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What do I do when Hubort doesn't work?

Most first-install problems are one of four: the extension can't reach the app, the popup says Not paired, the installer or app mentions WebView2, or Windows 11 quietly blocks the app. Find yours below. Each answer says what it means, then what to do, in order. Nothing here needs you to ignore a warning or switch off anything but the one Windows setting named, and if none of it helps, the support page says how to reach us.

Why does the extension say it can't reach the Hubort app?

The app isn't running, or it is running somewhere the extension didn't look. The extension's message reads “Can't reach the Hubort hub at http://127.0.0.1:8787 — open the Hubort app to start it.” Hubort is the app in your tray; the extension only hands it chats.

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    Look for the Hubort icon in the tray, beside the clock (it may be under the ^ arrow). Closing the app's window doesn't stop it, but Quit Hubort in the tray menu does. If it isn't there, open Hubort from the Start menu.

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    In the extension's popup, press Sync now.

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    Still stuck? The app takes the first free port from 8787 to 8796, and the extension finds it by itself. If you have changed the popup's Advanced → Hub URL by hand, put it back to what it was, then pair again (next question).

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    If the app is in the tray but no window ever opens, or the tray icon isn't there at all, read the two questions after the next one.

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    Another Windows account on the same PC has its own Hubort, with its own chats and its own port. Yours is the one signed in as you.

Why does the extension say “Not paired”?

Pairing is how the app knows a browser is yours, so an extension that hasn't paired sends nothing. “Not paired” means this browser profile has never paired, or the app has forgotten it: you unpaired it in Settings, or the app's data was reset. Pair it again with a fresh code.

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    Click the Hubort icon in the tray, then Pair a Browser…. It shows a seven-digit code.

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    Open the extension's popup and type the code into the pairing box. It says Paired when it works.

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    Do this in each browser profile you use AI in: a profile is its own world to an extension, so a second profile needs its own extension and its own pairing.

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    If the code is refused, ask the tray for a new one.

What is WebView2, and why does the installer or app mention it?

WebView2 is Microsoft's own component, part of Edge, that draws Hubort's window. Most PCs have it. If yours doesn't, the installer installs Microsoft's copy first, which takes two or three minutes with a clock running: let it finish. If the app then says it can't show its window because WebView2 is missing or not working, everything else still works.

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    Hubort keeps running in the tray, and your browsers keep syncing. Your dashboard opens in your normal browser instead: tray → Open Dashboard, or the app's Open in Default Browser button.

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    To get the window back, press the app's Get WebView2 button, or go to Microsoft's WebView2 page, and install the Evergreen runtime.

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    Then choose Quit Hubort from the tray and open Hubort again. It only looks for WebView2 when it starts.

Why does Hubort install but never finish starting on Windows 11?

The likely cause is Smart App Control. On Windows 11 it blocks unsigned programs it doesn't recognise, without telling you, and Hubort isn't code-signed yet (a certificate is in progress). It stops Hubort's built-in server before it starts, so the app says it couldn't start its local server, or the window never finishes loading. Some antivirus tools behave the same way.

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    Press Start, type Smart App Control, and open it. If it says On, that is almost certainly it.

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    Turn it off, then choose Quit Hubort in the tray and open Hubort again. If it now starts, that was the cause.

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    One thing to read first: on Windows 11 updated since April 2026 you can switch Smart App Control back on afterwards, but on older builds turning it off is one-way, and Windows won't turn it back on without resetting the PC. Windows tells you which you have before you confirm, so read that screen rather than taking our word for it.

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    If you'd rather not turn it off, wait: a signed installer clears it, and that is the first thing sales will pay for.

What does “Windows protected your PC” mean?

It is SmartScreen, which warns about any program it hasn't seen many people download, and Hubort isn't code-signed yet. It is a warning you can dismiss, unlike Smart App Control's block. Your browser may also say the file isn't commonly downloaded.

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    In the browser, choose to keep the file.

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    When you run it and Windows shows “Windows protected your PC”, choose More info, then Run anyway.

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    To be sure the file is the one we built, compare its SHA-256 with the one on the download page: in PowerShell, Get-FileHash followed by the file's path prints it.

Why has an account stopped syncing?

Usually the service signed you out, or it is asking your browser to prove it's a person, or it has told Hubort to wait. The extension only ever uses the session the browser already has, so it can't sign in for you. The popup names the reason under that service.

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    Signed out: sign in to that service in the same browser profile, then press Sync now.

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    A check or “unusual traffic” page from Google, ChatGPT or Grok: open the service's own site in that browser and pass it. Hubort waits and carries on after; asking again every couple of minutes only makes it last longer.

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    Waiting (a rate limit): the service limits how fast one account can be read. Hubort backs off by itself, and starts again on its own. There is nothing to do but leave it.

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    A Gemini account with no chats: if Gemini Apps Activity is off for that Google account, Gemini keeps no history at all, so there is nothing to read. Turning it on keeps chats from then on.

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    A service that changed how its site works: syncing for it stops until an update fixes it, and chats already in Hubort stay searchable. Use the tray's Check for Updates…, then report it (last question).

What if another program is using Hubort's ports?

Hubort takes a free port between 8787 and 8796. If another program answers where it needed one, usually a development server, it stops and says so. Another Windows account on the same PC running Hubort is fine: each account gets its own port.

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    Close the other program, then open Hubort again from the tray or the Start menu.

How do I report a problem?

From the app: Help → Report a problem, or the tray's Report a Problem…. It shows you everything it will send, diagnostics with no chat text, titles or account names, before anything goes. From the extension, its popup's Report a problem opens hubort.app/report. Or write to [email protected]. The support page has the rest.

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    If the app won't start, the tray's Copy Diagnostics puts the same details on your clipboard to paste into an email.

Still stuck?

The support page has every way to reach us, and what a report sends. You can also write to [email protected]. The first-time setup, step by step, is the setup guide.