Some blog owners report a problem with editing posts, in post editor.
With any changes made to a published post, an attempt to update shows another monolithic error.An error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again.
But the mystery does not end there. Even seeing the error, a curious blog owner, refreshing the post as displayed, may find a surprise.
Even with the mysterious error displayed, repeatedly, the changes just made may be visible in the post.
In some cases, a new post editor session - or the post display refreshed - will even show the changes made.
Even with the post editor showingAn error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again.
you may see your changes displayed, when you refresh the displayed post.
I just updated my earlier post, Country Code Aliasing Is A Solution - Not A Problem.
My personal and recent experience.
The post, before being updated.
I added the observation to the postBlogger has described the problem, as a solution to free expression and controversial content.
to the post.
I just updated my post.
Post Editor, showing the added observation.
Then, I clicked "Update" - and waited for an eternity. No matter how many times I hit "Update", I see the same error.
It's enough to make one pull hair, in anguish (as if, Chuck!).
Post Editor, showing the added observation, after clicking "Update".
But, the story does not end here.
The post, after being updated - even with the bogus error message displayed.
Surprise! See the added observation?
Don't believe me? Examine my post, Country Code Aliasing Is A Solution - Not A Problem.
If you see the error, don't give up!
So, if you edit your post, and having made the necessary changes, you see the bad newsAn error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again.
don't pull your hair in anguish, immediately.
Refresh the post - then examine the updated display, and the change just made (in a separate tab / window). You may find your changes saved, as if nothing is wrong.
And, it's the EverReady Bunny problem of the week.
I was once again, updating my previous post, and idly wondering if this problem had been fixed - and hello!
Post Editor, showing this error, after clicking "Update" - just as I updated my previous post.
My previous post - updated, even with Post Editor displaying the error!
This, too, may involve the Blogger / Google CDN - and delay in updating the Blogger database, between the nodes in the CDN.
Just be careful when closing the post editor tab or window, with the warning about unsaved changes displayed.
So, what to do, now? I couldn't even leave that window, to update this post - I had to Stay!
And having updated this post, in this window, I have to close that window, with the changes maybe unsaved. But I'll re read the post as displayed, first.
If you see a mysterious #Blogger Post Editor error "An error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again.", when trying to update a previously published post, repeatedly, take a moment and verify that the changes being made were NOT saved. You may be surprised!
This, too, may involve the Blogger / Google CDN - and delay in updating the #Blogger database, between the nodes in the CDN.
Recently, we've been seeing queries from some anxious blog owners
Why should I have to sign out a total of three, four, or more times?
With blogs that use a template that shows the navbar, the owner may logout, using the "Sign out" link - but the navbar may continue to suggest that they remain loggedin.
This problem may start with how we connect to Blogger, as part of the mysterious Internet cloud.
Blogger provides multiple connection points ("nodes") to their databases, through the Blogger / Google Content Distribution Network ("CDN"), in many different cities worldwide.
Generally, a blog owner will connect to Blogger, using the closest CDN node. Thanks to Internet Protocol networking with Multipath Routing, the "closest" node won't always be the node with the shortest distance, "as the crow flies", from the owner.
Determining logical distance between 2 computers involves more detail than simple geographical distance. Some blog owners will be equally "close" to multiple nodes - and this is where the problem starts.
All Blogger databases, in all CDN nodes, won't update immediately.
If a blog owner logs out from Blogger, when connected to one node, the Blogger database in other nodes won't always be updated immediately, to reflect the log out status. The CDN nodes update each other periodically - and there is always going to be some delay between updates.
The logical distance between a blog owner and a nearby node can change - and a different node may become "closer", at any time. With multiple nodes equally "close", the slightest change in the network between the blog owner and any "close" nodes can make the blog owner connect to a different node. The blog owner can fluctuate between 2, 3, or more "close" nodes, within seconds.
If the blog owner logs out while connected to one node, then re connects to a second node - before the first node updates with the second - the owner will appear to be still logged in.
Different CDN nodes may show a blog owner as logged in, until updated.
In some cases, the owner can continue to appear as "logged in", when connected to a different node. After logout (log out, signout, sign out) using the "Sign out" link, and the display refreshes, the navbar status will continue to display the account name and "Sign out" link.
