highly distributed.
Troubleshooting

Find the snag.
Take the next step.

Pick the symptom you’re seeing. Work through the checks before changing your setup.

A focused way to get unstuck

What happens when you try?

Choose your platform and symptom. Review one check at a time, then save useful evidence for your host.

1. Where do you publish?

2. What is not working?

Your investigation

My profile can’t be found

Start with the exact identity your platform advertises.

Check that the blog or author profile you are testing matches the handle you share. Include your ActivityPub plugin version and Site Health findings in your notes.

0 of 4 checks reviewed
Read the full notes Open your platform guide
The reference shelf

Read the full troubleshooting notes.

01 / Diagnose

My profile can’t be found

Start with the exact identity your platform advertises.

  1. Copy the complete @name@server handle from your profile settings, rather than a display name or site title.
  2. Search for that handle or the public profile URL while signed in to your own Fediverse app.
  3. If a homepage fails our checker, use the handle. Not every homepage advertises a profile link.
  4. If the handle still fails, confirm that federation is enabled and ask your host to inspect public profile discovery.
Mastodon: finding remote profiles
02 / Diagnose

A follow stays pending

Some services require approval. WordPress ActivityPub accepts follows automatically, so a pending request there points to an incomplete server exchange.

  1. For WordPress ActivityPub, check whether the follower appears in WordPress; there is no manual approval step. For another service, check whether its profile requires approval.
  2. Confirm the destination is the blog or author profile you intended to follow.
  3. For WordPress, review the ActivityPub plugin’s FAQ and Site Health results. Ask your host to investigate failed scheduled jobs or blocked requests.
  4. Record both profile handles and the time you tried. Share them with the relevant administrator if the request remains pending.
WordPress ActivityPub: official FAQ
03 / Diagnose

My new post hasn’t arrived

Test delivery separately from discovery.

  1. Confirm the follow was accepted before publishing the test post.
  2. Use a new, deliberately public post. Don’t use subscriber-only content as your test.
  3. Open the author’s profile from the receiving account and compare it with your home feed.
  4. Keep the original post URL and publishing time. If it remains missing, ask your host to inspect the delivery queue and destination response.
Ghost: social web compatibility
04 / Diagnose

Replies look different across servers

A conversation can be incomplete on one server even when the replies exist elsewhere.

  1. Open the original post to compare its conversation with the view in your own app.
  2. On Mastodon, try searching the full post URL, expanding the conversation, and refreshing after a moment.
  3. Some replies may be restricted, require authorization, or come from a server your instance does not communicate with.
  4. For a WordPress publication, also review comment moderation and the plugin’s missing-comments FAQ.
Mastodon: fetching replies
05 / Diagnose

The checker reports a timeout or HTTP error

An automated check is not the same as a signed request from another Fediverse server.

  1. A 401 or 403 may indicate that the server restricts automated or unsigned requests. Try discovery from a signed-in Fediverse account.
  2. For a timeout or temporary server error, retry later with your full handle.
  3. Do not disable your firewall just to pass this checker. Ask your host to identify which specific request was blocked.
  4. If a real follow and new-post test work, treat our check as inconclusive.
ActivityPub: federation protocol

Practical diagnostic suggestions with links to official references. Reviewed September 22, 2026. Results depend on your platform and server policies.