errorWordfenceerrorPHP errorspeedmemory limiterrorfatal errorerror_outlinescan errorlabelCommonwarningModerate

Wordfence scan aborted due to PHP fatal error: Allowed memory size exhausted

The scan stops because PHP runs out of memory. Wordfence loads many files and patterns, and the allocated memory limit is too low for the operation. When the limit is reached PHP throws a fatal error and the scan aborts.

This usually happens on sites with many files, heavy plugins, or hosting that enforces strict memory caps. The error appears in the Wordfence dashboard and in server logs.

Symptoms

[dashicons-warning]
Scan aborted message
Dashboard shows “Scan aborted” with memory exhausted error
[dashicons-admin-site]
White screen on scan results
Page shows blank or partial content when opening scan results
[dashicons-dashboard]
Site slowdown
Site becomes slow while scan runs due to high CPU and memory usage

Common Causes

Low PHP memory limit
memory_limit setting is below the amount needed for scanning
Heavy plugins consuming memory
Other plugins load large objects that reduce available memory for Wordfence
Oversized Wordfence rule file
wflogs/rules.php grows large after many updates and uses excessive memory
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