Some blog owners will be equally "close" to multiple nodes. They may go through 2, 3, or more sign outs - until all nearby nodes are properly updated, or updated by repeated "Sign out".
Long ago, update delay led to a different mysterious problem.
Long ago, blog owners reported the mysterious advice
You have logged out from another location. Do you want to log in again?
Now, they continue to see the navbar "Sign out" link.
This monolithic error used to make many scream, in anguish.
Previous advice, to workaround the mysterious "You have logged out from another location. Do you want to log in again?", may work for the logout problem.
- Check cookie and script filters.
- Clear cache, cookies, and sessions (yes, all 3).
- Restart the browser.
- Click on the link below, to login to Blogger.
https://www.blogger.com
A similar example of CDN node update delay involves post editor / template editor.
I see this problem currently, when updating posts. I update my posts, frequently - and see this error message, almost daily.
An error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again.
Post Editor, showing another monolithic error, after clicking "Update" - just as I updated this post.
There's nothing to do now, but hope for the best. The above procedure may or may not fix this problem.
Template editor will be subject to the same frustration. Any Blogger dashboard change that involves significant delay between opening and saving changes (such as editing) will have a similar problem potential. And here may be one more detail that affects stability of long term draft mode post editor sessions.
If you connect to multiple CDN nodes, while you update a post or edit a template, you end up with "conflicting edits". How should we expect the different database nodes to update each other, consistently, with different edits made to the different nodes?
Some blog owners connect through nodes in different countries.
With "nearby" nodes in different countries, it's possible that country local domains, affected by intrusive cookie or script filters, can complicate this problem. A cookie or script filter can prevent the "Sign out", until the blog owner is connected to a node in a different country.
A cookie or script filter can be a part of many network, performance, or security accessories, on the computer or network. Some filters are updated without knowledge of the blog or computer owner.
Network connections may change in milliseconds.
Multipath routing can cause network connection changes within milliseconds. CDN node updates won't be that frequent. Impatient blog owners may observe the lack of update from "Sign out", and report the problem.
Why would I have to sign out a total of three or more times?
No matter where Google locates their many nodes, some blog owners will be equally "close" to multiple nodes - and their connections can change frequently. The more equally "close" nodes, the more random path changes, and the more this problem will be seen, by different blog owners. Other blog owners won't care, because they may never see this happen.
The new "Responsive" templates may serve as a solution.
The new, "Responsive" class templates lack the navbar, and "Sign out". Blog owners, who publish their blogs to the new templates, won't use the "Sign out" link in the navbar - and they will not observe the delay in CDN node updates.
Some blog owners report that after logging out from #Blogger, the navbar continues to show that they remain logged in.
Thanks to the Blogger / Google Content Distribution Network, where an owner can connect to any of many different nearby CDN Nodes, this will probably always be with us.
Both the historically infamous "Another blog ..", and the currently infamous "Error 12", are part of the custom domain publishing process.
Similar to the mysterious "bX" codes being an enhanced version of "We're sorry, but we were unable to complete your request.", "Error 12" (and variants) is an enhanced version of the monolithic "Another blog or Google Site is already using this address.".
"Another blog" (which was generally seen during use of the Blogger Publishing wizard) is complemented by the equally annoying "Not found" (which is generally seen after Publishing is used).
The "Another blog ..." / "Not Found" condition is not desirable - for a working domain.
The condition, in general, appears to be an unavoidable result of the flexible Blogger custom domain design. A Blogger custom domain published blog can be one host in a domain cluster, that can also include a Tumblr blog, a WordPress blog, any number of third party hosted websites - and even an odd feature like a forum.
Blogger custom domain publishing is a powerful feature.
Blogger custom domains can be purchased from (almost) any registrar - and can use DNS provided by (virtually) any DNS host. It's more powerful than competing Internet services. Use of "CNAME" referral, to connect the blog and domain, is innovative, and smart.
Custom domain publishing does some of the domain processing from your computer - instead of solely from Google. Use of your computer, unfortunately, involves computers and networks uncontrolled by Google - and may lead to occasional database corruption, and to "Another blog". Custom domain publishing depends upon DNS - and DNS is an Internet service controlled by neither Google or any blog owner.
