Help
My agent is not replying
What to do when your agent does not answer, shows an error, forgets things, ignores a photo, does not search or misses a reminder. Find the message or the problem you see, and follow the fix.
Most problems with an agent come down to a handful of causes, such as an empty OpenRouter account, a setting that is switched off, or a conversation that has grown too long. This page lists what you might see, and what to do about it.
If your agent is replying in the browser, you can also just ask it what is wrong. It reads this guide and can check its own settings.
When the reply is an error message
| If the reply says | Do this |
|---|---|
| "OpenRouter API key is missing" | Your agent has no key to pay for replies. Choose one under OpenRouter in your agent's Settings. If you removed a key from your wallet, every agent that used it needs a new one. See Get an OpenRouter API key. |
| "The provider rejected the call for credits or quota" | Your OpenRouter account is out of credit, or your key has reached its credit limit. Buy more credit on OpenRouter, or raise the limit on your key. |
| "The provider is rate limiting this key" | Too many requests were sent in a short time. Wait a minute and try again, or pick a different model in Settings. |
| "That turn was too large for the model's context" | The conversation has grown longer than the model can read. Send !compact, or start a new conversation with !new. |
| "This agent has reached its spending limit for this month" | Your agent is part of a fleet, and you have used this month's allowance on the default fleet key. It starts working again next month, as soon as the person who runs the fleet raises your limit, or when you switch to a key of your own in Settings. |
| "That turn did not finish" | Try again. If it keeps happening, send !unstick. |
| "I ran out of steps before finishing this" | The task needed more steps than one reply allows. Reply with "continue" and your agent carries on from where it stopped. |
If the reply says
"OpenRouter API key is missing"
Do this
Your agent has no key to pay for replies. Choose one under OpenRouter in your agent's Settings. If you removed a key from your wallet, every agent that used it needs a new one. See Get an OpenRouter API key.
If the reply says
"The provider rejected the call for credits or quota"
Do this
Your OpenRouter account is out of credit, or your key has reached its credit limit. Buy more credit on OpenRouter, or raise the limit on your key.
If the reply says
"The provider is rate limiting this key"
Do this
Too many requests were sent in a short time. Wait a minute and try again, or pick a different model in Settings.
If the reply says
"That turn was too large for the model's context"
Do this
The conversation has grown longer than the model can read. Send !compact, or start a new conversation with !new.
If the reply says
"This agent has reached its spending limit for this month"
Do this
Your agent is part of a fleet, and you have used this month's allowance on the default fleet key. It starts working again next month, as soon as the person who runs the fleet raises your limit, or when you switch to a key of your own in Settings.
If the reply says
"That turn did not finish"
Do this
Try again. If it keeps happening, send !unstick.
If the reply says
"I ran out of steps before finishing this"
Do this
The task needed more steps than one reply allows. Reply with "continue" and your agent carries on from where it stopped.
When there is no reply at all
On Telegram, check these in order:
- You are in the DM whitelist in your agent's Settings. Your agent stays silent for anyone who is not.
- In a group, you mentioned the bot, for example
@ada_salt_bot what did we decide?, and the group is in the Groups whitelist. - The bot token in Settings is the latest one. If you sent
/revoketo BotFather, the old token stopped working.
See Connect your agent to Telegram for how to set these up.
On WhatsApp, the reason is usually one of the rules Meta sets, such as the 24-hour window or a model that does not work on WhatsApp. See WhatsApp gotchas.
In the browser, or anywhere else, if your agent was working and has gone quiet, send !unstick. It fixes a reply that never finished, without deleting anything. Then ask your question again.
When your agent does not do what you asked
| If your agent | Do this |
|---|---|
| Ignores a photo or screenshot | Switch on Image input in Capabilities, and pick a model that is not marked (no image) in Settings. |
| Ignores a file | Switch on File ingest in Capabilities. For Excel files, see Add the spreadsheet analyst. |
| Ignores a voice note | Switch on Audio input in Capabilities. |
| Does not search the web, or says it cannot | Switch on Web search and set up a search engine. See Set up web search. If you use salts-tools, check that your computer is on and awake. |
| Forgets what you told it in an earlier conversation | Switch on Private Memory in Capabilities. Without it, every new conversation starts from nothing. |
| Mixes up old and new instructions | The conversation has become long. Send !new to start fresh. See Chat session hygiene. |
| Does not use a connected app | Check that the app's card is switched on in Capabilities, and click Refresh tools on it. If it still fails, click Disconnect and then Connect again. A stronger model also helps. |
| Gets hard questions wrong | Pick a stronger model, or turn on Extended reasoning. See Choose the right model. |
If your agent
Ignores a photo or screenshot
Do this
Switch on Image input in Capabilities, and pick a model that is not marked (no image) in Settings.
If your agent
Ignores a file
Do this
Switch on File ingest in Capabilities. For Excel files, see Add the spreadsheet analyst.
If your agent
Ignores a voice note
Do this
Switch on Audio input in Capabilities.
If your agent
Does not search the web, or says it cannot
Do this
Switch on Web search and set up a search engine. See Set up web search. If you use salts-tools, check that your computer is on and awake.
If your agent
Forgets what you told it in an earlier conversation
Do this
Switch on Private Memory in Capabilities. Without it, every new conversation starts from nothing.
If your agent
Mixes up old and new instructions
Do this
The conversation has become long. Send !new to start fresh. See Chat session hygiene.
If your agent
Does not use a connected app
Do this
Check that the app's card is switched on in Capabilities, and click Refresh tools on it. If it still fails, click Disconnect and then Connect again. A stronger model also helps.
If your agent
Gets hard questions wrong
Do this
Pick a stronger model, or turn on Extended reasoning. See Choose the right model.
When a reminder did not arrive
- Check that Schedule tasks is switched on in Capabilities.
- Ask your agent to list its scheduled tasks. A task belongs to the conversation it was set up in, so deleting that conversation also deletes the task.
- On WhatsApp, a reminder cannot reach you if you have not messaged your agent in the last 24 hours.
When you cannot start a new conversation
Your agent has reached its limit of sessions. Delete a few old ones from the sidebar in your browser, or send !clear, which deletes the current conversation as it starts a new one. See Usage limits.
When replies cost more than you expected
Long conversations and connected apps are the usual reasons. See What your agent costs to understand why, and Must read: Managing costs and MCP tools to fix it.