# Troubleshooting & Recovery

## First steps for any problem

1. **Is it just you?** Try another browser or an incognito window, or ask a second user.
2. **Which environment?** Confirm you're in Production vs. Sandbox.
3. **Recent change?** If the problem began right after a change, that change is the prime suspect — and structural changes should have been Sandbox-tested first.

## Common problems

| Symptom | Likely cause / first fix |
|---|---|
| A user can't sign in | Account inactive or wrong password — check the user and reset it ([Managing Users](https://docs.clevelandbusinessmentors.org/link/43)). |
| Reset / notification emails not arriving | Outbound email or the Google connection — see [Chapter 5 — Integrations](https://docs.clevelandbusinessmentors.org/books/espocrm-system-guide/chapter/integrations). |
| Calendar / Gmail not syncing | Google authorization expired — re-authorize ([Google, Email & Website Integrations](https://docs.clevelandbusinessmentors.org/link/52)). |
| Someone sees too much or too little | Role or team misconfigured — [Roles, Teams & Permissions](https://docs.clevelandbusinessmentors.org/link/44). |
| Records "missing" | Usually a filter or permission, not deletion — clear filters and check the user's role; if truly deleted, act fast (below). |
| Certificate warning in the browser | Flag it — see [Backups & Updates](https://docs.clevelandbusinessmentors.org/link/55). |
| CRM slow or unreachable | May be the server — escalate (below). |

## If data was deleted or badly changed

**Stop making changes.** The fix is usually to **restore from backup** — a technical, time-sensitive operation. The sooner you raise it, the more recoverable it is. See [Getting Help and Next Steps](https://docs.clevelandbusinessmentors.org/link/60).

## Recovery operations (technical — usually not you)

The deployment tooling can perform powerful recovery actions, listed here just so you know they exist:

- **Admin credential reset** — regain admin access if locked out.
- **Full reset / rebuild** — tears the instance down and rebuilds it. **This destroys data and is only safe with a good, recent backup.**

> ⚠️ These are **destructive, technical operations** run via the CRM Builder tool by whoever maintains the deployment — **not** routine admin tasks. Never run a "full reset" to fix an everyday problem. If you think recovery is needed, **escalate**.

## When you escalate

Note **exactly** what you did, what you expected, what happened, the **time**, and the **environment**. Technical logs (server and API) are available to whoever maintains the deployment.