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How do I troubleshoot common issues?

Solutions for common SwiftPrep issues. If you do not find your answer here, contact support through the SwiftPrep website.

App Will Not Start

Symptoms

  • App does not open at all
  • App crashes immediately on launch
  • Stuck on loading screen

Solutions

Restart your computer Sometimes a fresh start clears whatever is blocking the app.

Reinstall SwiftPrep

  1. Uninstall the current version
  2. Download fresh from swiftprep.app/download
  3. Install and try again

Check for conflicts

  • Antivirus software may block SwiftPrep. Add an exception.
  • VPN software can interfere. Try disabling temporarily.
  • Firewall may block connections. Allow SwiftPrep through.

Clear app data (last resort) This resets the app but preserves campaigns:

  • Windows: Delete %APPDATA%\SwiftPrep\settings.json
  • macOS: Delete ~/Library/Application Support/SwiftPrep/settings.json
  • Linux: Delete ~/.config/SwiftPrep/settings.json

[!WARNING] Clearing app data resets your preferences and settings, but your campaign data remains safe.

AI Features Not Working

"Offline" indicator when connected

Check internet connection

  • Can you browse websites?
  • Try a different network

Refresh subscription

  1. Go to Settings, then Account
  2. Click "Refresh Subscription"
  3. Wait for confirmation

Sign out and back in

  1. Settings, then Account, then Sign Out
  2. Sign back in with your credentials
  3. Check AI features

"Quota exhausted"

You have used all your monthly AI generations.

Options:

  • Wait for quota to reset (next billing cycle)
  • Purchase Pay-As-You-Go credits (Settings, then Buy More)
  • Upgrade to a higher tier

Generation takes too long

AI requests typically complete in 5-15 seconds. If longer:

  • Check your internet connection
  • Try a simpler prompt
  • Try again later (server load varies)

Poor quality results

Improve your prompts:

  • Be more specific
  • Include context
  • Try different tone presets
  • Adjust creativity slider

[!TIP] Adding context about your campaign significantly improves AI output quality. Mention the genre, tone, and any specific details relevant to your request.

Subscription Issues

"Subscription not found"

Verify payment:

  • Check email for payment confirmation
  • Check your payment method for charges

Refresh status:

  1. Settings, then Account, then Refresh Subscription
  2. Sign out and sign back in

Contact support if you have payment confirmation but no access.

Cannot upgrade or downgrade

  • Check that you are signed in
  • Verify payment method is valid
  • Try a different browser for the payment page
  • Contact support if payment fails repeatedly

Charged but no access

  1. Check that you are signed into the correct account
  2. Refresh subscription (Settings, then Account)
  3. Wait 5 minutes and try again
  4. Contact support with payment confirmation

Data and Campaigns

Campaign will not load

Check for corruption:

  1. Go to your data folder:
    • Windows: %APPDATA%\SwiftPrep\
    • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/SwiftPrep/
    • Linux: ~/.config/SwiftPrep/
  2. Look for backup files (.backup or dated folders)
  3. Try restoring from backup

Restart SwiftPrep Sometimes a fresh app start resolves loading issues.

Lost data

SwiftPrep stores data locally. If data is missing:

Check the data folder Navigate to the paths above. Your campaign data should be there.

Check for backups Look for .backup files or dated backup folders.

If you exported recently Restore from your JSON backup: Settings, then Import, then SwiftPrep JSON

If no backup exists Unfortunately, local data loss without backups cannot be recovered. Start regular backups.

[!WARNING] Always export your campaigns regularly as backups. SwiftPrep stores data locally, so backups protect against hardware failure or accidental deletion.

Import failed

Wrong file or folder selected

  • For VTT import: select the campaign folder, not a file
  • For SwiftPrep JSON: select the .json file

Corrupted source

  • Try opening the source in its original app first
  • Re-export from the original source

Unsupported version

  • Some VTT versions may not be fully supported
  • Check documentation for known limitations

Display and Interface

UI looks wrong

Scale/zoom issues:

  • Reset app zoom: View, then Reset Zoom (or Ctrl/Cmd + 0)
  • Check system display scaling settings
  • Try a different display resolution

Missing elements:

  • Try resizing the window
  • Reset window position: close app, delete window position from settings

Text is garbled or wrong

Encoding issues:

  • Restart the app
  • Check that content does not have unusual characters
  • Re-import affected content

Dark mode issues

  • Toggle dark mode off and on: Settings, then Appearance
  • Restart the app
  • Check system dark mode settings

Performance

App is slow

Large campaigns:

  • Close unused panels
  • Filter entity lists instead of scrolling
  • Archive old/unused content

System resources:

  • Close other applications
  • Check available RAM
  • Restart your computer

Graph view slow:

  • Filter to show fewer entities
  • Use relationship type filters
  • Zoom out for better performance

Search is slow

For campaigns with thousands of entities:

  • Use more specific search terms
  • Filter by entity type before searching
  • Consider archiving unused content

Sync and Multiple Devices

Data not syncing

SwiftPrep does not sync automatically. Your data is stored locally on each device.

To transfer data between devices:

  1. Export from device A (Settings, then Export, then JSON)
  2. Transfer the file (USB, cloud storage, email)
  3. Import on device B (Settings, then Import, then SwiftPrep JSON)

[!INFO] Cloud sync is on the SwiftPrep roadmap. Until then, use manual export/import to transfer campaigns between devices.

Platform-Specific Issues

Windows

SmartScreen warning on install: This is normal for newer apps. Click "More info", then "Run anyway"

Antivirus blocks SwiftPrep: Add SwiftPrep to your antivirus exceptions/whitelist.

macOS

"Cannot be opened" error: Right-click the app, then Open, then Open Or: System Preferences, then Security & Privacy, then Open Anyway

Catalina+ permission prompts: Grant permissions when prompted (files, network).

Linux

AppImage will not run:

chmod +x SwiftPrep.AppImage

Missing dependencies:

sudo apt-get install libfuse2

No system tray icon: Some desktop environments do not support tray icons. This does not affect functionality.

Getting Help

Before contacting support

  1. Check this troubleshooting guide
  2. Try restarting the app
  3. Try restarting your computer
  4. Note the exact error message
  5. Note what you were doing when the issue occurred

Contact support

Visit swiftprep.app/support with:

  • Your operating system and version
  • SwiftPrep version (Settings, then About)
  • Description of the issue
  • Steps to reproduce
  • Screenshots if relevant

Known issues

Check the SwiftPrep website for known issues and workarounds before troubleshooting extensively.

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