"Another blog" and "Not found" are two displays, caused by one problem.
The mysterious "Server Not Found", seen occasionally, is similar to the classic "Another blog ..." error.
In many cases, righteous DNS addressing is present - but broken links, in the Google database, leave the blog displayed as “Not found”. "Another blog" is seen by the blog owner, when publishing - and "Not found" is typically seen by would be blog readers, and search engines, after publishing.
An experienced blog owner would generally prefer the former, to the latter. The owner, when seeing "Another blog", can fix the problems - so prospective readers and search engines can view the blog, without seeing "Not Found".
"Error 12" is the best known, but not the only, "Error".
"Error 12" is the best known "Error" - but not the only one. There appear to actually be several dozen different variants of "Error 12", which refer to problems with the Publishing dashboard wizard. We've seen "Error 32", at least.
32 "Error" codes is nowhere as complex as 36^6 "bX" codes - but it's a start.
An example of the infamous "Error 12", seen long ago.
Earlier, "Error 12" was seen when domain ownership verification was needed, when publishing to newly setup domains. We have, during the past year, seen reports of Publishing problems labeled "Error 13", "Error 14", and "Error 32".
"Error 12", in reality, is not an actual error condition - it is simply a domain, requiring normal ownership verification. Recently, the "Error 12" label was removed from the "domain ownership verification is needed" display - and now, we simply see the label "Third party domain settings".
"Error 13", "Error 14", and "Error 32" appear to also involve domain ownership verification - but with slightly different circumstances. There may also be some "Error" numbers which involve features other than domain ownership verification. And some "bX" codes are caused by bogus DNS addressing, encountered during custom domain publishing - like various "Error" codes.
The "Error 12" seen now, with verification instructions re written - and without the "Error 12" label.
Ownership verification has become both more flexible - and less necessary.
Domains purchased through Google Domains don't need ownership verification, when purchased under the Blogger / Google account as the blog owner. The Google Domains service, originally available only to USA residents, is now (as of August 2018) available in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, Thailand, UK, USA, and Vietnam..
Also, Blogger now accepts domain ownership verification using options available through Google Webmaster Tools - the latter now itself known as Search Console. These options offer verification ability to blog owners who can't use simple "CNAME" referral.
Originally, addition of a new "CNAME" was necessary, for each use of Publishing - with a new BlogSpot URL involved. After Blogger tuned the verification process, we noted that the second "CNAME" is only required for a new, unverified domain - and not always that, either.
With the "Error 12" designation retired, the other Publishing "Error" labels reference actual error conditions - and may offer more diagnostic ability than the monolithic "Another blog".
For people fortunate to be able to use Google Domains, purchase and setup of a non BlogSpot address is slowly becoming a project more doable by blog owners, instead of by tech experts. And the "Error 12" variants will make diagnosis of common publishing errors more possible.
When Blogger added domain ownership verification to the custom domain publishing process in 2012, blog owners started seeing the mysterious "Error 12", suggesting that ownership verification was required. We've seen various other "Error" codes in the past 5 years, - some also referencing ownership verification, and others referencing other publishing problems.
It appears that the various "Error" codes are used to identify problems encountered in the Publishing wizard, similar to how the bX codes are used to identify problems in Blogger, in general.
https://productforums.google.com/d/topic/blogger/3Rb3E08zHKk/discussion
https://productforums.google.com/d/topic/blogger/EBhTkj_gdnY/discussion
We're seeing a problem with Blogger Hosted Comments - and "Bad Request Error 400", following the use of the comment "Preview" feature.
When a blog owner or reader composes a long or important comment, use of the Preview feature is normal. Right now, after hitting "Publish", following a successful Preview, one frequently sees the bad news.
Bad Request
Error 400
There is a workaround for this annoyance - and it's not difficult to use.
Until Blogger Engineers fix the "Error 400" problem, there is a workaround - and the workaround adds very little time to comment publishing.
The most obvious alternative would be to not use Preview. But how well can you eyeball your comment, without Preview?
If you find it inconvenient to eyeball check a comment without using Preview, it's a small effort to copy then paste, before Publishing. Just a little planning, before composing, lets you copy then paste.
OMG, where is my comment? All my work, gone??
