What does the "minutes depleted" error mean and how do I fix it?

Your account does not have enough test minutes left to start a new test. New tests are blocked until minutes are restored. To resolve this, see our pricing plans and upgrade your plan to add minutes immediately, or wait for your monthly plan to reset. Free-tier accounts receive a fresh allowance each month.

What does "test exceeded max duration" mean?

The test was terminated because it exceeded the maximum duration allowed (default 1800 seconds, which is 30 minutes). Common causes are very long tests, slower-than-local execution on the grid, or endless loops sending commands. Fix it by splitting large tests into smaller atomic tests, or by raising the limit with the maxDuration capability .

What does "test timed out" or idle timeout mean?

TestingBot received no new command from your Selenium script for more than 90 seconds (the default idle timeout). Common causes are a missing driver.quit() at the end of the test, a crashed or interrupted test process, lost network connectivity from your CI, or a slow step that legitimately needs more than 90 seconds. Fix it by adding driver.quit() in a teardown block, improving CI connectivity, or raising the timeout with the idleTimeout capability .

What does "new session cancelled before test start" mean?

Your test runner started a new session but closed the connection before TestingBot could allocate a slot. Causes: client connection timeout (especially for iOS and Android simulators that take 60 to 120 seconds to boot), running more tests than your plan's concurrency limit (so the test queues longer than the runner waits), or grid-side capacity issues. Fix it by setting your runner's connection timeout to at least 2 minutes, checking your concurrency limit, and monitoring the TestingBot status page .

Why does my test fail with "could not find browser/operating system"?

The browser, version and platform combination you requested is not available on the grid (CapabilityNotPresentOnTheGridException). Check the live supported browser list for available combinations, and use the version aliases latest, latest-1 or latest-2 when you do not need to pin to an exact version.

Why am I getting 401 Unauthorized errors from TestingBot?

The API key and secret pair in your tb:options capabilities is missing, malformed, or has been rotated. Verify the values in your account settings , and confirm they are passed inside the tb:options capability map (not at the top level) for W3C-compliant Selenium 4 clients.

TestingBot Test Errors and How to Fix Them

Q: What does "manual session ended due to inactivity" mean?

Your interactive Live browser or device session was terminated because there was no mouse or keyboard input for an extended period. Live sessions are billed by the minute, so we end idle sessions automatically to prevent runaway charges. To continue testing, start a new Live session.

Reference for the most common errors TestingBot returns when an automated or live test ends unexpectedly. Each section explains what triggered the error, the most common causes, and how to fix it. Errors appear on the test detail page in the dashboard and in the REST API response.

Minutes depleted

What it means

The test failed because your account does not have enough test minutes left. New tests cannot be started on TestingBot until minutes are restored.

How to resolve

See our pricing plans and upgrade your subscription to add minutes immediately, or wait for your monthly plan to reset. Free-tier accounts receive a fresh allowance each month. Enterprise plans can request additional minute pools mid-cycle.

Test exceeded max duration

What it means

The test was terminated because it exceeded the maximum duration allowed. The default cap is 1800 seconds (30 minutes).

Common causes

The test is genuinely long. Consider splitting it into multiple smaller, atomic tests.
Tests on the cloud can be slower than local runs because of network round-trips and remote VM startup.
The test is stuck in an endless loop, repeatedly sending commands.

How to resolve

Break the test into smaller pieces.
Use the maxDuration capability to raise the cap if you legitimately need a longer session.
Check for endless loops and add explicit timeouts to waits.

Test idle timeout

What it means

TestingBot did not receive a new command from your Selenium or Appium script for more than 90 seconds (the default idle timeout). The session is terminated to prevent it from running forever and consuming all your minutes.

Common causes

A missing driver.quit() at the end of the test. The runner finishes but the session keeps the browser alive.
The test script crashed, was interrupted, or lost internet connectivity.
A legitimately slow step that takes more than 90 seconds between commands.

How to resolve

Ensure the test calls driver.quit() in a teardown or finally block so it always runs.
Run the test from a stable network. CI runners with unstable egress are a common cause.
Raise the timeout with the idleTimeout capability if you need more than 90 seconds between commands.

New session cancelled before test start

What it means

Your test runner requested a new session, but it closed the connection before TestingBot could allocate a slot and return a session id.

Common causes

Client connection timeout too short. iOS and Android simulators can take 60 to 120 seconds to boot.
Running more tests than your plan's concurrency limit. Queued tests still consume the runner's connection time.
Grid-side capacity issues during peak times. Check the TestingBot status page.

How to resolve

Raise the connection timeout in your test runner. For WebdriverIO use connectionRetryTimeout: 210000 (3.5 minutes). For Selenium HttpClient set the equivalent socket timeout.
Confirm you are within the concurrent-session limit on your plan.
Subscribe to the status page RSS feed for incident notifications.

Manual session ended due to inactivity

What it means

A Live (interactive) browser or device session was terminated because there was no mouse or keyboard input for an extended period. Live sessions are billed by the minute, so idle sessions are ended automatically to prevent runaway charges.

How to resolve

Start a new Live session when you are ready to continue. If you need a long-running pinned session for QA workflows, consider switching to an automated test with a deliberate maxDuration setting.

Capability not found or browser unavailable

What it means

You will see a CapabilityNotPresentOnTheGridException (or a similar "browser not found" message) when the browser, version and platform combination you requested is not currently offered on the TestingBot grid.

How to resolve

Check the live supported browser list for available combinations.
Use the version aliases latest, latest-1, latest-2 when you do not need to pin to an exact version. TestingBot resolves them to the current top release.
Double-check the spelling and case of platformName values. Selenium 4 W3C uses WINDOWS, macOS, LINUX, etc.

Authentication errors (401)

What it means

Your API key and secret were missing, malformed, or did not match the credentials on file. The grid rejects the session before any browser is allocated.

How to resolve

Verify your key and secret in your account settings.
Pass credentials inside tb:options (W3C or Selenium 4), not as top-level capabilities.
If you have rotated keys, update every CI secret store that references the old pair.

More help

Status incidents are posted at the TestingBot status page (RSS feed available). For anything not covered above, contact our support team with your session ID. The dashboard URL of the failed test is the fastest way for us to investigate.