# Troubleshooting > What to do when Pro, a model, search by meaning, saving, sync or the Apple services helper doesn't behave, and how to send diagnostics. Applies to Canto 1.0 beta 6 · Updated Oct 18, 2026 · https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/troubleshooting Start with the section that matches what you see. If nothing here helps, [send diagnostics](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/troubleshooting#sending-diagnostics) and write to [support@lonelyduck.io](mailto:support@lonelyduck.io). ## License and Pro **Every Mac on my license is in use.** Activating says "This license is on all its Macs" and lists them. Release one, then press **Activate again**. With a 1-Mac license and the old Mac gone, sign in at lonelyduck.io with the email you bought with and release it from **Account › Canto › Your Macs**. See [Moving Pro to a new Mac](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/license#moving-pro-to-a-new-mac). **"Connect once to keep Pro."** Pro works offline for 30 days at a time, and this Mac has fewer than 5 days left. Connect to the internet once, or press **Check now** in **Settings › Account**. If the 30 days ran out, the Mac is on Free until it connects; Pro comes back by itself. **"… came out after this license's new features ended", a Renew button, or "Dec 31, 9999".** Every Canto Pro license is now for life, at no cost, and an older beta may still show the old wording. Update Canto, then press **Check now** in **Settings › Account**; it then says "Every new Pro feature, for life." See [For life](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/pro#for-life). **"This license covers one Mac. … needs Pro · 3 Macs."** Sync and moving Pro between Macs need a 3-Mac license. Upgrading is $10 and keeps your license, still for life. **"Canto Pro was released from this Mac", "turned off", "refunded" or "disputed".** The Mac is on Free and nothing was deleted. Press **Activate again** (if the license has a free place) or **Contact support**. **"Pro is paused."** If it says the clock is behind, set your Mac's date and time and press **Check now**. If it says the license belongs to another Mac (after restoring a backup from another Mac), activate this Mac with your license. **I can't find my license email.** In Canto, **Settings › Account** › **Lost your license?**, or [lonelyduck.io/canto/activate](https://lonelyduck.io/canto/activate) › **Email my license**. Check your spam folder too. **The free tries are used.** Each Pro feature with tries can be tried three times on each Mac. After that its sheet offers to buy Pro. See [Free and Pro](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/pro#free-tries). ## Models and memory **A model won't load.** Look at its memory dot in **Settings › Models**: * **Amber** (not right now): it fits your Mac but not with the memory free now. Quit a few apps and try again. * **Red** (won't fit): it needs more than the graphics memory macOS allows on this Mac. Choose the recommended model instead. **Settings › Models › Advanced › Load models with less free memory** lets a model load anyway, but it may be slow or unstable. On an 8 or 16 GB Mac, **Settings › Advanced › Performance › Low Memory Mode** unloads models sooner and keeps smaller caches. **A download fails or stops.** Canto checks free disk space before a download; free some space and press **Get** again. Downloads come from Hugging Face, so your Mac needs to reach it. **The first answer takes a long time.** The model loads when you send, and the chat says so. After a minute of thinking on your Mac, Canto offers **Write now** to end the reasoning and start the answer, and when a model reads slowly it offers a faster one. Turning Think off (`⇧⌘R` in the composer) also helps. With a model on your Mac, each follow-up reads the whole chat again in this beta, so long chats take longer to start. **"This chat is full."** The chat and an answer no longer fit in the model's memory, even after Canto condensed older messages. Nothing was lost. Choose **Compact older messages** or **New chat**. After research, **Continue in a fresh chat** keeps the research's sources. **My model server wasn't running when Canto opened.** Canto keeps your choice, uses a built-in model until the server is back, and says so. A server on your Mac or your network gets at least two minutes to read a long prompt before its first word. **OpenRouter stopped answering this month.** Canto stops at your monthly limit, which is kept on your Mac ($10 unless you change it). Change it in **Settings › Models › Cloud**. ## Safe Mode Safe Mode starts Canto without the parts that load models and background work, so you can get to your notes. It only starts when: * **the last launch didn't finish** (a crash, or Canto was forced to quit): "Canto didn't finish starting last time, so AI waits until you load it." * **the Mac had almost no memory free** at launch (under 1.5 GB): quit a few apps first. * **Canto stopped twice while starting in Safe Mode**: it then starts with nothing optional running. The banner offers to load your chat model (or a recommended one that fits), **Restart normally**, and **Why?