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Troubleshooting

Fix common problems.

The most common things that go wrong in ClientDeck, why they happen, and how to fix them yourself. Each problem lists the message you may see, so you can search this page for it.

Updated

On this page
  1. 01You hit a plan limit
  2. 02AI reports are blocked
  3. 03Payment gateway keys will not save
  4. 04Your client has no Pay button
  5. 05The Pay Now link shows an error
  6. 06A client paid but the invoice still shows unpaid
  7. 07The client did not get the invoice email
  8. 08Payment reminders are not sending
  9. 09A recurring invoice did not appear or send
  10. 10The client portal link does not work, or something is missing
  11. 11A team member is stuck on Pending or cannot do something
  12. 12Time or expenses will not convert to an invoice
  13. 13An integration stopped working
  14. 14Sign-in, password, and billing problems

01

You hit a plan limit

A window titled "Client Limit Reached", "Project Limit Reached", "Monthly Invoices Limit Reached", or similar means your plan's allowance is used up. Limits count every record, not just active ones.

  1. Clients count whatever their status, including Leads and Past clients. Projects count even when completed. Portals count while they exist, even when deactivated.
  2. Pending team invites count toward your team size. On the Free plan the owner is the only member, so inviting someone needs Plus or Pro.
  3. Delete records you no longer need to free up space, or choose Upgrade to Plus or Upgrade to Pro in the window.
  4. Check your usage at any time in Settings → Billing.

02

AI reports are blocked

AI reports have a monthly allowance and an hourly cap, so a burst of reports can be paused even when you have reports left this month.

  1. "You've reached the hourly AI report limit. Please try again in about an hour." means the hourly cap. Wait an hour; upgrading is not needed.
  2. "AI Reports Limit Reached" means the monthly allowance for your plan is used. It resets next month, or you can upgrade.
  3. Data files for reports must be CSV, Excel, PDF, or TXT and no larger than 15 MB.

03

Payment gateway keys will not save

When you click Validate & Save, ClientDeck checks your keys with the provider before storing them. A rejected key means the provider did not accept it.

  1. Make sure you are on Plus or Pro. On Free the card reads "Payment Gateways are locked".
  2. Fill in both fields. Stripe needs your secret key (it starts with sk_). Razorpay needs the Key ID and Key Secret. PayPal needs the Client ID and Secret.
  3. Copy keys from the same mode. Test keys and live keys cannot be mixed.
  4. A message such as "Invalid Stripe Secret Key." means the provider rejected the keys. Copy them again from your provider dashboard and retry.

04

Your client has no Pay button

Pay buttons only appear in the portal when online payment is fully set up for that invoice.

  1. Open Settings → Integrations and check the gateway says "Active for client payments". If it says "Saved but disabled", click Enable.
  2. Make sure the invoice is not a Draft. Draft invoices never appear in the portal.
  3. Check the client's portal has the Invoices & Payments switch turned on.
  4. Online payment needs the Plus or Pro plan. If the workspace moved to Free, clients cannot pay online.

06

A client paid but the invoice still shows unpaid

ClientDeck marks an invoice paid when the payment provider confirms the payment. If the client closed the checkout page early, that confirmation can be delayed.

  1. Refresh the Invoices screen after a minute.
  2. Check the payment in your Stripe, PayPal, or Razorpay dashboard.
  3. If the payment went through but the invoice is still unpaid, record it yourself from the invoice payment window so the balance stays correct.

07

The client did not get the invoice email

Invoice emails always go to the email address saved on the client's record.

  1. Open the client in Clients and check the email address. Correct it there, then send again.
  2. "Client email not found in database." means the client record has no email. Add one and resend.
  3. Ask the client to check spam or promotions folders.
  4. Viewers cannot send emails. Ask an Owner, Admin, or Editor to send it.

08

Payment reminders are not sending

Automatic reminders are sent only when every condition below is true.

  1. You are on Plus or Pro, and Automated Invoice Reminders is on in Settings → Notifications.
  2. The invoice has a due date and is not a Draft or already Paid.
  3. The client record has an email address.
  4. Each reminder (before the due date, on the day, and overdue) is sent once per due date. To nudge a client again, use Send Reminder on the invoice.

09

A recurring invoice did not appear or send

Recurring invoices are a Plus and Pro feature, and new invoices are saved as Drafts unless auto-send is on.

  1. Check your plan. Recurring schedules do not run on the Free plan.
  2. Look in Invoices for a new Draft. Turn on Auto-send email in Invoices → Recurring if you want them emailed automatically.
  3. Auto-send needs an email on the client record. Without one, the invoice stays a Draft.
  4. "Skipped: previous invoice is unpaid (pause-if-unpaid is on)." means the last invoice is still unpaid. Collect it, or turn that option off.
  5. Schedules end automatically after their end date or last occurrence.

11

A team member is stuck on Pending or cannot do something

Invites activate when the person signs in with the exact email address you invited. What they can do depends on their role.

  1. Ask them to sign in using the invited email address. A different address, even their own, will not match.
  2. If the sign-in link has expired, remove the invite and invite them again.
  3. Viewers can only look. Editors can edit but not delete. Admins can edit and delete. Only the Owner can change roles.
  4. Settings is only visible to the Owner and Admins.

12

Time or expenses will not convert to an invoice

Conversion needs enough information to price the line item and know who to bill.

  1. "Hourly rate is not set." Add an hourly rate to the project, or set a Default Hourly Rate in Settings → Business.
  2. "Non-billable expense cannot be invoiced." Mark the expense as billable first.
  3. "Expense must be linked to a project." Edit the expense and choose a project.

13

An integration stopped working

Connected apps occasionally need to be reconnected, and some need setup on their side first.

  1. A "Reconnect needed" badge means the connection expired. Click Disconnect, then connect again.
  2. "Invalid or expired authorization state" means the approval screen was open too long. Start the connection again and finish within 10 minutes.
  3. QuickBooks needs an Income account and Xero needs an active revenue account. For Xero, also pick your organization in Settings → Integrations.
  4. Google Calendar needs Plus or Pro. QuickBooks, Xero, and Google Drive need Pro. Slack works on every plan.
  5. For Slack, paste a webhook URL that starts with https://hooks.slack.com/services/, then use the test button to check it.

14

Sign-in, password, and billing problems

Most account problems come down to email confirmation or password rules.

  1. After signing up, open the confirmation link in your email before signing in. Check spam if it has not arrived.
  2. Use Forgot password? on the sign-in screen to get a reset link.
  3. New passwords need at least 8 characters, with an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, and a number.
  4. Paid for an upgrade but the plan has not changed? Wait a minute and refresh. If it still has not changed, contact support@clientdeck.pro.

Notes

Still stuck? Email support@clientdeck.pro with what you were doing and the exact message you saw.

Related guides

Payment gatewaysConnect Razorpay, PayPal, or Stripe so clients can pay invoices online.Client portalsShare branded client portals with files, reports, invoices, proposals, updates, and a discussion.Plans and billingUnderstand the Free, Plus, and Pro plans, usage limits, and how to upgrade.Team membersInvite colleagues or contractors, assign access roles, and manage their status from Settings.

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