slate.tracker / docs

Lighting Desk Will Not Connect

The most common reason the desk integration fails is that the console Remote Command Line service is off, or running on a different port. Work through this list in order.

1. Is the desk actually on the network?

From the agent machine, ping the console IP:

ping 10.0.5.20

If you do not get replies, the network path is broken. Check:

  • Are both machines on the same VLAN?
  • Is the console's network interface enabled and configured?
  • Is a firewall between them?

If ping works, move on.

2. Is Remote Command Line on?

This is the most common failure on grandMA3.

  1. On the console, open Menu, Network, Interfaces.
  2. Select the active interface.
  3. In the Services column, confirm Remote Command Line is on.
  4. Note the port. Default is 30000.

If you just loaded a fresh show file, this may have reset to off. Turn it back on after every show file load until you save it as part of your template.

For grandMA2 and ETC Eos, see the desk page for the current support status.

3. Is the port reachable?

From the agent machine try a TCP connect:

# Windows PowerShell
Test-NetConnection 10.0.5.20 -Port 30000

# macOS or Linux
nc -vz 10.0.5.20 30000

A successful connect means the port is open. A timeout means the firewall is blocking it.

4. Does the session policy allow external clients?

On grandMA3, even with Remote Command Line on, an active session can refuse external clients.

Open Menu, Network, Session and confirm External command line is allowed.

5. Cue label format

If the agent connects but cues are not being matched, the slate text and the cue label do not align. Check that your cues are labelled with the pattern:

<scene>_<take>

For example: 012_4. You can change the pattern in config.yaml under desk.cue_label_pattern. See Configuration Reference.

6. User variable missing on the desk

Slate Tracker writes to a user variable, by default named SlateTracker.LatestReference. If your show file does not define that variable, the agent creates it on first push, but it will only appear after the next save.

You can change the variable name in config.yaml under desk.user_variable.

7. Read the desk log

Slate Tracker logs every desk interaction. The most recent calls live in:

  • Windows: %APPDATA%\SlateTracker\logs\desk.log
  • macOS: ~/Library/Logs/SlateTracker/desk.log

Look for:

  • connection refused: Remote Command Line is off.
  • connection reset: the desk closed the link; usually a session policy issue.
  • unknown cue: the slate text did not match any cue label.

Still stuck on a show day

Disable the desk hookup in the agent (Settings, Lighting desk, Console: None). The agent will keep filing images and the cloud dashboard will keep working. You can copy the latest reference into the desk by hand while you debug.

Open a support ticket with the desk log attached. On a live show, write URGENT in the subject line.