0 7 -- Troubleshooting

Applies to: C1 and S20 (unified unless noted)
Related: Master Index | 02-PointCloud-Studio | 04-3DGS-Workflow | 06-RTK-GCP

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Hardware Issues

Device Won't Connect to Phone

Symptom	Likely Cause	Solution
App says "Device not connected"	WiFi or Bluetooth off	Enable both (Frank)
Connects then drops immediately	Home WiFi overriding C1 connection	Airplane Mode + WiFi + Bluetooth only (olahaldor, jrameau)
Spinning circle then disconnects	Stale pairing	Forget network, re-pair from fresh (avsupport)
Indicator lights stay non-blue	Firmware update stuck/failed	Turn off, remove handle, wait, retry with fresh firmware download (jrameau)
iPhone 15 Pro won't connect	Phone-specific issue	Try pairing via Bluetooth settings first (jrameau)

Firmware Update Stuck

Symptoms:
- Lights stay non-blue for hours
- Update appears to stall

Solutions:
1. Fresh download of firmware file -- previous copy may be corrupted (jrameau)
2. Must acknowledge update via smartphone app after SD card update (avsupport)
3. Turn off, remove handle, wait, retry (jrameau)
4. If >15 minutes: abort and restart process

Phone Battery Dies Mid-Scan

• C1 keeps running -- scan data is preserved
• Record time continues on device
• Data is saved; process normally after downloading from SD card

App Returns to Home Screen Mid-Scan

• Cause: Magnetic DJI mount removal or Popsocket installation (tool_guy_365)
• Solution: Use neck phone holder; keep phone mounted throughout scan
• Scan data may still be on SD card even if app appears to have restarted

Mechanical Vibration/Noise

• Intermittent vibration reported (tool_guy_365)
• "Comes and goes with no apparent pattern"
• Sometimes silent whirr, sometimes loud vibration
• Unresolved -- contact support if persistent

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PointCloud Studio Issues

Processing Stuck at Low Percentage

%	Cause	Fix
3% for 74+ hours	Undistorted Photo Output (SFM) ON	Turn OFF, re-process (tool_guy_365)
33% with "map creation failed"	Beta incompatibility with older hardware	Update to Beta.9; disable Windows security; check free NVMe space
45% for hours	Normal for large scans -- timer inaccurate	Wait it out -- "it will eventually go to 100%" (mr_red1991_63830)
Stays at same % for hours	Normal -- progress granularity is low	Decimal places requested but not implemented

CUDA Version Error (Beta.7)

Symptom: "Nvidia card needs a newer CUDA version" despite latest drivers

Affected hardware: RTX 4090 (Lenovo) with Nvidia app v11.0.7.247, Studio driver v610.47, CUDA v13.3

Failed workarounds:
- Switching from Studio to Game driver

Fix: Update to V2.5.0-Beta.9 (May 28, 2026)

Processing Aborts Immediately (0%)

Check:
1. Restart computer -- often resolves (electronix_001: "simple restart solved the problem")
2. Check default work folder allocation after reinstall (avsupport)
3. Reinstall Visual C++ Redistributables
4. Disable Smart App Control in Windows Security (philippkreiser)
5. Disable Windows security features during processing (ser0ka)

PCS Components Remain Active After Exit

• After closing Studio, components continue consuming CPU data (avsupport)
• Unresolved -- force-kill via Task Manager if persistent

Import Fails / Project Corruption

Issue	Fix
Project creation error after reinstall	Delete %APPDATA%\share-pointclouds-studio manually; reinstall
Output to different drive causes failure	Keep output on same drive as PCS install (go2pondrocker)
Renamed files corrupt project	Do NOT rename .e57/.ply files on disk -- re-import instead
Importing old projects (Beta.9)	Must be a .zip created via Export, containing project.metadata.json
3DGS generation unavailable after import	Must be enabled during Data Calculation -- re-run Data Calculation

