Troubleshooting

A field guide to issues that come up during normal AirLeak Pro use. If something here doesn't cover your problem, reach support at support@zerotrace.pw.

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Power & battery

The unit won't turn on / the LED is dark

1. Check the power switch is set to run from the battery (or from USB).
2. Confirm the 18650 is charged and inserted the right way round, or connect USB-C.
3. Try a different USB-C cable (some are charge-only) and a different power source.

It resets or browns out during a scan

Dual-band scanning draws a sharp current spike. A weak cable or low-current port can sag and trip a reset. Run from a charged 18650 or a solid 5 V / 2 A USB-C source with a good cable.

Charge LEDs

• Red = charging. Green = full / standby. These are driven by the charger and are always accurate.
• No charge LED with USB connected? Try another cable/source; confirm it delivers 5 V.

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Pairing & connection

AP-XXXX doesn't appear in the app

1. Confirm the status LED is on (needs battery or USB power, and the power switch set).
2. Grant the app Bluetooth and, on Android, location permission (Android needs it to return BLE results).
3. Move within a few meters and rescan.

Pairs but won't connect, or keeps dropping

• Another phone may already be connected, disconnect it.
• Move closer; walls and dense 2.4 GHz environments shorten BLE range.

Licensing

AirLeak Pro ships activated, there's nothing to activate. Your license key is also saved in your ZeroTrace dashboard if you need it after a firmware re-flash. See Licensing & Activation.

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Capture

Connected but nothing appears

Most often the unit is still in Setup. Open the Modes tab and pick Wardrive or Monitor, results should start within a second or two.

If you're in a capture mode and still see nothing, you may be in a quiet area, wait ~30 seconds.

I see 2.4 GHz networks but not 5 GHz (or vice-versa)

• Both bands are swept together, give it time; the sweep rotates through channels, so a given band fills in over a few seconds.
• Confirm the dual-band antenna is attached to the Wi-Fi co-processor, a 2.4-GHz-only antenna limits 5 GHz reception.

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Location

Nothing showing on the map

By default the app tags observations with your phone's GPS. Confirm the ZeroTrace app has location permission and your phone has a fix, step outside if you're indoors. Capture works without a fix, you just won't get location stamps until there's one.

Running an on-board GPS module

If you've fitted the optional GPS add-on for standalone wardriving, it needs open sky, no fix indoors is normal, and a cold first fix can take a few minutes. Metal roofs and tinted/heated windscreens attenuate GPS, so place it near a window with a view up.

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Storage

Card not detected / captures not saved

• Reseat the card; confirm it's FAT32 and not write-protected.
• Confirm there's free space, a full card stops new writes.
• Try a different, reputable ≤ 32 GB card formatted FAT32.

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Antennas

An antenna feels loose

The small U.FL/IPEX connectors are rated for only a limited number of mate cycles, frequent swapping wears them. For regular swaps, fit a bulkhead adapter and swap at the bulkhead instead of at the module connector.

Poor range

• Confirm the right antenna is on the right radio (dual-band on the co-processor, 2.4 GHz on the main radio).
• Try a higher-gain or directional antenna, that's the point of external, swappable antennas.

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Ops

An Op won't start, or scanning stopped

The Wi-Fi Ops share the one Wi-Fi radio with survey scanning, so a transmitting Op pauses harvesting while it runs, that's expected. Stop the Op to resume scanning. Run one Op at a time; the app's Ops view shows what's active.

An Op reports no effect

Some tests are supposed to have no effect, e.g. deauth against a network with protected management frames (WPA3 / PMF) is resisted by design. Confirm the target is in scope and check the Op's live status in the app.

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When to contact support

• Unit doesn't power on across all cable/source/battery combinations
• AP-XXXX never appears even when powered, close, with permissions granted
• Hardware damage (cracked board, broken antenna connector, USB-C port damage)

Reach out via support@zerotrace.pw with your order number, the firmware version (from the app's About), and a description of the symptom and what you've tried.