**. If it keeps happening, **Help › Send Diagnostics…** tells the team what went wrong. Safe Mode is not Small Mac mode. Small Mac mode is how Macs with 12 GB or less run normally; see [Models on your Mac](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/models#small-mac-mode). ## The Apple services helper Canto reads images, scanned PDFs and speech, and talks to Apple Intelligence, through a small helper program called canto-native. **Settings › Advanced › Helpers** shows whether it's running, how much memory it uses, and whether it stopped on its own this session. **Restart** starts a fresh one without quitting Canto; if a meeting recording or a transcription is running, Canto asks first. If the helper stops more than 5 times in 5 minutes, Canto waits for you to press Restart. A second Canto icon bouncing in the Dock was this helper. Beta 2 fixed it; update if you still see it. ## Search by meaning Search by meaning's status shows in the status dot's panel, on Home when it needs you, and in **Settings › Memory & privacy › Search by meaning**. It's off, starting, indexing, up to date, or **Needs attention**, with **Turn on** or **Try again**. * **It says Needs attention.** Press **Try again**. It runs entirely on your Mac and needs nothing from the web. * **Korean notes aren't found by meaning.** In this beta, search by meaning understands English only; Korean is found by its words. Attachments, canvases and projects are found by words too. * **A note never shows up in related notes.** If Canto's window crashed repeatedly while indexing a note, Canto skips that note. **Settings › Advanced › Diagnostics** lists the skipped notes with **Try again**, and each new version of Canto tries them again. * **Catch up.** **Settings › Memory & privacy › Search by meaning › Index every note now** indexes the notes it hasn't reached yet. ## Saving and finding notes **"Not saved · Retry" on a note.** Canto couldn't save the note. Your edits are kept in the open note until it can. Press **Retry**. If it keeps failing, copy the text somewhere safe and send diagnostics. **A note is missing.** Stop editing, then look in this order: 1. **The Trash**, in the sidebar's Library. Deleted notes, canvases and chats stay there for 30 days by default (**Settings › Sync & storage › Trash**). A deleted folder isn't listed, but its notes are, and they restore to the nearest folder that still exists. 2. **Search**: `⇧⌘F` searches notes, chats and files. 3. **Note history**: `⇧⌘Y` on a note shows its earlier versions. 4. **Backups**, if you turned them on: **Settings › Sync & storage › Backups**. 5. **The pre-upgrade copy** Canto made before updating from 0.10: see [Going back to 0.10.3](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/upgrade#going-back-to-0103). Still missing? Write to [support@lonelyduck.io](mailto:support@lonelyduck.io) before you change anything else. ## Sync **A change takes a few minutes to arrive.** In this beta, Canto checks for changes when you switch to it, when your Mac wakes and every 5 minutes. **Sync says Needs attention.** It says why, for example "Enter your sync passphrase to see notes from your other Macs" on a new Mac, or that you're signed in to a different iCloud account. Your notes stay on the Mac either way. Open **Settings › Sync & storage**. **Two Macs changed the same note.** Canto keeps both versions. ## Other apps (MCP) **An app that used to work can't reach Canto.** Since 1.0, Canto's MCP server always asks for its access key, also from apps on your Mac. Copy the setup for each app again from **Settings › Connections › Other apps**. Changing notes from another app needs Pro. ## After upgrading from 0.10 * **macOS asks about the Keychain.** Canto 1.0 is a new app to macOS. Choose **Always Allow**. * **macOS asks for the microphone or Automation again.** Same reason; allow them again. * **A notebook looks different.** Notebooks became notes. See [Notebooks](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/upgrade#notebooks). * **I want 0.10.3 back.** See [Going back to 0.10.3](https://lonelyduck.io/docs/canto/upgrade#going-back-to-0103). ## Sending diagnostics **Help › Send Diagnostics…** (also in **Settings › About › Help**) shows you everything in the report before anything is sent. After it's sent, it gives you a reference: "LonelyDuck's support has it. Quote the reference if you write to them." Use **Copy reference** and include it in your email. Canto's log is in `~/Library/Logs/Canto/`. **Help › Open Data Folder** opens the folder your vault is in. ## Still stuck? Use **Help › Contact Support…**, or write to [support@lonelyduck.io](mailto:support@lonelyduck.io), with what you expected, what happened and the diagnostics reference. Contact Support fills in your Canto and macOS versions and your Mac's model; in an email, add them yourself. One person answers, usually within two working days.