Internet Explorer error

[Guest hammertoe27]

Every once in a while (twice in the past two weeks, going on 24 hours today) when I try to log into my admin page thru Internet Explorer I get this error message:

Internet Explorer cannot read this webpage format

HTTP 406

What you can try:

Go back to the previous page.

More information

This error (HTTP 406 Not Acceptable) means that Internet Explorer was able to receive information from the website you visited, but the information was not in a format that Internet Explorer can display.

For more information about HTTP errors, see Help.

Now, last week after a day of this it came back fine on its own, so it may again tomorrow, but it's starting to get a little frustrating. Please help!

[bsmither]

Please tell us a little more:

Version of the host web server, version of the PHP on the host, version of the database, minor version of the CC3 store, version of Internet Explorer, and anything else you could possibly imagine that might have a bearing on a possible interaction with the web pages. Do you have any IE add-ons? Pop-up blockers, Did you recently download any security updates to IE?

My understanding of this error is that one can erroneously infer the problem is being reported by your browser. Not so. The problem is being reported by the server, that error code being sent to the browser, then IE being "friendly" by trying to be helpful in explaining (badly) what the server is trying to say.

The server is saying that it was told by your browser what kind of data it will be able to accept (mime-types, character sets, encodings, byte count limits, etc.). If the server determines that what it wants to send is different than what the browser can accept, the server sends the 406 code.

But generally, browsers will accept virtually anything - even in some cases showing garbage as it displays a misidentified mime-type (e.g., a PDF as a mime-type of text).

If you get this error consistently when it happens, employ a tool that captures the data stream (Ethereal, FireFox's "Live HTTP Headers", etc). You might be able to see what's causing the problem.

Your host may be using "mod_security" as an Apache add-on and has configured a rule too broadly. The admin URL, if the session has expired, creates another URL pointing to the login page with your previous URL passed as one of the parameters.

At any rate, I doubt it's a CC problem as comments elsewhere on the Web indicate this is not an application-specific issue.

[Guest hammertoe27]

Thank you for responding...Sorry, more info for you would have been helpful. This is what I know so far: This error 406 is only happening when I try to log in to my admin panel. My website and cpanel are both fine. It happens on a few different computers that I've checked, and when using firefox as well. This is what my host company told me: "The server is working fine or you wouldn't be able to see funksauce.com. The admin is just a sub-directory that uses the same

path. So if it isn't working and the shop is, there is something in that sub-directory (admin) that is causing the problem. The 406 error is saying that the browser could read the page but it didn't understand it, which further indicates a problem there." My host wants to set up a test directory with an index page in it for me to copy files to such directory to see if they display there, and to hopefully then isolate the problem. They are not very familiar with Cubecart, and I'm not very familiar on how to do what they're suggesting, so I'm hoping someone here has experienced the same thing and has a pinpointed fix for it. Maybe this info will knock out some of your original questions, because I'll have to check into the accurate answers for those and get back to you. Thanks again! Chris

[Guest hammertoe27]

It's strange, I forgot to mention that I was getting this same error for about a day or so three weekends ago, and then things were fine until now. Not sure if the 406 error then was for the same thing now.

[bsmither]

Your host said, "The 406 error is saying that the browser could read the page but it didn't understand it, which further indicates a problem there." Your host is in error. Your host's server is sending to you the 406 error and your browser is just showing what the server sent to it.

Did you ask your host if they have "mod_security" installed for Apache?

Try this URL:

http://Your Store's URL/admin/login.php?goto=/admin/index.php

Then try:

http://Your Store's URL/admin/login.php

If your browser displays the 406 page on the first, but not on the second, then I'm fairly well convinced it's a "mod_security" rule issue.

[Guest hammertoe27]

I haven't heard back from my host as to whether they are using the mod_security, but I can tell you that I tried the two url's you gave me, three times just to make sure, and they are both coming back with 406 errors. :dizzy:

[Guest hammertoe27]

My host tells me that all of their "servers do have mod_security enabled. This cannot be disabled server wide. And disabling it for one domain alone can be very fatal. It would make the domain prone to all the attacks from

outside and affecting the server as well. But I'm pretty sure we've had a customer or two use CubeCart before,

although I could be mistaken. Plus, nothing has changed here as far as the server is concerned so if the admin was working at one point, it is unlikely a server setting is causing the problem."

[bsmither]

I was able to get to your site's admin login page without any problems. It must not be misbehaving at this time.

When you say you've checked it on a few different computers, were these all within your own personal network? Do you have some sort of appliance that sits at the gateway out of your network?

[Guest hammertoe27]

I'm sorry, I misunderstood. I was able to get to my admin log in for both url's that you gave (and am able to get there regularly), however, I got the 406 error for both url's after entering my username and password. I have tried logging in on computers at different homes that are not on the same network.

[Guest hammertoe27]

I don't get it. Around noon today, after 2 1/2 days of getting 406 errors, I was able to get in. It started off on the main admin page looking kind of like a skeleton form, and IE was hit and miss at getting to different areas on the admin page. Sometimes I'd get that IE couldn't find the page, and sometimes it would load but have that skeleton look to it, and sometimes it would look fine. Right now it seems fine. That's great and all, but I'm sure it will hit again and probably at the worst time. I just wish I knew why it's an on and off again thing. Thanks again for your help--if you find out anything in the future or have any more ideas for this please let me know, but you may hear back again from me before that! Chris

[Guest hammertoe27]

bsmithers, if you're still there, I have an update on this problem and wanted to see if you had any ideas on it...My admin login started working again this past week, but I was unable to login again a few nights ago, getting the IE 406 error again. Anyway, on one occasion under the admin log in this appeared:

Warning: Unknown(): write failed: No space left on device (28) in

Unknown on line 0

Warning: Unknown(): Failed to write session data (files). Please

verify that the current setting of session.save_path is correct (/tmp) in

Unknown on line 0

Also, it seems that this IP address 76.246.125.71 underneath the log in is the IP address when I get the error,

and something much different when there are no problems occuring. So when I see this IP address, I don't even try to get in, but when it's something else, I know I can get in ok. My host sent this response to it:

"I haven't been able to find a problem that would cause that failure.

However, it is usually caused when the servers shared tmp directory is

full. That gets emptied automatically and is now at only 8% so I can't

verify that unless the problem is happening now. On an oscommerce

shop, there is a setting that allows a directory other than the

servers tmp one to be used because sharing that directory can result

in your data being mixed with another. If there is such a setting

in cube cart, then you should use it since this could be your problem.

If there isn't such a setting, please let me know and I will try to

come up with a way to force it to use a local tmp directory instead of

the shared one."

Thank you for any thoughts on this! Chris

[bsmither]

That leads me to two knee-jerk assumptions:

1) Your host is not all that professional and experienced, and

2) You don't have the ability to create your own php.ini file.

Ask your host if you do, in fact, have the ability to create your own php.ini file. If so, you can create one that resets the tmp file to something that belongs to you only. But this might not solve the 406 issues. (The IP address might be your DSL connection.)