Troubleshooting

#Install

#"Synonode Runner is for approved accounts"

The install command you ran is old, expired (they last 7 days) or was changed. Log in at synonode.com and copy the command again from Set up your first computer or Add a computer.

#Your account is waiting for approval

An admin approves new accounts. Press Check again on the waiting screen once you've heard back.

#"git is needed"

Install git and run the command again. On Ubuntu: sudo apt install git.

#Windows: "requires elevation" or WSL errors

Older install commands set up WSL, which needs administrator rights. Copy the command again from synonode.com: the runner now installs on Windows itself, into your user folder, with no administrator rights.

#Windows: the model's commands don't look like bash

Run /doctor: Shell should say bash (Git Bash). If it says cmd, Synonode found no Git for Windows: install it from git-scm.com ("Only for me" needs no administrator rights), or set SYNONODE_GIT_BASH_PATH to its bash.exe, then restart Synonode Runner.

#Windows: the runner is blocked from starting

A company antivirus or AppLocker policy may block programs in your user folder. The installer says which step failed; your IT department can allow %USERPROFILE%\.synonode-runner.

#Page checks fail after installing

The browser's system libraries may be missing. Run:

cd ~/.synonode-runner/app && npx playwright install --with-deps chromium

#It says its browser is missing

Synonode draws pages, PDFs and big pictures with its own browser. Without it, a PNG or JPEG is still looked at as it is, and anything else gives a message that the browser is missing. Run /doctor, or install it once:

cd ~/.synonode-runner/app && npx playwright install chromium

#I can't log in after an older Synonode installed its sandbox

Synonode versions before 30 October 2026 added an AppArmor rule for bubblewrap (/etc/apparmor.d/synonode-bwrap) that can clash with Ubuntu's own and stop the desktop from logging in. At the login screen press Ctrl Alt F3, log in, and remove it:

sudo apparmor_parser -R /etc/apparmor.d/synonode-bwrap
sudo rm /etc/apparmor.d/synonode-bwrap
sudo reboot

#Connection

#"No computer is on"

The runner on your computer isn't running or can't reach synonode.com. Open Synonode Runner on that computer; its window shows what's wrong. The page continues by itself once it connects. In a terminal, synonode-runner status shows the same.

#The runner's login has ended

Log in again in the runner window, or with synonode-runner login.

#Check everything at once

Type /doctor in the chat. It checks the model server, its context window and name, Node.js, git, Python, the browser the checks use, the disk, and this project's instructions, hooks and permission rules, and says what to do about each one that fails.

#The model

#The model doesn't answer

• Check that your model server is running, then click Detect in the runner window.
• On another port or machine? Set its address: synonode-runner model http://host:port. See Models.
• If a turn fails, a note in the chat says why; press ↻ to send it again once the model is back.

#Replies are slow to start

A local model spends most of its time reading. The first message of a conversation reads everything; later ones only read what's new. Long conversations read more: /compact or /clear helps. See Speed with a local model.

#"The conversation no longer fits"

Run /compact, or turn on Auto-compact in Settings → Capabilities.

#Out of memory: "killed by the system"

The model server ended with nothing in its console, often at the end of a long prompt: Linux stopped it because the computer ran out of memory (RAM). To check, run journalctl -k | grep -i "out of memory". What helps, in this order:

• Don't lock the model in memory: leave out --mlock (or --load-mode mmap+mlock). A model file nearly as big as your RAM can't be held in it with room to spare.
• Make the prompt cache smaller: a lower --cache-ram, or --cache-ram 0.
• Keep more of the model on the GPU (a lower --n-cpu-moe), or use a smaller quant.
• Close other programs that use a lot of memory, like a browser with many tabs.

#The page

#"Something on this page broke"

Your projects and chats are safe on your computer. Choose Back to the start or Reload. If it happens again, choose Copy the error and send it to your admin: it says exactly what broke.

#The app looks out of date

Your browser may be holding an old copy. Use Clear cache & reload in Settings → General.

#No notifications

Turn them on in Settings → General, on each device. If the browser blocks them, allow notifications for synonode.com in the browser's site settings.

#Updates

#An update didn't finish

If a new runner doesn't connect within a couple of minutes, the previous version is put back by itself, and Settings → General → Updates says what happened. Try again later, or run synonode-runner update in a terminal to see each step.

#Still stuck?

Look at the runner's log, ~/.synonode-runner/runner.log, and send it to your admin with what you were doing.