Database errors

The most common database errors SourceBans++ users hit, with the fix that usually resolves each. They’re ordered roughly by how often they show up.

If the panel reports Could not find driver instead of one of the errors below, it’s not a SQL error — PHP can’t load the MySQL driver at all. Jump to Driver not found.

Access denied

SQLSTATE[HY000] [1045] Access denied for user '…'@'…' (using password: YES)

The database rejected the credentials you provided. Three things to check, in order:

1. The username and password are correct. Typos sneak in through copy-paste, especially special characters in passwords.

2. The user is allowed to connect from this host. MariaDB / MySQL user grants include the source host ('user'@'192.168.1.5'). A user grant of 'sourcebans'@'localhost' won’t accept a connection from '192.168.1.5' even with the right password.

   The canonical grant syntax is in Database setup → Granting permission.

3. Remote connections are allowed. Many shared hosts disable remote DB access by default. If the panel and the database are on different hosts, your host’s control panel will usually have a “Remote MySQL” or “Allowed hosts” setting to whitelist the panel’s IP.

Can’t connect to MySQL server

Can't connect to MySQL server on '…'

Usually one of:

• The database server isn’t running. Check with systemctl status mariadb (or mysql).
• The TCP port is blocked by a firewall or port-blocking service. The default is 3306.
• Wrong host / port in config.php. localhost and 127.0.0.1 are not always equivalent on Unix — localhost typically routes through a socket file, while 127.0.0.1 uses TCP.

If the panel and database are on the same host, the socket path is what matters (default /tmp/mysql.sock or /var/run/mysqld/mysqld.sock). If they’re on different hosts, the IP / hostname and port are what matter.

Lost connection to MySQL server

Lost connection to MySQL server during query

Most often: the DB’s bind-address isn’t set up to accept your panel’s connection. See Database setup → Configure for remote connections.

Can also indicate flaky network connectivity between the panel host and the database host. If it happens intermittently, this is almost always it.

More rarely, the initial connection times out. If your connect_timeout is set to only a few seconds, bump it to ten or more — useful on slow long-distance connections.

MySQL server has gone away

MySQL server has gone away or CR_SERVER_GONE_ERROR / CR_SERVER_LOST

The database closed the connection before the panel finished using it. Common causes:

• Idle timeout. The DB closed a long-idle connection. Usually benign; the panel reconnects on the next request.
• max_allowed_packet exceeded. Rare on a normal panel install, but possible if you have unusually long ban reasons / chat messages. Increase max_allowed_packet on the DB server.
• The DB was restarted. The panel’s existing pool of connections becomes invalid until the next reconnect.

Too many connections

Too many connections

All available connection slots are in use by other clients on the DB. Most often seen on shared hosting with a low max_connections cap.

Two paths forward:

• Raise max_connections on the DB, if you have access. The default is usually 151; bump to 200 or 500 for a busy panel + multiple game servers.
• Reduce concurrent panel users. Rare, but a runaway script that opens many connections without closing them can spike the count.

Table doesn’t exist

Table 'sourcebans._foo' doesn't exist

The table the panel tried to read isn’t there. This almost always means the updater didn’t finish when you last upgraded.

Re-run the updater:

https://example.com/updater/

Watch the output for errors. If a specific migration step fails, the page will say which one and why — share that in #help-support if you can’t decipher it.

Incorrect string value

Incorrect string value: '\xF0\x9F…' for column …

The DB or table is using the 3-byte utf8 charset alias instead of real utf8mb4. A player name with emoji or 4-byte CJK characters won’t fit.

The fix is to convert the database (and its tables) to utf8mb4:

ALTER DATABASE `sourcebans` CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;

-- Then per table:
ALTER TABLE `_admins` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
ALTER TABLE `_bans` CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
-- (etc. for every panel table)

Back up your database before running these — CONVERT TO rewrites every row.

Anything else

If your error isn’t here, share it in #help-support on our Discord with:

• The full error message (including the SQL state code).
• What you were doing when it fired (install, page load, save).
• The PHP and DB versions.

We’ll triage from there.