Troubleshooting Guide

This guide assists store administrators, DevOps teams, and marketplace sellers in diagnosing and resolving common technical and operational issues encountered with the Webkul Magento 2 Marketplace Seller Subdomain extension.

1. Subdomain URL Returns "Server Not Found" or DNS Error

Symptom

When attempting to access a seller's subdomain (e.g., https://shop-gear-store.yourdomain.com), the web browser displays a DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN or "Server Not Found" error.

Diagnostics & Solutions

  1. Verify Wildcard DNS Record:
    • Ensure an A record or CNAME record exists for *.yourdomain.com pointing to your Magento server's public IP address.
    • Test DNS resolution from your terminal:
      dig shop-gear-store.yourdomain.com +short
    • If the command returns empty, contact your DNS host provider or update your DNS zone file to include the wildcard entry.
  2. Allow DNS Propagation: Newly created DNS records can take up to 24–48 hours to propagate worldwide, though cloud DNS providers typically propagate within minutes.

2. Browser Shows "Your Connection is Not Private" (SSL Error)

Symptom

The browser warns that the connection is insecure (NET::ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID) when loading the seller's subdomain over HTTPS.

Diagnostics & Solutions

  1. Verify SSL Certificate Scope:
    • Inspect the SSL certificate installed on the web server. A standard single-domain certificate covering only yourdomain.com will fail for subdomains.
    • You must install a Wildcard SSL Certificate covering *.yourdomain.com (or add all active seller subdomains as Subject Alternative Names [SAN]).
  2. Verify Web Server VirtualHost Binding: Ensure your Apache or Nginx SSL virtual host binds the wildcard certificate to port 443.

3. Subdomain Redirects to Main Store Homepage Immediately

Symptom

Accessing a seller's subdomain URL instantly redirects the user back to the primary marketplace domain or default base URL.

Diagnostics & Solutions

  1. Verify Module Status: Navigate to Stores > Configuration > Webkul > Seller Subdomain and verify that Enabled is set to Yes.
  2. Check License Verification: Ensure the extension license is validated with a green VERIFIED status under Stores > Configuration > Webkul > Module License.
  3. Check Marketplace Seller Profile URL Rewrite:
    • Navigate to Stores > Configuration > Marketplace > Seller Profile Page Settings.
    • Verify that Rewrite Seller's Shop URL is set to No.
  4. Verify Seller Shop URL: Confirm that the seller has a valid, non-empty Shop URL defined in their vendor profile.
  5. Flush Caches:
    php bin/magento cache:flush

4. Custom Domain Shows Default Web Server Welcome Page

Symptom

When navigating to an independent custom domain assigned to a seller (e.g., https://womenstoreview2.vachak.com), the default Apache or Nginx test landing page appears instead of the Magento storefront.

Diagnostics & Solutions

  1. Web Server VirtualHost ServerName / ServerAlias:
    • The web server must know that traffic for womenstoreview2.vachak.com should be processed by the Magento 2 docroot.
    • In Apache, add the domain to ServerAlias:
      ServerAlias *.example.com womenstoreview2.vachak.com
    • In Nginx, add the domain to server_name:
      server_name example.com *.example.com womenstoreview2.vachak.com;
  2. Reload Web Server:
    sudo systemctl reload nginx   # For Nginx
sudo systemctl reload apache2 # For Apache

5. Shopping Cart Empties When Navigating Between Domains

Symptom

Customers add a product to their shopping cart on the main store, but the cart appears empty when navigating to a seller's subdomain (or vice versa).

Diagnostics & Solutions

  1. Configure Magento Cookie Domain:
    • For subdomains sharing the same root domain (e.g., shop1.example.com and example.com), configure a unified cookie domain.
    • Navigate to Stores > Configuration > General > Web > Default Cookie Settings.
    • Set Cookie Domain to .yourdomain.com (note the leading dot).
    • Set Cookie Path to /.
    • Save the configuration and flush Magento cache.
  2. Independent Custom Domains: Note that browsers prohibit sharing first-party cookies across separate root domains (e.g., domainA.com and domainB.com) due to browser cross-origin security policies. Ensure store switcher redirect flows are utilized when transitioning shoppers between distinct top-level domains.

6. Stale Vendor Domain After Customer Account Save

Symptom

After modifying the domain under Customers > All Customers > Vendor Domain, the storefront still resolves to the previous domain or throws a 404 error.

Diagnostics & Solutions

  1. Check Database Record: Inspect the marketplace_vendor_subdomain table to ensure the domain column contains the updated URL.
  2. Flush Application Cache:
    php bin/magento cache:flush

Still Need Help?

For any custom development requests, doubts, or technical assistance: