Twenty Twenty: Theme Causes bbPress/BuddyBoss Main Forum Page to Display Text

[deborah86]

The theme is causing the main forum page of bbPress and BuddyPress to display text instead of the main forum listing.

I checked with the admins at BuddyBoss. They confirmed it is an issue with the theme, not the plugin.

​https://lazyjack.blog/forums/

Are you using either the latest version of WordPress, or the latest development version? If not, please update first.
I am using the latest version of WordPress

What steps should be taken to consistently reproduce the problem?

1. Install bbPress or BuddyBoss.
2. Use the TwentyTwenty Theme
3. Set a forum Page
4. Create forums
5. View the main forum page on the front-end

Does the problem occur even when you deactivate all plugins and use the default theme?
N/A

In case it's relevant to the ticket, what is the expected output or result? What did you see instead?
I expect the theme not to interfear with the plugins. I expect for the forum page to be displayed correctly.

This could be related to: ​https://wordpress.org/support/topic/pagination-not-working-with-bbpress-topics-replies/

[desrosj]

Thanks for this ticket, @deborah86!

I used the steps above to try and reproduce the issue you described, but I was unable to. When testing, I see the list of forums available as expected.

I'm marking this with a suggestion to close, but also adding reporter-feedback. This does not seem related to the Twenty Twenty theme based on the information available right now. Here are a few other things to try:

• A different default theme.
• Deactivate other active plugins.
• Try your steps on a fresh install.

[deborah86]

@desrosj

A different default theme.
I tried the Twenty-TwentyOne Default theme. The forums show up styled correctly. I am only having this issue with the Twenty-Twenty theme. I am using the BuddyBoss Plugin.

Deactivate other active plugins.
I deactivated all other plugins except for the BuddyBoss plugin. I am still getting the same issue.

Try your steps on a fresh install.
I tried on a fresh install of WordPress. I was unable to replicate the issue with the Twenty-Twenty theme.

Reinstalled the Twenty-Twenty Theme
I reinstalled the Twenty-Twenty theme. The settings were the original settings as before.

[desrosj]

I looked more into BuddyBoss and it looks like that plugin is a replacement for BuddyPress. You'll need to work with their support to figure out exactly what the issue is as it's a premium plugin and support is not provided here.

If I follow all of your instructions above but use BuddyPress and bbPress instead, everything works as expected, so this seems like there is something in the BuddyPress plugin causing the issue.

It's still possible that BuddyPress is surfacing a problem in the Twenty Twenty theme, but I'm unable to determine that with the information available, and it's working for me as expected.

One thing you could try is flushing your rewrite rules. Often times when the wrong content shows up on a page, it is related in some way to missing or inaccurate rewrite rules.

I'm closing this out, but if you are able to determine the code causing the issue in Twenty Twenty, feel free to reopen and add more context.

[deborah86]

@desrosj

I looked more into BuddyBoss and it looks like that plugin is a replacement for BuddyPress. You'll need to work with their support to figure out exactly what the issue is as it's a premium plugin and support is not provided here.

I tried both bbPress and BuddyBoss. I am having the same issue with both plugins. The screenshot was just from the BuddyBoss plugin.

I already checked with BuddyBoss support. They already looked into it and they stated it is an issue with the Twenty-Twenty theme. It is not an issue with the plugin. They don't provide support for third-party themes.

Their only solution was for me to use another theme since the plugin works fine with other themes.

I ended up here because I still want to use the Twenty-Twenty theme but there is an issue with it in regards to bbPress and BuddyBoss. I don't know what is causing the issue, I just know there is a bug with the theme.

One thing you could try is flushing your rewrite rules. Often times when the wrong content shows up on a page, it is related in some way to missing or inaccurate rewrite rules.

There is not an issue with the rewrite rules. I applied your suggestion and nothing changed. Also, the plugin works fine with any other theme I try.

Here are the theme files from my website: ​https://t2.dhostingsites.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/net2ftp-1620229782.zip

[Clorith]

Hiya,

Having used Twenty Twenty for a fair bit of bbPress testing my self, I figured I'd add some thoughts here as well, after trying a brand new WordPress 5.7.1 install with only the bbPress plugin active, and the Twenty Twenty theme, to try and replicate what you are experiencing.

I'm not able to replicate the scenario from the screenshot you showed in the original report, but it looks to me like bbPress' themes and styles are being removed from the page for some reason. As @desrosj mentioned though, the plugin you are working with is a premium one, so it's not possible for us to look into this any deeper, but it certainly appears to be a problem on their end. If they know for certain the problem is with the theme, I would suggest you let them know that they should open a ticket (or provide details in this one) as to what that problem is, so we can find a solution together.

I did notice that you are using scripts to minify CSS and JS on your site into singular files, which may very well be the cause of your problems, as it would have then combined the scripts for pages outside the forums view, where the bbPress styles have not been loaded originally. If you need further help troubleshooting this though, I would suggest creating a topic at our ​support forums, where one of the many volunteers may be able to help you troubleshoot this particular issue further.

[deborah86]

@Clorith

Thanks for the response. It seems I am getting the run around about who to contact. bbPress and BuddyBoss both say it is the theme why you are saying it is the plugins.

Here is the response I got from bbPress: ​https://bbpress.org/forums/topic/twenty-twenty-theme-causing-jumbled-text-on-forum-page/

I can't post the response I got from BuddyBoss because I contacted them by email. I can post the issue I created in their github.

​https://github.com/buddyboss/buddyboss-platform/issues/2334

As @desrosj mentioned though, the plugin you are working with is a premium one, so it's not possible for us to look into this any deeper, but it certainly appears to be a problem on their end.

BuddyBoss platform is an opensource plugin. You can download it free on their website. You only need to pay if you buy the theme. I am referring to their platform, not their theme.

If they know for certain the problem is with the theme, I would suggest you let them know that they should open a ticket (or provide details in this one) as to what that problem is, so we can find a solution together.

I will let both bbPress and BuddyBoss know to open a ticket on their end.

I did notice that you are using scripts to minify CSS and JS on your site into singular files, which may very well be the cause of your problems, as it would have then combined the scripts for pages outside the forums view, where the bbPress styles have not been loaded originally.

I already tested the website without the minified CSS and JS. I also tested with the other default themes with the minified CSS and JS. The issue is only with the TwentyTwenty theme.

If you need further help troubleshooting this though, I would suggest creating a topic at our support forums, where one of the many volunteers may be able to help you troubleshoot this particular issue further.

I will do that but no one over there answers any of the questions related to bugs in the theme.

[deborah86]

@Clorith @desrosj

It seems the theme is corrupted. I talked to bbPress's support. The only way for me to continue to use the theme is to create a brand new installation of WordPress and use the theme there.

The problem I am facing goes into a bigger issue with WordPress themes. There is no requirement or recommendation for WordPress theme authors to completely remove the theme files completely from the user's website.

These theme files stick around. If a user is having an issue with the theme's templates, there is no way for the user to reinstall the theme without doing a complete wipe and reinstallation of WordPress on their servers.

This complicates the simple solution of allowing a user to uninstall a theme that has been corrupted and reinstall a brand new version of the theme through the interface. The theme will start like it was installed brand new.

If users want to save the theme's settings, they can use the inactivate function. The delete function should completely delete the theme and remove all theme files.

This solution is suggested for plugins (even though many plugin authors ignore this and WordPress does not enforce this policy) but not for themes.

If a user cannot completely remove a theme from their WordPress install without having to reinstall WordPress on a new server, it shouldn't be offered in the theme store.

This includes WordPress default themes like TwentyTwenty.

[deborah86]

Reopened because the solution to the issue is not viable.

[Clorith]

As you mentioned, a fresh copy of the Twenty Twenty theme does not have the issues you are experiencing. With that taken into consideration, I'm again marking this ticket as worksforme, which means that a normal installation works as intended. Although I understand you had a bad experience, and somehow ended up with some missing or incorrect files on your site, it does appear there is nothing wrong with WordPress, or the Twenty Twenty theme by them selves, so it's just an unlucky situation that this one site of yours had something misbehave.

You can however freely remove a theme without completely deleting WordPress, this is done from the Appearance > Themes screen (please note that you will need to choose a new theme first, as you can not delete an active theme). This will completely remove any files from the server. An update to a theme (or a plugin, this behavior is the same in both cases) will also completely replace that theme or plugin, deleting any existing files before installing the new version.

