When it breaks

The problems people actually run into, in the order they usually happen. Each one: what you see, why, and what to do.

The first thing to try, always

If the install stopped, run the same line again. It remembers what already worked and carries on from where it stopped. It never asks the same question twice.

During the install

"The name … does not lead anywhere yet"

Why: your address (for example app.example.com) is not connected to your machine yet.

1. Sign in to the company you bought the address from.

2. Open its DNS page (sometimes called Zone or DNS records).

3. Add a record with exactly what the message printed:

   Type	Name	Value
   A	the word the message shows (@ for the bare address)	the numbers the message shows

4. Save.

5. Wait five minutes.

6. Run the same line again.

The "Name" box is the usual mistake

For example.com, type @ (some sites want the box left empty). For app.example.com, type only app, not the full address.

"The name … does not lead to this machine"

Why: the address points somewhere else: an old machine, or a parking page from the company that sold it.

1. Open the same DNS page.
2. Delete every other A record with that name.
3. Keep only the one with the value the message printed.
4. Wait five minutes, then run the same line again.

If you changed it only a few minutes ago, answer yes when the installer offers to wait. It checks every 20 seconds for up to 10 minutes.

"The address https://… is not answering yet"

Why: almost always one of two things.

• You pointed the address at the machine only minutes ago. Wait ten minutes, then run the same line again.
• Your provider has its own firewall in front of the machine, and it is closed.

To open the provider's firewall:

1. Open your provider's control panel.
2. Find the machine's Firewall or Security settings.
3. Allow incoming TCP 80 and TCP 443.
4. Run the same line again.

"Something on this machine is already answering on port 80 / 443"

Why: your provider installed a web server on the machine for you. It takes the place OpenTraderWorld needs.

Paste this, then run the same line again:

systemctl disable --now apache2 nginx caddy 2>/dev/null; true

"This machine has … MB of memory" or "Only … MB of disk space is free"

Why: the machine is too small. OpenTraderWorld needs about 2 GB of memory and 8 GB of free disk.

1. At your provider, resize the machine to a bigger plan.
2. Run the same line again.

"This installer only knows Ubuntu and Debian"

Why: the machine was created with another system.

1. At your provider, reinstall (or rebuild) the machine with Ubuntu 24.04 or Debian 13.
2. Run the same line again.

"This needs the machine's administrator rights"

Why: you are signed in with an account that is not allowed to install software.

Run the line again with sudo in the middle, exactly as the message shows:

curl -fsSL https://get.opentraderworld.com/configure_install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --domain app.example.com

After the install

The page does not open any more

1. Sign in to your machine.

2. Type:

   otw status

3. If it says Nothing is running or is not answering, type:

   otw restart

4. Wait one minute, then reload the page.

I can no longer sign in to the machine itself

Why: the installer tightened how the machine lets people in.

• If you chose the key: sign in from the same computer you used on install day. Passwords are refused on purpose.
• If you chose a password: sign in with the account name shown on your card, not root. Direct root sign-in is refused on purpose.

Lost that computer or that password? Use the console (sometimes called VNC, rescue or web terminal) in your provider's control panel. It works even when the normal way in is closed.

I forgot the OpenTraderWorld password

1. Sign in to your machine.

2. Type (replace admin with your login name if you changed it):

   docker exec -it opentraderworld-core-1 /app/otw-core reset-password admin

3. Sign in to the app with the password it prints. The app asks you to choose a new one.

To see your address and login name again, type otw card.

The browser shows "Not secure" or refuses the page

• Type the address with https:// in front.
• If it started a few minutes after install, wait ten minutes: the padlock is still being issued.
• On a home install (not a rented server), see Troubleshooting.

The machine is full

Why: nightly backups and downloaded price history take space over time.

1. Type otw status to see how much space is left.
2. At your provider, give the machine a bigger disk.
3. Type otw restart.

Still stuck?

1. Sign in to your machine.

2. Type:

   otw report

3. It writes one file and prints where it is. The file holds no password.

4. Open an issue on GitHub, say what you were doing, and attach that file.