Relationship guides 12 · 9 min
Diagnose an error and recover safely
Do not repeatedly press the same button. Read the error name, the current data state and the recommended next action.
Who this guide is for: People blocked by a file, account, connection or limit error.
1. Read the three parts of an error
Identify what happened, whether any new data was saved, and the safe next step. If the data state is unclear, inspect activity or ask support rather than assuming nothing happened.
2. Re-export a problematic file
For an unsupported format, a file over 10 MB or a read failure, use the original service's export function. Check the supported format, reduce the period where possible, download a new file and compare the result counts. Renaming the extension is not conversion.
3. Separate account, permission and quota issues
Sign in again if required. Check the relevant permission if it was denied. Reaching a free limit does not delete existing data. An expired introduction needs new consent, not reuse of an old permission.
4. Send only necessary support details
Describe the error name, time, file format and online status. Do not attach names, contact details, access tokens or original files. Create a diagnostic file only after reviewing its contents and consenting. For a server failure, check activity before retrying.
Terms explained
- Metadata
- details such as source, time and count, rather than a message body.
- Pseudonymous key
- a value used instead of a name; it remains linked to an account.
- Encryption
- storing data in a form that needs a key to read; it does not prevent every risk on the same device.
- JSON
- an export format that preserves named fields and structure.
- CSV / TSV
- tables whose columns are separated by commas or tabs.
- vCard / VCF
- a contact-card file format.
- PWA
- a web app that supported browsers can add to the home screen.
- Relative score
- a comparison within current records, not a person's worth or success probability.