Troubleshooting

Start by checking the terminal tool and its connected vault:

lifebase --version
lifebase status

Keep the exact error text. A CLI version, a vault version, and an AI agent version describe different components; include the relevant ones when asking for help.

Sign-in and verification

If sign-in fails, return to your account and try again with a Google or GitHub account already connected to Lifebase. Signing in with an account you have not connected creates a separate Lifebase account, even if its email matches.

For key access and other sensitive actions, choose a connected login method and complete its verification flow in the same browser. Then return to Lifebase and complete the action within five minutes. This confirms access to that connected account; the provider may not ask for your password again.

If you cancelled the flow, start it again from the account page. Keep cookies enabled and use the same browser throughout. If verification keeps failing, contact support with the action and error message. Never send your password or full license key.

The lifebase command is not found

Check node --version and npm --version. Install the CLI with npm install -g @lifebase/cli, then reopen the terminal. If the command still cannot be found, check that the executable directory used by your npm installation is on PATH. Use the same package manager you used to install the CLI.

Activation fails

Check the exact error first. For a Linux storage error, follow keyring troubleshooting before signing in again. Otherwise, check connectivity and authentication or entitlement details, then use lifebase login or the hidden prompt in lifebase activate. A copied vault does not carry your CLI sign-in session to another computer.

For a device limit or unexpected release access, see Licenses. Do not send your key to an agent for diagnosis.

The CLI cannot save my login

If the system store fails, accept the CLI’s local file storage option to continue. No additional program or new keyring password is needed. User permissions protect the file, but it is not encrypted.

If an older CLI asks you to install secret-tool or configure a keyring, update to a CLI release with file fallback and sign in again. Do not repeatedly run daemon commands or delete keyring files.

For agents or scripts, add --allow-local-credentials to the sign-in command after the user approves file storage. The CLI does not switch storage without approval. If it cannot read your old system-store login, you need to sign in again once.

If the local file also cannot be written, check your user’s read/write access to the CLI configuration folder. Do not run lifebase with sudo. Never paste saved login files into chat or sync them with your vault. Use lifebase status to see the storage type.

The destination or connected folder is rejected

New installations need a new or empty writable absolute path. If you already have a vault, use lifebase link --vault /absolute/path/to/lifebase. If it moved, link its new location. If it was deleted, restore a backup or disconnect the missing path before creating another installation.

Do not use installation overwrite as an update or note-recovery method.

An agent cannot see skills

Confirm that the agent is installed and available, then run lifebase agent status --tool hermes, replacing hermes with your tool’s identifier. Open the actual vault as the working project and repeat setup for that tool. Existing instruction-file conflicts need the specific repair reported by setup. See AI agents for identifiers and Hermes for configuration previews.

A new daily note is empty or Task features are missing

Verify that the bundled community plugins are enabled. Ask the agent to review the Obsidian environment portion of onboarding on this device. Templater’s file-creation and startup-template permissions are device-local; synchronized configuration alone does not enable them. After inspecting the configured templates, enable the required permissions through the setup flow, reload, and verify that new-note creation and Lifebase commands work.

Tasks custom searches also require a device-local setting. If Task views report a custom-search error, inspect Settings → Tasks → Searches → Enable custom searches for this trusted vault. Do not remove the Task filter or rewrite templates to hide a permission problem.

An update is pending or the version has not changed

lifebase update review

Unresolved decisions prevent finalization. A saved draft is not an approved merge. Follow the exact agent prompt displayed by the CLI and finish the update review. Do not change hidden version files to make the update appear complete. If a release is unavailable, check its content language, license coverage, support status, and required CLI version.

Maintenance has not run

Inspect the registered job’s vault path, timezone, next run, and latest result. Confirm that its host and runtime can access the vault at execution time. See Automation; saving a prompt or installing a skill does not schedule a job.

Contact support

Email support@lifebaseai.com with the command or step that failed, the exact error, operating system, CLI version, and vault version when available. Redact credentials and personal paths before sharing diagnostic output. Include a minimal relevant example rather than your full vault.