Troubleshooting and FAQ
Almost every "it's broken" in Datum is Datum doing what it was told. Start with the message on the screen — it names the reason — and with your account panel (your initials, bottom-left), which states your roles and what they allow.
Signing in and getting started
I signed in and almost nothing is there. I see "You hold no role in Datum". None of your directory groups confers a Datum role yet. Ask your administrator which group you should be in. See First sign-in.
"Sign-in did not complete." Start again. If it repeats, tell your administrator: the message says to ask them to check the identity-provider configuration.
I was signed out while I was editing. Sessions are short. If Datum could keep your form, it says "It is kept in this window: sign in again and it is put back, ready to send". If not, it says the work "could not be kept, so it was not saved and is lost". Do not close the window in between.
"I cannot see …"
A screen says "Your roles do not reach this." The platform refused the read, and it prints its reason (typically insufficient scope for this endpoint). This is a refusal, not an empty list — there may be something there your role does not let you see. If you need it, ask your administrator for the role. See the permissions matrix.
I am an administrator and Search says "Records could not be searched". Intentional. Administering the platform is not a read of the firm's records. See Roles and access.
A record says "Not found — no such master identifier". Either the identifier was never issued, it was retired by a merge (those redirect — you would be taken to the survivor), or you cannot access that record. Datum deliberately does not say which. See What you cannot see.
A field I expect is not on the record. Open your account panel and read Fields withheld from you. If it is listed, your role does not read it. If it is not, no source supplied it.
A colleague's list has a different count from mine. Counts include only records each person can access. See Key concepts.
A record I just created does not turn up in Search. Search catches up within about a minute; the screen tells you how many of your recent records are not yet indexed. The record opens from its own page meanwhile.
Acting on records
There is no Edit button; there is "Propose a change". You hold read access, not stewardship. Your change goes to a steward. See Proposing a change.
"Propose a change" is greyed out and says "Editing is for the record as it stands today." You are looking at a past date. Choose Back to today.
I got a message that a change was "already decided". Another steward decided it first (for example in another tab). Choose the next request from the list.
I cannot approve my own change request. Correct: nobody decides their own proposal. Ask another steward; or withdraw yours from the Change requests screen.
Someone merged two records and I need the old one. The retired identifier is never reused and redirects to the surviving record. A steward can reverse a merge from the survivor's Merges tab.
Dates and history
The record says "Nothing on record at that time." The date you chose is before Datum first recorded the record. The message gives the date it was first recorded.
"This link's time cannot be read."
The address asks for a time that is neither a day (2026-03-31) nor an exact time with its offset (2026-03-31T16:00:00Z). Nothing has been read; go back to today or correct the link.
A history entry says "Withheld". Its reason might describe a value your role cannot read. The entry itself is real.
Everything else
A screen shows an error saying "This record could not be shown". Something in the screen failed while drawing it. Nothing has been changed and the rest of Datum still works. Reload, and if it repeats, report it with what you were doing; the detail is in the browser console for your support team.
The screen is blank or stuck on "Loading". Wait a few seconds. If it persists, reload the page; your open tabs and any kept drafts survive a reload. If the whole application is unreachable, tell your administrator — the Administration console shows the platform's health.
Does Datum tell me whether a matter is in conflict? No. Datum issues no clearance decision and no screen could be read as one. See What Datum is.
Still stuck?
Tell your administrator what you opened, what you expected and the exact words on the screen, and attach a screenshot. If the screen quoted a reason, include it.