Confirm that the PHP version actually serving the website has mysqli or mysqlnd enabled. On CloudLinux/cPanel, the selected version in one PHP interface may not be the version or handler the domain is actually using.
The error
Your PHP installation appears to be missing the MySQL extension which is required by WordPress.This message means WordPress cannot see a supported MySQL PHP extension in the PHP environment that handled the request.
Confirm the PHP version serving the site
A PHP version shown in cPanel is not always proof that the same version is serving the domain. Create a temporary PHP information page or inspect the server's PHP handler configuration and confirm the loaded configuration file, PHP version and modules.
Remove any public phpinfo() page after testing. It exposes useful server information that should not remain publicly accessible.
Enable mysqli
For current WordPress installations, make sure mysqli is available. On CloudLinux systems using Select PHP Version, also verify that the domain is actually assigned to that selector environment.
Check for a handler mismatch
If cPanel shows one PHP version with mysqli enabled but WordPress still reports it missing, compare:
- The PHP version in MultiPHP Manager.
- The PHP version in CloudLinux Select PHP Version.
- The PHP handler reported by the live website.
- The loaded
php.inior.user.ini. - Whether LiteSpeed, PHP-FPM or another handler is serving the request.
The fastest way to solve this class of issue is to prove what the live request is using first, then change that environment — not the control-panel screen that merely looks right.
We’ll wire these buttons into analytics later.