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Server not Accessible

“Server is not accessible” is a common report, but it can mean 10 different problems. This guide helps you quickly pinpoint what is failing and collect the exact evidence GOZEN HOST Support needs to resolve it faster.

Troubleshooting illustration

What “not accessible” usually means

Start by choosing the closest match:

  • Website only is down (domain does not open, but your server and other sites might be fine)
  • SSH access fails (you cannot connect to the server)
  • Control panel fails (cPanel, Enhance, Webmail, etc.)
  • Email only fails (SMTP/IMAP issues)
  • Everything is down (server appears offline)

If you are not sure, follow the checklist below in order.

Step 1: Capture the basics (this saves the most time)

Before changing anything, write down:

  • What are you trying to access? (website URL, server IP, hostname, SSH, panel URL)
  • Exact error message (copy it exactly)
  • When it started (date and time, your timezone)
  • Where you are connecting from (country, ISP if known)
  • What changed recently (DNS change, SSL change, firewall change, deployment, plugin update)

If possible, take one screenshot of the error.

Step 2: Check GOZEN HOST service status

If there is an active incident, the fastest path is to confirm it first.

Step 3: Confirm it is not a local device or network issue

Do these quick tests:

  1. Try from another browser (or private/incognito mode)
  2. Try from another device (phone vs laptop)
  3. Try from a different network (mobile data vs Wi‑Fi)

If it works on a different network, the issue is likely: - Your ISP route - A local firewall or DNS cache - A block on your IP (security rule)

Step 4: Website down checks (domain and DNS)

If your website URL does not open:

4.1 Check DNS is pointing to the right place

What to verify: - Your domain uses the correct nameservers - Your A record points to the correct server IP - If you use Cloudflare, confirm DNS records are correct and proxy settings are intentional

Run one of these commands.

Windows (PowerShell): 

nslookup yourdomain.com

macOS / Linux: 

dig +short yourdomain.com

What to send support: - The command output - The IP address you expected to see

4.2 Confirm the server responds on HTTP/HTTPS

macOS / Linux / Windows (if curl is installed): 

curl -I https://yourdomain.com

What to send support: - The output including the HTTP status code (200, 301, 403, 502, 503, etc.)

4.3 Common website-only causes

  • DNS points to the wrong IP or old server
  • SSL misconfiguration or redirect loop
  • Application is down (WordPress fatal error, Node app not running)
  • Web server returns 502/503 due to upstream failure

Step 5: SSH not accessible checks (VPS and dedicated environments)

If you cannot connect via SSH, identify whether it is: - Your network path to the server - The server is online but blocking you - SSH service is down - The server is offline

5.1 Test basic reachability (ping)

macOS / Linux: 

ping -c 4 SERVER_IP

Windows: 

ping SERVER_IP

Important: Some servers block ping by design. A failed ping does not prove the server is down. It is only one signal.

5.2 Trace the route (traceroute)

macOS / Linux: 

traceroute SERVER_IP

Windows: 

tracert SERVER_IP

What to send support: - Full output (copy/paste) - Tell us the hop where it stops

5.3 Verify SSH port is reachable (port 22 by default)

macOS / Linux: 

nc -vz SERVER_IP 22

Alternative: 

telnet SERVER_IP 22

What to send support: - Whether the port is open, refused, or times out

5.4 Get verbose SSH output (best evidence)

macOS / Linux: 

ssh -vvv user@SERVER_IP

What to send support: - The last 20 to 40 lines (remove passwords, do not redact IPs)

Step 6: Control panel not accessible (cPanel, Enhance, Webmail)

If the server IP responds but the panel does not:

  1. Confirm you are using the correct panel URL and port
  2. Try from a different network (mobile data)
  3. Check whether the issue is only HTTPS/SSL related

Useful evidence: 

curl -I https://SERVER_HOSTNAME_OR_IP:PORT

Send support: - The URL you used - The port - The output (status code)

Step 7: “It worked, then suddenly stopped” causes

These are the usual suspects:

  • IP blocked by firewall or intrusion protection (too many login attempts)
  • Recent deployment caused an app crash (Node process stopped, PHP error, etc.)
  • Disk full (services fail to write logs and stop responding)
  • Resource exhaustion (RAM/CPU spikes)
  • Expired SSL certificate or broken chain
  • DNS change still propagating

If you have server access, include: - Current disk usage (df -h) - Current memory (free -m on Linux) - Recent logs (journalctl for systemd services)

If you do not have access, just tell us what changed and when.

Step 8: What to send GOZEN HOST Support (copy/paste template)

Use this template to open a ticket. It turns “not accessible” into an actionable incident.

Subject: Server not accessible (VPS/Website) |

Message: - Service affected: Website / SSH / Control Panel / Email / Everything - Domain(s): - Server hostname: - Server IP: - Started at (date + time + timezone): - Error message (exact): - Tested from: Home ISP / Office ISP / Mobile data (list) - DNS output (nslookup/dig): - curl output (curl -I): - ping result: - traceroute/tracert result: - SSH verbose output (ssh -vvv) last lines: - Recent changes in last 24h (deploy, DNS, SSL, firewall, plugins):

Do not do this (common time-wasters)

  • Do not reboot repeatedly. One reboot is fine, a reboot loop makes diagnostics harder.
  • Do not change DNS records randomly “until it works”. You create propagation chaos.
  • Do not share passwords in tickets. We will never ask for plain credentials.

Summary

When you report “server not accessible”, the fastest resolution comes from three things:

  1. What exactly is failing (website, SSH, panel, email, everything)
  2. When it started and what changed
  3. Real evidence (DNS output, curl status, traceroute, SSH verbose logs)

Send that in your ticket and we can move straight to resolution.