Wrong Horizontal Setting / Stretched Geometry

• Symptom: Known measurements are wildly incorrect (e.g., 3-foot door = 2.98m)
• Cause: Selected CRS with "(Ft)" suffix
• Fix: Re-process with plain CRS (no unit qualifier)

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3DGS Issues

3DGS Fails / Doesn't Generate

Symptom	Likely Cause	Solution
Scan >10 min produces no GS	PCS limitation	Use external pipeline (RS2->Postshot)
"Output folder not accepted"	Missing processing checkboxes	Enable Undistort Left, Undistort Right, Export colorized during point cloud processing (pierro5261)
Error on GS start	Wrong data management path	Point to output/ folder, not parent directory
3DGS stuck at 14% for 13+ hours	Normal -- GLOMAP CPU-bound stage	Wait; check Task Manager for CPU activity

3DGS Quality Issues

Issue	Improvement
Sky bleeds into trees ("falling sky")	Improved in Beta.4+; use RS2->Postshot pipeline
Transparency in difficult areas	Beta trade-off; external pipeline may help
Overexposed images = washed-out colors	Cloudy day; request RAW/HEIF output
Grid pattern artifacts in point cloud	May appear after noise removal in CloudCompare; Beta.4-related

GPU/Performance Issues

Issue	Solution
RTX 5090 + 32GB VRAM going red	Normal -- lower quality setting; even 32GB is limiting for large scenes
GPU at only 9% utilization	Bottleneck is CPU/data feed -- multi-core support not implemented
Processing takes 12+ hours	Reduce scan duration or use external pipeline
Laptop throttling	Place notebook outside in cold (bjarnebob8515); use desktop if possible

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Scanning Issues

Drift / Misalignment

Symptom	Cause	Fix
Scan tilted (indoor)	Weak initialization or accumulated error	Re-optimize in CC; better overlap during capture
Start and end don't meet	Large loop with insufficient features	Smaller loops; return to feature-rich areas regularly
Position "takes off" while standing still	SLAM lost tracking	Stop scan, restart from recovery point
"Real-time point cloud algorithm failed"	Large low-feature area	Break into smaller scans; add GCPs

Scan Quality Issues

Issue	Solution
Rounded corners instead of sharp edges	Known firmware limitation -- fix promised in future update (urienofrheged)
Floaters along camera path	Post-processing artifact -- improve scan overlap, slower movement
Interior scan shows exterior noise	Separate interior/exterior scans
Poor color on point cloud	Check lighting; overexposure common in bright sun

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RTK/GNSS Issues

Grid Pattern in Point Clouds

• Reported after adding RTK kit + Beta.4 install (tool_guy_365)
• Also reported WITHOUT RTK (percolator66)
• Likely PCS Beta.4 artifact, not RTK hardware
• Also appears after CloudCompare noise removal (urienofrheged)

Coordinate Issues

• Blender/3D software: data "divided and incomplete" with large RTK coordinates -> re-center via CloudCompare
• Wrong horizontal CRS: stretched geometry -> select CRS without "(Ft)" suffix

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Data Transfer Issues

MicroSD Card Windows Warning

• Prompt: "There is a problem with the drive"
• Action: IGNORE -- do NOT scan/fix
• Card formatted via Android app on C1 -- Windows doesn't understand the format
• "I've been seeing this message for many years... always ignored it and never had problems" (ser0ka)

Data Transfer from Device

• Option 1: Eject MicroSD, use USB reader (reliable)
• Option 2: USB-C mode via app -- put device into USB mode (urienofrheged)
• Option 3: Download via Capture app -- NOT working (ser0ka)

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Best Practices

1. Restart computer -- fixes many "processing aborts at 0%" problems
2. Undistorted Photo Output OFF -- prevents 74-hour processing stalls
3. Check Horizontal Setting -- wrong CRS = stretched geometry
4. Don't rename files on disk -- corrupts projects
5. Disable sleep -- processing may fail on resume
6. Use indoor algorithm for outdoor scans if outdoor setting gives bad results
7. Fresh firmware download if update gets stuck
8. Keep scans under 10 minutes for reliable PCS 3DGS