How to fix error 401

When you’re active in the online sphere, encountering messages with codes like error 401 that prevent you from opening a web page becomes part of life, but it doesn’t mean that there’s nothing you can do about it – on the contrary. 

As it happens, there are quite a few steps you can try to get rid of this error code. So, let’s analyze what error 401 is, what causes it, and how you can deal with it.

What is error 401?

The 401 unauthorized error is an HTTP status code denying the visitor access to a particular page and indicating the request can’t be fulfilled because it lacks proper authentication credentials for the target resource. Depending on the website or browser, this message can appear as:

• HTTP Error 401
• 401 Authorization Required
• HTTP 401 Error – Unauthorized
• 401 Unauthorized
• Access Denied

Why does error 401 happen?

Regardless of how the message may appear, it suggests one of the following things could be happening that’s preventing the authorization from successfully going through: outdated browser cache and cookies, the presence of incompatible plugins, invalid credentials, incorrect URL, or outdated link. 

You may also see the 401 error message if you’re trying to visit web pages that may be restricted at the time being, to the general public, to your specific region, to your particular browser, or to your IP address specifically for one reason or another. Also, it could be a virus.

How to fix error 401

If you happen to run into this error code, there are some things you can try:

1. Checking the URL for errors: If you didn’t type the correct URL, it could lead to a 401 error, so make sure it’s correct and there are no mistypes.
2. Clearing your browser’s cache: Sometimes another easy solution is to simply delete your browser’s cache, as it might become outdated or corrupted.
   
3. Flushing your DNS cache: Although DNS causing this error is rare, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible, so try flushing your DNS by opening the Command Prompt and entering ipconfig/flushdns
4. Deactivating your WordPress plugins: WordPress plugins are notorious for wreaking havoc on websites sometimes, so disabling them one by one if you’re the administrator can help find the culprit.
5. Checking the WWW-Authenticate header response: If you’re an admin of the offending website and still struggling, then the problem could be the server, so check the WWW-Authenticate header for a response, or rather the used authentication scheme, to narrow down the cause of the issue.

Conclusion

All things considered, the 401 error usually arises when there’s a hiccup in the communication between your browser and the server in which the latter can’t authenticate requests coming from you, and it’s usually easy to fix. 

If you need help with other error codes such as the HTTP error 400, the 403 forbidden error on Google Chrome, the 404 ‘not found’ message, the 429 ‘too many requests’ glitch, the 500 internal server problem, the HTTP error 503, or the 504 gateway timeout issue, consult our guides.