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Troubleshooting

Common problems and what usually causes them.

Balances

My balance does not match what I counted

Almost always one of three things:

  1. A transaction was not recorded — most likely a cash payment nobody logged.
  2. Something was recorded twice — often a MoMo message and a manual entry for the same payment. Check the duplicate lane.
  3. It went to the wrong money location — cash recorded against the bank, or one wallet against another.

Work backwards from the last date you know was correct. If you have never reconciled, start with reconciliation — it is designed for exactly this.

My revenue looks far too high

Check for transfers recorded as income. Moving cash from the till to the bank is not revenue. See Balances.

Point of Sale

A product will not sell — "out of stock"

The barcode scanner does nothing

Most USB scanners act as keyboards and need no setup. Click into the search box first so it has focus. If it types into the wrong field, the field lost focus — click the search box and rescan.

Checkout buttons are off screen

Update to the latest desktop app. Version 0.27.0 fixed the cart so the total and Hold/Cash buttons stay visible no matter how many items are in the cart.

Sync & offline

Sales say "queued"

Normal with no connection — see Working offline. They upload when you are back. Sync before reinstalling or replacing the machine.

Sales say "failed"

The server rejected them. Open the failure to see why and retry. Common causes: a product deleted server-side, or a sale against a money location that no longer exists.

Two tills show different stock

They sync over the local network. Check both are on the same network and the same business. Each till ignores messages from other businesses, which is usually the cause when nothing appears to happen.

Payroll

An employee was not paid

Check payment readiness first — usually a missing payout rail or a funding shortfall.

Net pay is lower than expected

Check open recoveries. An advance being recovered is the most common cause. Then check unpaid leave days in the period inputs.

Reports

Last month's numbers changed

Something was backdated into a period you had already reported. This is exactly what closing and locking a period prevents.

A report is empty

Check the date range, then the module — some reports need a module switched on. Also check your role allows the data.

Imports

Rows were rejected

The import gives a row-level error report — read it rather than retrying blind. Usual causes: date format, a currency that does not match the money location, or a required column missing. See Importing your data.

AI

Kiongozi will not do something

Check your operating mode. Most "it will not act" cases are working as configured — the mode allows suggesting but not doing.

AI features stopped working

You may be out of tokens for the period. Everything else in SBB carries on normally. See Billing.

Access

Someone cannot see a screen

Check their role, then whether the module is on. Employees see the employee workspace only.

I cannot delete something

Deletion goes to the recycle bin; permanent deletion is owner-only. Items in a closed period are protected — post an adjustment instead.

Still stuck

Use the Help button inside SBB, or the support centre for articles and a ticket. Include what you expected, what happened, and the date and screen involved.

Smart Business Book — the AI-powered business operating system.