Demobot Troubleshooting Guide
Use this guide when setup, build, deploy, or robot connection steps fail.
Quick triage order
- Verify robot power (battery, breaker, Anderson connector seating).
- Verify laptop Wi-Fi connection to the robot network.
- Verify Driver Station communication status.
- Verify code build status in WPILib VS Code.
- Verify deploy status and roboRIO reachability.
Common issues
Driver Station not connecting
Symptoms
- Driver Station shows red or yellow communication indicators.
Checks
- Confirm laptop is connected to the expected robot network.
- Restart Driver Station.
- Power-cycle the robot.
- Confirm the robot has finished booting before reconnect attempts.
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Driver Station window showing disconnected state and where to check indicator lights.
Build fails in WPILib
Symptoms
WPILib: Build Robot Code reports failure.
Checks
- Read the first real error in terminal output (not just summary lines).
- Make sure WPILib version matches project requirements.
- Re-run the build after reopening WPILib VS Code.
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WPILib terminal output highlighting where the first build error appears.
Deploy hangs or fails
Symptoms
- Deploy takes unusually long or exits with an error.
Checks
- Confirm Driver Station can see robot communications first.
- Cancel deploy once and retry.
- Reboot robot and retry deploy.
- Confirm no firewall or network profile is blocking local robot traffic.
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VS Code terminal showing a deploy timeout/failure and a successful retry.
Robot has power but no code status
Symptoms
- Robot powers on but Driver Station code indicator does not go green.
Checks
- Rebuild and redeploy code.
- Check roboRIO logs for startup errors.
- Confirm the project deployed is this repository’s code.
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Driver Station panel showing code indicator state and where to confirm it.
Symptoms
- CAN warnings, missing devices, or intermittent motor controller responses.
Checks
- Inspect WAGO CAN loop continuity end-to-end.
- Confirm each SPARK MAX appears with expected ID.
- Check for loose or damaged CAN connectors/wiring.
- Verify terminations and polarity are correct.
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Annotated photo of the CAN wiring path through WAGO, SPARK MAX controllers, and endpoints.
Power distribution issues (PDH / Anderson)
Symptoms
- Brownouts, random reboots, or intermittent subsystem resets.
Checks
- Confirm battery is charged and healthy.
- Check Anderson connectors are fully seated and not heat-damaged.
- Verify PDH connections are tight and correctly landed.
- Check for signs of voltage drop under load.
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Close-up of PDH and Anderson connectors showing correct seating and wiring layout.
If nothing works
- Restart laptop and robot.
- Reconnect Wi-Fi and reopen Driver Station.
- Build and deploy again.
- Escalate with:
- Driver Station screenshot
- Build/deploy terminal output
- What changed since the last known good run