In the process of Installing WordPress or plugin, Webmasters sometimes faces the error "destination folder already exists" in WordPress.
Here at Ibmi Media, as part of our Server Management Services, we regularly help our Customers to resolve related WordPress errors.
In this context, we shall look into how to fix this WordPress error.
Nature of WordPress error "Destination Folder Already Exists"
WordPress users often notice the error as given below while installing a theme or a plugin.
WordPress extracts plugin or theme's zip file into a folder named after the file itself. If a folder with the same name already exists, then WordPress aborts the installation with the above message.
The first thing to do is to check the themes or plugins page to see if we have it already installed on our site.
If it is not already installed, then this means:
1. A previous attempt to delete the plugin or theme did not succeed and it left the plugin/theme folder behind.
2. A previous installation attempt was interrupted and left an empty destination folder.
In either case, there is a folder with the same name as the theme or plugin we are trying to install.
This folder is stopping WordPress from completing the installation.
How to fix WordPress error "Destination Folder Already Exists" ?
To fix this WordPress error, we simply need to delete the existing folder and then continue the installation.
First, we will need to connect to our WordPress site using an FTP client or using File Manager.
The file Manager option will be available on most of the popular control panels like Plesk and cPanel.
The error message indicates the directory that is creating the incompetency.
Once connected, we need to go to the /wp-content/plugins/ or /wp-content/themes/ folder depending on what we were trying to install.
Now, look for the folder named after the plugin or theme that we were trying to install and then delete it.
After deleting the folder, we can go back to our WordPress admin area and retry installing the plugin or theme.
We should be able to install our WordPress plugin or theme without any error.
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Conclusion
This article covers methods to fix WordPress error "Destination Folder Already Exists".
Basically, this WordPress error triggers when a folder with the same name as that of the plugin or theme already exists.
To resolve WordPress "Destination folder already exists" error:
Since the error is caused by a plugin or theme folder that already exists, the easiest way to solve the error is by deleting the folder.
The process of deleting a theme via FTP is the same one you use for deleting a plugin.
The only exception is that you need to navigate to wp-content/themes instead of wp-content/plugins.
1. To delete the plugin folder, connect to your server using your FTP credentials and navigate to your root WordPress directory, often called public_html.
2. Then, go to the wp-content/plugins directory.
3. Within the plugins directory, find the plugin folder mentioned in the error message.
4. When you've located the folder you need, right-click on it and press the Delete option from the menu that appears.
5. After that, you will be prompted to confirm your choice. Press the Yes button to proceed.
6. Then, you will have to wait a bit until the plugin folder, as well as all directories and files within it, are deleted.
This article covers methods to fix WordPress error "Destination Folder Already Exists".
Basically, this WordPress error triggers when a folder with the same name as that of the plugin or theme already exists.
To resolve WordPress "Destination folder already exists" error:
Since the error is caused by a plugin or theme folder that already exists, the easiest way to solve the error is by deleting the folder.
The process of deleting a theme via FTP is the same one you use for deleting a plugin.
The only exception is that you need to navigate to wp-content/themes instead of wp-content/plugins.
1. To delete the plugin folder, connect to your server using your FTP credentials and navigate to your root WordPress directory, often called public_html.
2. Then, go to the wp-content/plugins directory.
3. Within the plugins directory, find the plugin folder mentioned in the error message.
4. When you've located the folder you need, right-click on it and press the Delete option from the menu that appears.
5. After that, you will be prompted to confirm your choice. Press the Yes button to proceed.
6. Then, you will have to wait a bit until the plugin folder, as well as all directories and files within it, are deleted.