Opening a new tab / window lets you publish, after the preview / edit cycles (and avoid the "Error 400"), when composing an important or long comment.
Here's the key to the workaround. "Open link in new tab" - a context menu option, for any link.
With most browsers, you'll either "Alt" click or right click on the link, to get the context menu.
- Recover the comment content, if you're looking at the "Error 400".
- Open the post, where a comment is needed.
- Open a comment composition window, in a new tab / window.
- Compose the comment, carefully edited.
- When satisfied by the Preview display, click Edit once more.
- Copy the edited comment.
- Close that browser tab / window.
- Open a comment composition window, again.
- Immediately paste into the new comment composition window.
- Immediately Publish.
- Done.
Recover the comment content, if you're looking at the "Error 400".
If you're looking at the "Error 400" display, right now, refresh the display and follow the prompts. Recover the comment composition window, with your work in progress. Skip ahead, to Step #6.
Open the post, where a comment is needed.
Start with a post - and the "Post a Comment" link at the bottom of the post.
Open a comment composition window, in a new tab / window.
Click on the "Post a Comment" link - and use the "Open in new tab / window" browser option. With most browsers, you'll either "Alt" click or right click on the link, to get the context menu - and the "Open in new tab" / "Open in new window" option.
Compose the comment, carefully edited.
Use Preview and Edit, and the composition window, as necessary. Compose, preview, and edit - until your comment is properly phrased.
When satisfied by the Preview display, click Edit once more.
If it's an important or long comment, you'll use the Preview - Edit sequence, a few times. Just finish, with a final "Edit".
Copy the edited comment.
From the comment composition window, hit "Ctrl - A" to select everything as edited, then "Ctrl - C" to copy.
Close that browser tab / window.
Close the tab / window - and bid farewell to the carefully written content, and the Bad Request.
Open a comment composition window, again.
Click on "Post a Comment" from the displayed post - again, using "New tab / window". You will have an empty comment composition window.
Immediately paste into the new comment composition window.
Immediately paste the copied comment ("Ctrl - V") into the empty comment composition window.
Immediately Publish.
You already previewed and edited your comment - now, Publish.
Done.
The comment publishes - and, you're done.
Do this a few times - you'll see that this adds maybe 30 seconds to the comment composition / preview / edit cycle.
How long does it take to compose (preview, edit) a comment, to your liking? I take a lot longer than 30 seconds.
Just copy, close, open, paste, and publish.
And you're done.
Publishing a comment, using #Blogger hosted comments, following use of the Preview feature, subjects us to "Bad Request Error 400". Using a browser supplied new tab / window, and copying then pasting, we can workaround the "Error 400".
One of the most obscure Blogger error messages - next to "Another blog ..." - is the monolithic advice seen on main page display of some blogs.
No posts.
or maybeThere's nothing here!
What can you say, to a blog owner who has started a new blog, and spent days publishing blog content - only to view the blog, and see "No posts." - or "There's nothing here!"?
In some cases, a blog may actually contain no posts - even after days spent publishing content.
Some blog owners may confuse pages ("static pages"), and posts ("dynamic pages") - and spend days publishing blog content, as static pages. Other blog owners, though having just started their first blog, may be experienced webmasters with one or more websites published for years - and publish blog content as pages, by preference.
Whether owned by a true newbie, or an experienced webmaster, a blog which is constructed using static pages will display the main page as
No posts.
or maybe
There's nothing here!
By default, the main page display will only show posts. Pages were originally provided, as a Blogger feature, because some blog owners wanted some posts that were not indexed in an archive, label, or main page sequence.
When you are queried by an anxious blog owner
Why does my blog display
No posts.
Where are my posts?
What can you do?
You need to compare "sitemap.xml" and "sitemap-pages.xml". In some cases, you'll find "sitemap.xml" to be empty - and "sitemap-pages,xml" to list static pages. Occam's Razor wins again.
Some blogs may be truly empty.
Some blogs will only have pages for blog content - and no posts.
Some blogs will only contain static pages - and the main page will show "No posts.".
If your blog does this, you can redirect the home page to a given static page - and add links between the static pages. Or, republish the pages as posts, if convenient.
If you want a main page with multiple posts, maybe using Jump Break to make the main page look cleaner, you will have to publish your blog content as posts.
