Troubleshooting

Security warnings on first launch

The macOS builds are code-signed and notarised, so a current release opens without a warning. The Windows installer is not signed yet, so Windows warns you the first time you open it. You only need to do this once.

Windows: "Windows protected your PC"

SmartScreen shows this for apps it doesn't recognise. Click More info, then Run anyway.

macOS: "unidentified developer", "could not verify" or "damaged"

A current release never shows these. If you see one, you have an older, unsigned copy of PlayOverlay: download the latest release from the download page and replace it. If you need to keep running the old copy, click Done, open System Settings → Privacy & Security, scroll down to the Security section and click Open Anyway next to PlayOverlay.

If macOS says the app is "damaged", don't try to get round the warning. Delete that copy, download a fresh one from the download page, which links to the official releases on GitHub, and open that instead.

Graphics not showing on the mixer

• The laptop is mirroring, not extending. Set the display to extend (on Windows, Windows key + P then Extend). With mirroring, the mixer shows your dashboard.
• The display window is on the wrong screen. Open Window Settings and use Move to Screen. If a window has ended up somewhere you can't see it, Reset positions brings both windows back.
• Nothing is on air. Check that Display Controls isn't set to None, and that the mixer's key is on air.
• The output is blank after a restart. PlayOverlay is waiting for you to answer Restore previous match? on the dashboard. The outputs stay blank until you do, so they never show a wrong score.

Problems with the key

• Part of a team's graphic is see-through. A team colour is too close to the key colour. Change the key colour in Window Settings → Key Colour and re-sample it on the mixer.
• A coloured fringe around text and logos. Tighten the keyer's edge or spill settings, and check the laptop output is 1920 × 1080 so the mixer isn't scaling it.
• The whole frame is solid blue. The key isn't on air, or its fill source is set to the wrong input. See setting up the key.

OBS shows nothing

• Check System Settings → OBS Browser Source is switched on and the status reads Running. If it shows an error, another program may be using the port: change the port and update the URL in OBS.
• OBS must run on the same computer as PlayOverlay, and the URL must start with http://127.0.0.1: followed by the port.
• Set the browser source's width and height to your canvas size, and make sure it sits above the camera in the scene's source list.
• If the URL ends in ?screen=, that view is pinned and won't follow what you put on air. See pinned views.

Stream Deck won't connect

Only one app can use a Stream Deck at a time. If Connect to Stream Deck does nothing, or the deck stays dark:

1. Quit the Elgato Stream Deck app completely, including from the menu bar on a Mac or the system tray on Windows, and any other software that controls the deck.
2. Unplug the deck and plug it back in.
3. Press Connect to Stream Deck in System Settings again.

Phone can't reach the remote

• Check it is running. System Settings → Phone Remote should be on with the status Running. If it shows an error, try a different port.
• Same network. The phone must be on the same wifi as the laptop, not on mobile data. Turn mobile data off on the phone while you test.
• Guest wifi. Many venue and guest networks stop devices seeing each other. If that is the case, connect the laptop to a hotspot on the phone instead, which needs no internet connection for this.
• Firewall. If your computer asked whether PlayOverlay may accept incoming connections, allow it. Check your firewall settings if you dismissed the prompt.
• Old address or PIN. The laptop's address can change between networks, and the PIN changes every time PlayOverlay restarts or the remote is turned on. Scan the QR code again and enter the current PIN.
• Locked out after wrong PINs. Wrong guesses are rate-limited per device. Wait a little, then try the correct PIN.

A shortcut doesn't work

If a system-wide shortcut does nothing while another app has focus, that app has probably claimed the same combination. The Go live check lists any shortcut PlayOverlay couldn't register. Pick a different combination in System Settings → Keyboard Shortcuts.

Export diagnostics

If something goes wrong that this page doesn't cover, a diagnostics report helps get it fixed.

1. Open System Settings and press Export diagnostics under Diagnostics.
2. Choose where to save the text file. It contains the app and system versions, your settings, the status of the OBS source and phone remote, and recent log entries. It contains no passwords, and the remote's PIN is left out.
3. Open an issue on GitHub, describe what happened and what you expected, and attach the file.