Troubleshooting

Common problems and how to fix them. If the computer does not start at all, go straight to Going back.

Start here: did it begin after an update?

Most sudden problems follow a change. Open the Update Center and look at History. If the problem started after an entry there, go back to the restore point from just before it. That fixes it in a few minutes without working out the cause. See Going back.

A black screen

After an update: restart, choose SakuraOS Recovery in the boot menu, and go back to the restore point from before the update.

On a new install with an NVIDIA card: the graphics driver is the likely cause. See NVIDIA.

systemctl status sddm

If it failed, journalctl -b -u sddm says why. If it is running but there is still no desktop, the graphics driver is the usual cause; journalctl -b -p err normally names it. Going back to a restore point is often the quickest fix.

No Wi-Fi

Check that Wi-Fi is not switched off, in the panel's network icon or by a key on the laptop. Then in a terminal:

rfkill list
nmcli radio wifi on

If the Wi-Fi adapter does not appear at all, it may need firmware or a driver SakuraOS does not include. This shows what is missing:

sudo dmesg | grep -i firmware

Some Broadcom adapters need an extra driver; see Hardware and drivers.

No sound

Usually the wrong output is selected. Click the speaker icon in the panel and choose the right device, or use System Settings → Sound. If nothing is listed at all, restart the sound system:

systemctl --user restart pipewire wireplumber

Updates or installs fail

"unable to lock database"

Another install or update is running, or one was interrupted. Wait for the Update Center or App Store to finish. If nothing is running, remove the leftover lock:

pgrep -x pacman || sudo rm /var/lib/pacman/db.lck

This command only removes the lock if no install is actually running.

"invalid or corrupted package" or a signature error

Usually an out-of-date keyring, the list of keys packages are signed with. Update the keyrings first, then everything else:

sudo SAKURA_ASSIST_OVERRIDE=1 pacman -Sy archlinux-keyring sakura-keyring
sudo pacman -Su

Terminal Assist normally stops pacman -Sy on its own, because refreshing without upgrading can break the system. Here it is safe, as the second command upgrades everything straight afterwards; the first part of the command tells Terminal Assist you meant it. Run both.

If the error names a SakuraOS package, the server may have been mid-update. Wait a few minutes and try again.

A command was refused

That is Terminal Assist. The message explains why and how to run the command anyway. See Terminal Assist.

An update wants to remove something the system needs

It will be stopped, whatever started it, with an explanation. If you are not sure, leave it stopped and ask. See Terminal Assist.

The disk is full

Open Filelight to see what is using the space. Then, starting with the safest:

sudo pacman -Sc                    # remove old downloaded packages
flatpak uninstall --unused         # remove Flatpak parts nothing uses any more
sudo journalctl --vacuum-size=200M  # shrink the system log

Restore points take space too, as they keep old versions of anything that has since changed. SakuraOS keeps about ten and removes older ones by itself. To free more, delete some in the Update Center's History. You can no longer go back to a restore point you delete, so keep at least the newest few.

After going back to a restore point, SakuraOS keeps the system you went back from. These also take space, and there is not yet a button to remove them.

A game will not start

See Gaming.

Dates are in another country's format

On computers installed before 3 October 2026, choosing a 24-hour or 12-hour clock in the installer also changed how dates are written. American English with a 24-hour clock showed 03/10/2026 for 3 October, and other languages could show English month names. To give dates back to your language, run this in a terminal, then log out and back in:

kwriteconfig6 --file plasma-localerc --group Formats --key LC_TIME --delete

Then set the clock itself: right-click the clock in the panel, choose Configure Digital Clock, and set Time display to 24-Hour or 12-Hour.

Windows shows the wrong time

See Dual boot with Windows.

Still stuck

See Getting help. Collecting the information in Logs and bug reports first will get you an answer faster.

Last checked against the SakuraOS release of 3 October 2026. If your system behaves differently from this page, the page is wrong: please report it.