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Exchange Troubleshooting

Common issues when connecting exchanges and how to resolve them.

Connection Issues

"Invalid API Key"

Symptoms: Exchange shows Error status, "Invalid API Key" message.

Causes:

  • Typo in API key when entering
  • API key deleted on exchange
  • API key disabled/expired

Solutions:

  1. Verify the API key on your exchange is active
  2. Delete the exchange in TradeStaq
  3. Create a new connection with correct credentials
  4. Double-check for copy/paste errors (extra spaces, missing characters)

"Invalid Signature" / "Authentication Failed"

Symptoms: Connection fails with signature/authentication error.

Causes:

  • Secret key is incorrect
  • Passphrase wrong (OKX)
  • Clock synchronization issue

Solutions:

  1. Re-enter the secret key carefully
  2. For OKX: verify passphrase is exact (case-sensitive)
  3. Check your device's system clock is accurate
  4. Try regenerating API keys on the exchange

"IP Not Whitelisted"

Symptoms: Error mentioning IP restriction or whitelist.

Causes:

  • API key has IP restrictions
  • TradeStaq server IPs not added

Solutions:

  1. Add TradeStaq server IPs to your API whitelist
  2. Contact hello@tradestaq.com for current IP list
  3. Or temporarily disable IP restrictions for testing

"Permission Denied"

Symptoms: Connection works but trades fail with permission error.

Causes:

  • Trading permission not enabled
  • Wrong account type selected
  • Sub-account restrictions

Solutions:

  1. Check API key has Trade permission enabled
  2. For futures: ensure Futures/Derivatives permission is on
  3. Verify you're using the main account (not sub-account with restrictions)

Sync Issues

Balance Not Updating

Symptoms: Exchange shows old balance, doesn't reflect recent trades.

Causes:

  • Sync delay
  • Rate limiting
  • Connection issue

Solutions:

  1. Click the Sync button to force refresh
  2. Wait a few minutes and try again
  3. Check exchange status on their website
  4. Verify the exchange status is "Active" (not "Error")

"Sync Failed"

Symptoms: Manual sync fails with error message.

Causes:

  • Exchange API is down
  • Rate limit exceeded
  • Credential issues

Solutions:

  1. Check if exchange is operational
  2. Wait 5 minutes and retry (rate limit cooldown)
  3. Verify API credentials are still valid
  4. Check exchange status page for maintenance

Missing Positions

Symptoms: Open positions on exchange don't appear in TradeStaq.

Causes:

  • Position opened before connecting
  • Different account/sub-account
  • Sync not completed

Solutions:

  1. Force sync the exchange
  2. Verify you're viewing the correct exchange in TradeStaq
  3. Check if position is on a different sub-account
  4. Wait for the next automatic sync cycle

Trading Issues

Orders Not Executing

Symptoms: Signals received but no trades placed.

Causes:

  • Bot paused or stopped
  • Insufficient balance
  • Trading permission missing
  • Invalid trading pair

Solutions:

  1. Check bot status is "Active"
  2. Verify sufficient balance for the trade
  3. Check API key has trading permissions
  4. Verify the trading pair exists on the exchange

"Insufficient Balance"

Symptoms: Trade fails with balance error.

Causes:

  • Not enough funds for the order
  • Margin requirement not met
  • Balance on wrong wallet (spot vs futures)

Solutions:

  1. Check available balance (not total balance)
  2. Reduce position size
  3. Transfer funds to correct wallet on exchange
  4. For futures: ensure adequate margin

"Invalid Symbol"

Symptoms: Trade fails with symbol/pair error.

Causes:

  • Trading pair delisted
  • Wrong symbol format
  • Pair not available on selected market type

Solutions:

  1. Verify the pair is tradeable on the exchange
  2. Check you're using correct market (spot vs futures)
  3. Update bot configuration with valid pair
  4. For futures: ensure you're using perpetual symbol

"Order Size Too Small"

Symptoms: Trade rejected for minimum order size.

Causes:

  • Position size below exchange minimum
  • Notional value too low

Solutions:

  1. Increase position size in bot settings
  2. Check exchange's minimum order requirements
  3. Ensure position value meets minimum (usually ~$5-10)

Exchange-Specific Issues

Binance

"API key format invalid"

  • Binance API keys are case-sensitive
  • Check for trailing spaces
  • Ensure you're using the API key, not the secret

"Futures account not activated"

  • Enable futures trading on Binance first
  • Accept futures trading agreement
  • May require identity verification

ByBit

"Unified account required"

  • Upgrade to Unified Trading Account on ByBit
  • Go to Account → Upgrade to Unified Account

"Position mode mismatch"

  • Set position mode to Hedge Mode
  • Go to Derivatives → Settings → Position Mode

OKX

"Passphrase incorrect"

  • OKX requires a passphrase in addition to API key/secret
  • Passphrase is case-sensitive
  • Created during API key generation

"Account mode unsupported"

  • Switch to Multi-Currency Margin mode
  • Go to Account → Account Mode

Rate Limiting

"Too Many Requests"

Symptoms: Operations fail with rate limit error.

Causes:

  • Too many API calls in short period
  • Multiple services using same API key

Solutions:

  1. Wait 1-5 minutes for cooldown
  2. Reduce signal frequency
  3. Use separate API keys for different services
  4. Contact support if persistent

Note: TradeStaq implements automatic rate limiting, but extremely high-frequency signals may still hit exchange limits.

Account Issues

Paper Trading Refill Unavailable

Symptoms: Can't refill paper trading balance.

Causes:

  • 24-hour cooldown active
  • Paper exchange in error state

Solutions:

  1. Wait for cooldown timer to expire
  2. Check the cooldown remaining time on the refill button
  3. If button is missing, try refreshing the page

Exchange Shows "Paused"

Symptoms: Exchange marked as paused, can't trade.

Causes:

  • Subscription tier limit exceeded
  • Downgrade resulted in excess exchanges

Solutions:

  1. Delete excess exchanges to match tier limits
  2. Upgrade subscription to higher tier
  3. Choose which exchanges to keep active

Getting Help

If you've tried the above solutions without success:

  1. Gather Info: Note the exact error message
  2. Contact Support: Email hello@tradestaq.com with:
    • Exchange name
    • Error message
    • Steps you've tried
    • Screenshots if helpful

Note: Never share your API secret or passphrase with support. We will never ask for these credentials.

Prevention Tips

  1. Test with paper first - Validate configurations before going live
  2. Keep credentials updated - Rotate API keys periodically
  3. Monitor regularly - Check exchange status daily
  4. Enable notifications - Get alerts for connection issues
  5. Keep balances adequate - Maintain sufficient margin