The monolithic error "No posts." causes extreme anguish, to a #Blogger blog owner who has just spent days publishing content. In some cases, there is a simple explanation.
We're seeing a few reports, this week, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue, about blogs with broken templates.I tried to log on to my blog, and it shows up an error message. I've done it several times on different browsers, but no change: the error code is bX-uukqqu.
It appears that the "bX-uukqqu" is from the owner attempting dashboard access. Trying to view the same blog, I see the ubiquitous "bX-v2vqfh".
Both codes reference blogs which show up, in an HTTP trace, with the monolithic message "500 Internal Server Error" - and tells us that this is one more blog with a broken template.
If you, the owner of a blog with a broken template, can access the Template dashboard page, you may be able to recover the template.
Some blog owners report that adding a Template Backup / Restore has helped to resolve their own bX code / "Error 500".
- Backup the template ("Download full template").
- Get a clean Blogger standard template.
- Restore the template ("Upload" the template that you just downloaded).
If you're lucky, your version of the "bX-uukqqu" (dashboard) / "bX-v2vqfh" (public) can be resolved, by a quick template download then upload.
You may need direct access to the Template page, bypassing the dashboard menu - though if you can view the blog, the "Design" navbar link will provide you that ability. If you can't access the Template page at all, you may be able to clear some bX codes, by using the Template Editor aka "Edit HTML".
If any of this works, your blog will be back in service. If not, you will at least have a backup copy of the template.
If the template is still broken, you now have three choices.
- Leave the blog as it is now, broken - until Blogger Engineering finishes diagnosing and fixing the actual cause of the template corruption.
- Get a fresh new template. When Blogger Engineering finishes diagnosing and fixing the actual cause of the template corruption, you can try restoring the template copy that you just backed up.
- Try a persistent solution.
And whether this works - or not - or even if you can't use it, right now, you can have a template backup. And one day, this backup may be useful.
A few Blogger blog owners, reporting bX codes when trying to access their dashboards, have found that accessing the Template page directly, then doing a quick back / restore, may clear the bX codes. This suggests that Blogger Engineering is beginning to test solutions to the ubiquitous "Error 500" broken template problem, that have been afflicting blog owners for some time.
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We have numerous blog owners report that they cannot access their Blogger dashboards. Every time I login to Blogger, I get We're sorry, but we were unable to complete your request.
When reporting this error to Blogger Support or on the Blogger Help Group, please:
Describe what you were doing when you got this error.
Provide the following error code.
bX-w7tr63
What should I do?
The only answer here is to replyDon't use Internet Explorer V11.
In Blogger Help: Compatible browser and operating systems, we notice, quite conspicuously, the absence of Internet Explorer 11, from the table.Blogger works with the following browsers and operating systems:
The most current version of Internet Explorer listed is V10, with the annotation* For best results, turn off Compatibility View.
If you have a computer with Internet Explorer V11, you're going to need a third party browser - Chrome or Firefox. Otherwise - sorry - you won't be able to use Blogger.
Apparently, IE V11 contains too many internal changes, for Blogger Engineering to update the dashboard utilities, so IE V11 will be reliably usable - Compatibility View enabled, or disabled. Blogger has simply decided to not support IE V11, until they can properly update.
Like the predecessors, "bX-rjv21c" and "bX-sf96g4", this bX code can be cleared only by action of the blog owner - who must use a different browser, to access the Blogger dashboard.
Everybody who has owned or read a Blogger blog, for more than a week, surely knows about the infamous bX codes - and has probably asked how to fix one.
Some people have fixed one - but immediately, seen another. Others have seen theirs go away, then later discovered that the blog is broken.
Some folks see the errors as major problems, others minor annoyances.it's disheartening to see that the bx error code problems are still existing.
Not everybody realises that the codes are not the problems - they are simply a method to identify the problems. Many Blogger problems cannot be identified easily in language.
Many problems, many "solutions"
There are many known "solutions" for the codes, because there are many different problems, with many different causes. Here, we have 5 examples.- Some codes are caused by an inconsistency in private data. These codes can generally be cleared by "clearing cache, cookies, and sessions".
