Fixing problems in WordPress multisite Network

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Missing multisite htaccess code

The htaccess file needs the following network code to function properly.

# BEGIN WordPress Multisite
# Using subdomain network type: https://wordpress.org/support/article/htaccess/#multisite
RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule .* - [E=HTTP_AUTHORIZATION:%{HTTP:Authorization}]
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index\.php$ - [L]
# add a trailing slash to /wp-admin
RewriteRule ^wp-admin$ wp-admin/ [R=301,L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -f [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -d
RewriteRule ^ - [L]
RewriteRule ^(wp-(content|admin|includes).*) $1 [L]
RewriteRule ^(.*\.php)$ $1 [L]
RewriteRule . index.php [L]
# END WordPress Multisite

If the above code is missing then you might experience problems with publishing with Gutenberg / Block Editor, and receive the following error: “Publishing failed. The response is not a valid JSON response.”

Missing SSL

Another aspect is HTTPS / SSL. Make sure to in cPanel activate SSL/TLS Status for all the subsites. Contact your web host if there are subsites you are not able to activate the AutoSSL for.

NB! If it still does not work then clear all the web history/cookies of the browser you are using.

Resource used: hostinger – what is 403 forbidden error and how to fix it