Troubleshooting
Find the section that matches your symptom and work through it step by step. If that doesn't help, the FAQ has more background.
Model calls fail
If a model call errors out or hangs, check these in order:
- API key: correct, not expired, and not out of quota.
- Base URL: when using a custom or non-default service, confirm the endpoint is right (OpenAI-compatible usually ends in
/v1). - Model name: must match the provider's model identifier exactly (case and hyphens included).
- Protocol type: choose Anthropic native for the Claude family; most others are OpenAI-compatible.
- Fallback model: if you configured one and it still fails, verify the fallback also works — Silicon Worker switches to it automatically when the primary fails.
- Network: confirm you can reach the provider's endpoint (some services have network requirements).
TIP
Silicon Worker automatically retries transient errors (network blips, rate limits, timeouts) and switches to your fallback model when one is configured. Persistent failures are usually a key, URL, or model-name issue.
For setup, see Connect a Model and Configure Providers.
Can't operate an app
Silicon Worker operates other apps through system APIs and fails when permissions are missing.
macOS
In System Settings → Privacy & Security, confirm you granted:
- Accessibility: required to read and operate UI elements — needed for desktop automation.
- Automation: needed when controlling other apps via scripting.
After granting, you may need to restart that app or Silicon Worker for it to take effect. See Grant System Permissions.
Windows
Windows operates the UI through UI Automation, which generally needs no manual permission. If it still fails, check whether antivirus / security software is blocking it, and add Silicon Worker to its trusted list.
Download or install blocked by the system
macOS: "unidentified developer" warning
If the first launch is blocked, go to System Settings → Privacy & Security, find the prompt, and click Open Anyway.
Windows: SmartScreen block
If SmartScreen pops up, click More info → Run anyway to continue.
For install steps, see Install.
Browser automation isn't working
- Confirm Chrome is installed — browser automation drives Chrome via the Chrome DevTools Protocol.
- On first use, let it fully launch once; Silicon Worker uses a dedicated browser-profile directory to keep your logged-in state.
- If a slow-loading page causes actions to miss, have the task wait briefly between key steps and retry.
- If the task stops at an action like submitting a form or clicking delete, that's the confirmation mechanism for high-risk actions (see below), not a failure.
See Desktop & Browser Automation.
A scheduled task didn't fire
- Confirm the task is enabled and the cron expression matches the time you expect.
- Scheduled tasks start a new session at the trigger time and require the app to be running — if the app is closed when the time comes, the task won't fire.
- Confirm the permissions, model, and connectors the task needs are all in place.
See Scheduled & Remote Execution.
The task paused and is waiting for my confirmation
This is the normal permission-confirmation mechanism, not a hang. When a task is about to perform a high-risk action (writing files, running commands, deleting, submitting forms, etc.), Silicon Worker pauses and asks you to confirm; once you approve, it resumes from the same point.
To get fewer interruptions, adjust the permission mode (Free, for example, auto-approves Safe/Low actions); to be more cautious, use Controlled or Restricted. See Tools and Risk and the Permissions reference.
I can't find the knowledge I imported
- Confirm the material was actually imported into a knowledge base. Markdown and plain text are supported today (PDF / Office documents are not yet).
- Confirm that knowledge base is bound to the current session, expert, or team — retrieval only searches bound knowledge bases.
- Retrieval uses full-text (keyword) search, so trying words that actually appear in the material, or more specific phrasing, usually matches better.
See Knowledge Base.
Still stuck?
- Background and concepts: FAQ, Tools and Risk
- Recheck your setup: Connect a Model, Grant System Permissions