If you are using the Legacy Weaver Xtreme Admin Interface and receive the message when you click Save Settings

WARNING – Your current settings have not been saved! Your previous settings are intact.

it means that you will need to increase the PHP max_input_vars configuration settings. (PHP is the programming language used by WordPress used to create your site.)

Explanation

The max_input_vars value limits the number of options that a website is allowed to “pass” on a form to the browser when you click “Save Settings” from the Weaver Xtreme Legacy interface.

The typical value for this is 1000, which has for a long time been more than enough to handle Weaver Xtreme’s hundreds of options. Each Weaver Xtreme option is “passed” for saving when you click “Save Settings”.  Depending on what plugins you have, and other factors, it is possible to exceed this default of 1000.

We would recommend increasing the value from 1000 to 2000 to solve this issue.

Note that the separate “+ Xtreme Plus” options settings are not affected by this limitation.

How to Increase max_input_vars

Because of the way PHP is configured on different hosts, there is not a single, easy way to increase the value of max_input_vars.  In some cases, it is fairly easy to do this yourself, but it may require a call to your hosting company’s tech support.

Most Common Method: Modify .htaccess via your host control panel

For many hosting companies, it is possible to increase the value of max_input_vars by adding a simple line to the .htaccess file:

php_value max_input_vars 2000

This can usually be accomplished by opening your hosting account’s cPanel or other admin interface, and editing the .htaccess file. The .htaccess file us normally found in the root directory of your WordPress installation. This is often a hidden file that may require an extra setting to make it visible in the file list.

To modify .htaccess, edit it and add the line php_value max_input_vars 2000 to the file. Anywhere is okay to put it – before or after the usual WordPress rules you will find there. Save your file, and the Legacy Save Settings should now work.

Not all hosts support the .htaccess method, so if this changes doesn’t work, please read about the other options below.

Easier: Install the WP htaccess Control plugin to add the new rule

There is a plugin that allows you to modify .htaccess directly from your WP Admin: WP htaccess Control. After you install and activate the plugin, you can open its admin panel from the Settings menu. Open the “Custom htaccess” tab, and add

php_value max_input_vars 2000

to the box, then save.

What if the .htaccess method doesn’t work? php.ini

Not all hosts support the .htaccess method, and if yours doesn’t, you will have to use other approaches. For most of you, the easiest option might be to call your hosting company’s tech support and ask them to increase PHP max_input_vars to 2000.

When the .htaccess rule does not work, the other alternative is to modify the php.ini file. This will almost always work – if you can find the correct php.ini file, which isn’t always easy to do. But the process is similar. When you find php.ini, add

max_input_vars = 2000
suhosin.post.max_vars = 2000
suhosin.request.max_vars = 2000

to the php.ini file. The suhosin rules may not be necessary for your particular host, but are harmless to include and will cover the case of hosts that do use suhosin.

Note that there are many articles on the web on how to increase this value, and a Google search may help you, too.

The Customizer Does Not Depend on max_input_vars

One final note: The Customizer does not depend on max_input_vars because is uses a totally different technique to change settings.