to Max and set Debug to On. I saw nothing different when saving but then I had no idea what to look for anyway.

Again, Thanks!
Walter



Walter

Dear Walter,

Thank you for providing your background information.

I'd like to clarify that I didn't mean you should remove or uninstall any extensions permanently. My suggestion was to temporarily disable them for testing purposes to see if any of them are causing the issue.

Regarding the "403 Forbidden" error you're encountering, this typically occurs when a web server receives a request to access a specific resource but denies the request due to insufficient permissions or security-related reasons. While it's unlikely to be an issue with insufficient permissions since you're logged in as an administrator, it's worth checking if there's an .htaccess file in the /administrator/ folder. If there is, try renaming it temporarily to something like .htaccess.backup and see if that resolves the issue.

It's also a good idea to reach out to your web hosting provider for assistance. This error may not be related to PHP, and they may be able to provide additional insights or support. Typically, Joomla errors provide more descriptive messages, and enabling System Debug should provide a call stack below the error message, which can offer further clues.

If your web hosting provider is unable to assist you, please let me know, and we'll continue to investigate the issue together.

Best regards,

I failed to mention this is for staging.geotech.com and not our live site at geotech.com.

Dear Walter,

Could you confirm if you were able to try the troubleshooting steps I outlined in my previous message?

The issue you're experiencing when saving an article doesn't appear to be directly linked to iFAQ. You may try to save the same content to another category and you'll see that you'll get the same error.

It's possible that a security plugin or firewall is interfering with the article's content. This might be triggered by specific words within the text.

Looking forward to your response.

Best regards,

As suggested, I asked my host to check this and their response. is below.

We have reviewed your request and after further investigation, we have noticed that your IP address 104.136.106.79 triggered some ModSecurity rules. Considering this, we disabled the mentioned rule that has been triggered on your website recently, so please test if everything works fine now.

After testing some of the articles that gave the error, it appears the problem has been solver. Once I get all article in, I will have some questions on the format and searching.

Thank you so much for your assistance.
Walter

Dear Walter,

I'm glad the problem was solved.

Have a blessed week.