- Some codes are caused by over enthusiastic template customisation. These codes can be cleared by getting a new template, or restoring the template from backup, for the blogs that are issuing the code.
- Some codes are caused by bogus custom domain addressing, for the blogs that are issuing the code. These codes can be cleared, only, by correcting the DNS addressing, for the blogs that are issuing the code.
- Some codes are caused by trying to use an unsuitable browser. Right now, Blogger does not support Internet Explorer V11 These codes can be cleared only by using a different browser.
- Some codes are caused by dodgy Blogger code. These codes cannot be solved by blog owners or readers. The bX codes, in many cases, are simply from Blogger Engineering adding "break points" into their code, so they can diagnose a known problem.
Above, we see just 5 examples. There is one rule, which you may want to consider, when diagnosing bX codes.There are no rules, in diagnosing bX codes.
That is the plain truth.
History
Before they started issuing bX codes, Blogger would simply issue one universal error, that was incredibly annoying, to everybody seeing it.We apologize for the inconvenience, but we are unable to process your request at this time. Our engineers have been notified of this problem and will work to resolve it.
Replacing that error, with the unique bX codes, was so simple - and elegant. The program, that issues a bX error report, simply takes the address of the failure point in the Blogger code library, where an unacceptable condition has occurred, and hashes the address into a 6 character alphanumeric code. And there is the bX code. Yes, that simple.
Blogger keeps a database listing of bX codes that are currently active, and a running count for each code. When a given code becomes more noticeable than others, an engineer simply uses the 6 character code to locate the failure point in the Blogger code library, and diagnoses the cause of the error. Fixing the code will vary, depending upon the cause of the code.
A hypothetical example
If you add an extra "<div>" tag in your template code, using the Template Editor, it's possible that the Template Editor code may detect it, and specifically advise you.Don't add a "<div>" tag there!
In many cases, through, an extra "<div>" tag won't be noticed until you try to save the changes - or even until a reader views the blog under specific conditions. Either of the latter two cases may result in another bX code.
When you report your bX code in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue, if other people have reported that same code, it's possible that we might have a known solution, ready for you.Don't add a "<div>" tag, there!
In many cases, though, you will be advised toRestore the template from backup - or get a new template from the dashbooard Template wizard.
In either case, though, the advice to get a backup or new template is not a solution - it's a workaround. The proper solution is for you to figure out what you did, that was wrong, and correct what you did.
In some cases, if we see enough of the same code, as we do now with the "bX-w7tr63", currently being reported in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue - we may advise you.Blogger cannot support you, using Internet Explorer, right now.
Internet Explorer V11 has too many internal changes, for Blogger Engineering to update the Blogger dashboard utilities, and remove all known problems. That may be vaguely similar to the problems where we alternately advise.Restore the template from backup - or get a new template from the dashbooard Template wizard.
In either case, we provide most advice based on feedback from other blog owners.
Reality
Be aware that each bX code may have a different solution. Be wary of advice that simply instructs. Most bX errors are temporary and will usually go away on their own.
You may read [FAQ] What Are The Mysterious bX Codes? and try clearing your cache and cookies.
Some errors may go away, on their own - but most require somebody to take some action. Not all that many are temporary.
We're seeing an occasional report from blog owners, trying to access the Blogger dashboard, using Firefox.I am trying to update my blog, and I get an error WARNING UNRESPONSIVE SCRIPT
A script on this page may be busy, or it may have stopped responding. You can stop the script now, open the script in the debugger, or let the script continue.
I'm using Firefox, and I need help here!
This has been a problem, for a few years - just a very low volume has been reported.
Mozilla Support has acknowledged the problem.This error is telling you that Firefox thinks that a script may be running out of control and would make Firefox hang if nothing is done. The script could be something on a web page you're accessing, in an extension you installed, or even Firefox itself.
And, they provide a rather well defined procedure for diagnosing the problem.Some problems with Firefox are caused by extensions, themes or hardware acceleration. This article will help you determine whether one of these is causing your problem and, if it is, describe how to make Firefox run normally again.
If you follow the troubleshooting procedure, you'll observe that the focus is on add-ons and extensions. The non responding problem will generally be solved by disabling programs which provide protection by examining each script, on a one by one basis. You'll end up disabling any filters, that prevent the Blogger dashboard scripts from loading and / or running.
