Troubleshoot instances
How to track and cancel operations, read event notifications and warnings, and resolve common instance errors.
Instance actions run as background operations, so most problems surface as failed operations and error notifications rather than blocked pages. This page shows where to look and lists common errors.
Track operations
Go to Operations in the navigation to see recent operations: when each was initiated and last updated, what it did (action, instance, project), any error text, and its status (Running, Success, Failure, Cancelled). Use the search box to filter by description, project, status, or instance name.
Cancelable operations — such as an instance creation that is still running — have a Cancel action. Note that only recent and active operations are retained; the list is not a permanent audit log.
Event notifications
Every action reports its outcome as a toast notification in the console. Failure toasts include the error message; bulk-action toasts summarize partial failures and offer a details view with per-instance results. If an instance creation fails, the notification's Check configuration action reopens the create form with your values and jumps to the failing section.
Warnings page
The Warnings page lists server-side warnings with type, message, severity, project, and first/last-seen timestamps. Depending on your permissions this page may be unavailable (a permission error is shown) — it is primarily aimed at administrators.
Common errors
| Symptom | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
An instance with this name already exists | Instance names must be unique within the project. Pick another name, or leave the name empty to auto-generate one. See Create an instance. |
| Create form jumps to the Disk section and blocks submission | The instance has no root disk, and none is inherited from a profile. Add a root disk in the Disk section or attach a profile that provides one. |
| A button is disabled with a "You do not have permission to ..." tooltip | Your account lacks the corresponding permission (for example state changes, snapshots, backups, or editing) in this project. Ask your administrator — see Access control. |
| Delete is disabled with "Stop the instance to delete it" | Instances can only be deleted while Stopped or in Error status. Stop the instance first. Deletion can also be blocked by the Protect deletion security policy. |
| Terminal shows "Terminal not available — this instance does not have the VM agent installed" | The exec-based terminal needs a guest agent in the VM. Immutable OSes such as Talos Linux do not support it; use the Console tab instead. See Access instances. |
| Saving configuration fails because the instance changed | Someone (or something) modified the instance after you opened the form; stale edits are rejected to protect their change. Reload the page and re-apply your edit. See Configure instances. |
| Snapshot creation is disabled for the project | Project policy blocks snapshots. Contact your administrator — see Manage projects. |
Instance stuck in Setting up | The creation operation is still running or has stalled. Check it on the Operations page and cancel it if needed, then retry. |