Customize WordPress>Error Page

Question

Is there a way to customize the WordPress>error page template so that the user isn't shown just a blank screen with text?

I'm not talking about 404, but when WordPress displays an error.

I'd like to style this page to match my theme.

Answer 1

You're probably talking about theming wp_die(), which is the function that produces those grey error pages with a white box of text in them.

For a plugin solution, you could try this plugin, which says it does what you want. Not sure about version support though--it says it only works up to 3.1.4.

For a programatic solution, you'll want to hook into the filter "wp_die_handler". So you can do:

add_filter('wp_die_handler', 'my_die_handler');

As far as code for the "my_die_handler" function, you could start by looking at the default die handler--the function is called "_default_wp_die_handler", and it starts on line 2781 of the core file /wp-includes/functions.php. You can copy the whole function to your plugin file (or your theme's functions file), rename it "my_die_handler", and customize it form there.

Answer 2

I know providing links is a bad way to answer a question, but quite honestly... I came across this excellent blog post which specifically answers this question in great detail.

Theme-able WordPress error pages