[deborah86]

@Clorith

You can however freely remove a theme without completely deleting WordPress, this is done from the Appearance > Themes screen (please note that you will need to choose a new theme first, as you can not delete an active theme). This will completely remove any files from the server. An update to a theme (or a plugin, this behavior is the same in both cases) will also completely replace that theme or plugin, deleting any existing files before installing the new version.

No, it does not remove all the theme files. The problem is when you delete the twentytwenty theme, all the theme files are not deleted. When you reinstall, it installs with the same settings as before.

I deleted the twenetytwenty theme. I reinstalled. All the edits I made to the theme in the customizer showed back up. I was not given a brand new, fresh version of the theme with the default settings.

The reinstalled version of the theme had my initial color choices, layout options, etc.

There is no way to delete the settings for the theme for a brand new fresh install like you are installing the theme for the very first time.

I have tried this on a few websites. This is an issue with the theme.

The only option given to users is to start completely over in a brand new WordPress install.

[desrosj]

Changes made in the Customizer are saved into the database and are not based on any files in the theme. This is a feature, and it seems to be working exactly as intended.

If you wish to start from scratch, each color option in the Customizer should have a "Default" button you can click to return to the default value. Alternatively, you can delete the theme_modes_twentytwenty option in your site's database. This will give you a fresh, unmodified setup of the theme.

[deborah86]

@desrosj

Changes made in the Customizer are saved into the database and are not based on any files in the theme. This is a feature, and it seems to be working exactly as intended.
This is the problem with WordPress. The same rules that apply to plugins should apply to themes. If a user deletes a theme, all files related to the theme should be removed. Users should get a fresh install of the theme if they decide to reinstall it again. If users want to keep the settings for a theme, they have the option to make the theme inactive.

See WordPress.org Documentation: ​https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/plugin-basics/uninstall-methods/

If you wish to start from scratch, each color option in the Customizer should have a "Default" button you can click to return to the default value. Alternatively, you can delete the theme_modes_twentytwenty option in your site's database. This will give you a fresh, unmodified setup of the theme.

I don't want to start the colors from scratch. I want to delete the entire theme and start from scratch with the entire theme because the theme's template files were corrupted. I don't want to delete my entire WordPress install to get rid of the theme files. I should just be able to click on delete and all theme files should be erased.

I have to re-do my entire website because this simple feature is not enforced on theme creators and that is taking hours.

Deleting a theme should be as easy as deleting a plugin. Theme developers like you don't understand how not being able to delete a theme creates an issue for website owners who use their websites to make a living. I have had to stop all my marketing efforts until I can get my website back online. It is taking hours to rebuild the website. I am unable to just transfer my website because the issue appears in the new website.

[deborah86]

@desrosj @Clorith This just happened again on my brand new website as soon as I activated the forums in the BuddyBoss plugin. There is something that is corrupting your theme files.

See the image below:

[deborah86]

@desrosj
@Clorith

I found out what the bug is. If the setting in the Customizer "On archive pages, posts show:" is set to summary, this breaks the forums in bbPress and BuddyBoss.

This is definitely a bug.

[Clorith]

I can replicate what you are experiencing, with that information in hand, but I don't thinks this is something that a theme should have to solve.

A lot of plugins could be experiencing issues like this (you already mentioned two), so this is like opening a can of worms if the theme should account for all plugins, instead the plugins them selves can be smart about this.

A plugin could either add specific Twenty Twenty compatibility code (as an example, WooCommerce does this, although not for this specific issue, they have a folder full of theme-specific modifications), for example by checking if the theme option to show summaries has been chosen, and changing the output via the the_excerpt conditionally.

Or they could outright filter the the_excerpt filter always, if a plugin relies on markup to be displayed on a site, to make sure their content is added correctly across themes without being specific to Twenty Twenty.

[deborah86]

I contacted bbPress and BuddyBoss about this issue.

Link to the bbPress ticket here: ​https://bbpress.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/3431

[deborah86]

I updated the ticket on the BuddyBoss Github ​https://github.com/buddyboss/buddyboss-platform/issues/2334.

[desrosj]

Looks like this was ​resolved in the GitHub issue that was created.