In this case, you'll be better off knowing what security products are resident on your computer, and in your browser - and possibly, what changes have been made, recently.
Once again, this is not a problem that Blogger Engineers can fix, on their own.
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We've recently been seeing a number of reports, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken, from blog owners having problems with the "Create a new blog" wizard.When some of my students try to create a new blog, they get an error messageThe page you requested is invalid.
These blog owners appear to be running up against new blog creation limits, possibly caused by Blogger prevention of abusive blog creation.
Blogger has apparently added new ways of preventing abusive blog creation, by use of new activity limits.
Blogger has a number of limits, which together guard against abusive new blog creation.
- A limit of 100 blogs created, in total, under one Blogger account.
- A limit of (unstated) blogs created daily, under one Blogger account.
- A limit of (unstated) blogs created daily, from one network address.
- A limit of (unstated) blogs created daily, from one logical network.
This is what you see, when attempting to create a blog, with a limit tripped.
A per account total limit.
We have long known about the limit of 100 blogs being created, under one Blogger account. This limit is easy enough to bypass. There is no limit against blogs owned under one account - so you can setup a second (third, ...) Blogger account, create additional blogs, and transfer control of the blogs created, to the account that's convenient for you to use.
A per account per day limit.
The recently added daily limit of blog creations, under one Blogger account, is thought to be rather low (under half a dozen blogs, daily). Here, too, it may be possible to create more blogs under another Blogger account, then transfer control of the blogs created. Or, just wait 24 - 48 hours (see below), and try again.
A per network limit.
We have been advised, in passing, that Blogger is now limiting total daily blog creation, by network address. This is currently seen to affect use of multiple computers connected to private LANs, where all computers share a single public network address. This policy appears to interfere with legitimate creation of multiple blogs, in high school and college classroom environments.
A per network range limit.
Besides the recently added limit against activity on one network address, it appears that there is a limit against activity in network address ranges, much as "suspicious" / "unusual" activity is aggregated in "403 Forbidden" lockouts - which are frequently a result of detected botnet new blog setup activity.
Network address range based limits may prevent both faculty and students from creating their blogs, using their own computers, on their own networks at home. Note that network address ranges can include computers significantly distant from each other. Your Internet service may include network "neighbours" in the next county, or province / state - or possibly, an adjoining country.
Confusion about when the new "day" may start.
We may also be seeing some confusion about the start / end of the "day", for limits. Since the time zone is not a part of the Blogger account profile (only each individual blog), it's likely that daily limits are reset for all Blogger activity, simultaneously.
Similar to the well known daily Stats reset, daily blog creation limits are probably reset worldwide, according to the GMT clock. For some Blogger account owners not in the GMT time zone (at least 23 / 24 of the world), some portion of (yesterday's) evening activity, and (today's) morning activity, may be counted in the same "day".
The display could be more relevant - but it is an improvement.
All of these limit issues, together leading to the error display in question, the base concern is that Blogger should consider displaying a more descriptive error message. Something likeWe're sorry, you (and your neighbours) can not create so many blogs, today!
would be more user friendly thanThe page you requested is invalid.
All that said, the "Invalid page" display is a slightly more focused solution, than simply issuing a "403 Forbidden", for all "suspicious" / "unusual" network activity. At least other people, who are not interested in creating a new blog, may continue to access Blogger.
Recently, we've been seeing a number of reports in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken, from people suddenly unable to login to Blogger and maintain or publish their blogs.
It appears that more and more private network owners are converting their email and office applications suites, to use Google Apps / Docs. This gives the various employers and schools the ability to block people, using their email, from also using extraneous / unnecessary services like Blogger and YouTube - and encourages the employees and students to spend their time more productively.
People with Blogger accounts, that are based on the converted email domains, are seeing problems accessing their blogs.
Part of the Google Apps / Docs package includes the ability to disable the use of various Google products and services, to people using accounts in the domains.
Blog owners are locked out of Blogger, with new managed domains.
People with Blogger accounts that are based on the newly converted domains are finding themselves locked out of Blogger.When I login, I get the message.Blogger has not been enabled by the administrator of the domain employerdomain.com.
What do I do, now?
