Webhook for Telegram bot not functioning on live WordPress site

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1

Struggling with Telegram bot webhook on WordPress

I’m having trouble with my Telegram bot webhook on my live WordPress site. It works fine locally but not on the server.

The getWebhookInfo shows everything is set up correctly:

{
  "ok": true,
  "result": {
    "url": "https://mysite.com/bot-webhook.php",
    "has_custom_certificate": false,
    "pending_update_count": 0,
    "max_connections": 40,
    "ip_address": "123.45.67.89"
  }
}

I’m using this to get data from Telegram:

$botUpdate = json_decode(file_get_contents('php://input'), TRUE);

My webhook file is next to the wp-content folder. I’ve checked:

  • allow_url_fopen is enabled
  • SSL cert is valid
  • Webhook URL is correct

But still no updates from Telegram on the live site. Any ideas what might be wrong?

2

Have you checked your server’s error logs? Sometimes, issues with webhooks can be traced back to PHP errors or server configuration problems that aren’t immediately apparent. It might be worth looking into your Apache or Nginx logs to see if there are any relevant error messages.

Another thing to consider is whether your hosting environment has any specific security measures in place that might be blocking incoming webhook requests. Some shared hosting providers, for example, have strict firewall rules that could interfere with webhook functionality.

Lastly, have you tried implementing a simple logging mechanism in your webhook script? Something like writing incoming data to a file could help you determine if the webhook is being triggered at all, which would narrow down the problem significantly.

3

have u tried using a different method to get the data? instead of file_get_contents, maybe try cURL. also, check if ur server allows POST requests. sometimes they’re blocked for security reasons.

oh, and make sure ur bot token is correct on the live site. easy to mess that up when moving from local to prod.

4

I’ve dealt with similar issues before, and one thing that often gets overlooked is PHP version compatibility. Make sure your local PHP version matches the one on your live server. I once spent hours debugging only to find out my server was running an older PHP version that didn’t support some functions I was using.

Another potential culprit could be WordPress itself. Sometimes, certain plugins or themes can interfere with custom scripts. Try temporarily deactivating all plugins and switching to a default theme to see if that resolves the issue.

Lastly, double-check your .htaccess file. I’ve seen cases where rewrite rules or security settings in .htaccess blocked incoming webhook requests. If you’re using a security plugin, it might be worth reviewing its settings as well.

Remember, debugging on a live site can be tricky. Consider setting up a staging environment that mirrors your production setup for easier troubleshooting.