Not all domain administrators, even for those domains which use GMail / Google services for non "gmail.com" email addresses, believe Blogger blogs to be an essential service. Some domain administrators will forbid you to access non domain email services, from their domains.
Not all domain administrators know how to manage the domains properly.
Administrators of small domains, having just converted to Google Apps, may not be aware of the Services settings in their domains, and may need coaching - even if sympathetic to your needs. Any willing domain administrator can refer to Google Apps Help: Add Google Apps services to your account, for instructions on adding the Blogger service to the domain, that you need to use.
The bottom line is that, if your Blogger account is based on an email domain that has been recently converted to Google Apps, you may have some work ahead of you - if you want to use your Blogger account.
Recently, we've been seeing a number of reports in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken, from people suddenly unable to login to Blogger and maintain or publish their blogs.
It appears that more and more private network owners are converting their email and office applications suites, to use Google Apps / Docs. This gives the various employers and schools the ability to block people, using their email, from also using extraneous / unnecessary services like Blogger and YouTube - and encourages the employees and students to spend their time more productively.
People with Blogger accounts, that are based on the converted email domains, are seeing problems accessing their blogs.
Part of the Google Apps / Docs package includes the ability to disable the use of various Google products and services, to people using accounts in the domains.
People with Blogger accounts that are based on the newly converted domains are finding themselves locked out of Blogger.When I login, I get the message.Blogger has not been enabled by the administrator of the domain employerdomain.com.
What do I do, now?
Not all domain administrators, even for those domains which use GMail / Google services for non "gmail.com" email addresses, believe Blogger blogs to be an essential service. Some domain administrators will forbid you to access non domain email services, from their domains.
Administrators of small domains, having just converted to Google Apps, may not be aware of the Services settings in their domains, and may need coaching - even if sympathetic to your needs.
The bottom line is that, if your Blogger account is based on an email domain that has been recently converted to Google Apps, you may have some work ahead of you - if you want to use your Blogger account.
In terms of Blogger problems, which occur seemingly randomly and have no obvious user solution, I can't think of too many that bring more dread into peoples hearts than
403 Forbidden
That message is actually where I started this blog - many, many years ago. It's come up, in discussion, several times.
The message "403 Forbidden" is literally a response by a computer somewhere, saying that you are not permitted to access this computer. For Blogger / Google customers, it generally has a slightly different origin.
The "403 Forbidden" message, for Blogger blog owners, is frequently the result of a networking technique, used by Google and owners of other large networks, for blocking suspicious network traffic.
"403 Forbidden" refers to suspicious network traffic, maybe from a bot cluster.
It generally means that some group of computers, in your ISPs address space, are controlled by somebody besides their legal owners - and are generating excessive network traffic which the Google networks are detecting as suspicious. The "suspicious activity" may involve brute force password guessing, or botnet driven new blog setup activity, or maybe excessive relaying of referer spam.
Some other Blogger account owner(s), somewhere else in the world, may be seeing a "Disabled account" notice, referring to "suspicious activity on your account", or maybe odd links to pornographic websites, from the Stats logs.
Google initially blocks the general address space, to examine the problem.
In order to continue service to the world in general, Google will block the problem computers, from access to their networks. If the Internet address used by your computer is similar to the addresses used by the problem computers, Google will block your computer, along with the other computers (your neighbours computers).
You may have to wait this problem out, as Google researches it.
If this happens to you, there's probably nothing that you can do but wait this out. One or more things will happen, eventually.
- Other Google users will report the symptom - or validate their identity - and Google will research the problem.
- Google will research the problem, reduce the range of addresses blocked, and remove the block on your specific address space.
- The computers involved will go offline, or otherwise cease their attacks, and Google will remove the network block.
If you know how to, and if your Internet service allows you to do this, you may be able to change your Internet address. This solution won't be universally effective, though.
- Your Internet service ("Fixed IP") may not allow this.
- You may not know how to do this.
- Your Internet service may detect this change, by you, as suspicious activity.
- Your new address may also be blocked by Google, because of activity by another set of problem computers.
- Your new address may be blocked by another Internet service, and you'll have to start over with them.
So right now, I'll not go into the details of changing your address - though you may try doing this, if you wish. It's your computer, after all.
