Why did my upload fail, or why is it stuck uploading?

Symptoms

You added a file to a chat or project, but it either never arrived or never became usable. You may see one of the following:

A file that shows a red mark or a spinner is not available to Noxtua yet. It only reads files that have finished processing, so answers will not draw on it.

Applies to

• Platform: web app in a desktop browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari)

• App area: file uploads — the chat composer (+ › Upload from computer), drag and drop or paste into a chat, and the project Files page

Quick fix

1. Read the red pop-up. If it says Unsupported file type or Too large to upload, go to causes 1 or 2 below — retrying will not help.

2. If the file shows a red mark saying Processing failed. Try again in a moment., click Retry processing (the circular-arrow icon next to the file). For any other red mark, go to cause 2 or 6 below — retrying will not help.

3. If the upload itself failed or the spinner has run for more than 5 minutes, reload the page and upload the file again.

Causes & solutions

Causes are listed from most to least likely.

1. The file type is not supported

How to tell: a red pop-up says Unsupported file type right after you pick the file, and nothing uploads.

1. Check the file extension. Supported types are:

   • Documents: .pdf, .docx, .doc, .odt, .rtf, .pptx

   • Spreadsheets and data: .xlsx, .xls, .csv, .tsv

   • Text and web: .txt, .md, .markdown, .html, .htm, .xml

   • Images and scans: .png, .jpg, .jpeg, .tif, .tiff, .bmp, .webp

   • Emails: .msg, .eml

   • Archives: .zip (its contents are uploaded, not the zip itself)

2. Convert the file to a supported type. For example, save a Keynote or Pages file as PDF, or an old .ppt as .pptx.

3. Upload the converted file.

Check: the file appears in the chat or file list with no pop-up.

2. The file is larger than 100 MB

How to tell: a red pop-up says Too large to upload (max. 100 MB), or the file uploads but then shows The file is too large to process. The second message can appear even if the file is under 100 MB: the upload worked, but the file is too large to read.

1. Reduce the file size. For a PDF, use your PDF tool’s Reduce file size or Optimize option; for scans, rescan at 200–300 dpi.

2. Or split the file into parts under 100 MB each (for example, by chapter or by exhibit).

3. Upload the smaller files.

Check: each part uploads and shows no red mark once processing ends.

3. Processing failed temporarily

How to tell: the file has a red mark, and hovering over it shows Processing failed. Try again in a moment.

1. Wait one or two minutes.

2. Click Retry processing (circular-arrow icon) next to the file.

3. If you see Could not restart processing., reload the page and try again.

Check: the spinner returns and the red mark disappears when processing ends.

4. Large or scanned files are still processing

How to tell: the file shows Processing … with a spinner, but no error appears.

1. Wait. Scanned PDFs and image files are read with text recognition (OCR), which can take up to 5 minutes for a long document.

2. Keep the tab open until the spinner stops.

3. If it still spins after 5 minutes, reload the page. If the file then shows a red mark, follow cause 3 or 6.

Check: the spinner disappears, and the file can be opened and cited in answers.

5. The connection dropped, or the tab was closed during upload

How to tell: you see Could not upload the file., or the file vanished after you reloaded, closed the tab, or lost Wi-Fi/VPN mid-upload.

1. Check that you are online and, if your firm requires it, connected to the VPN.

2. Reload the page. Uploads in progress do not resume after a reload.

3. Upload the file again, and keep the tab open until it appears in the list.

Check: the file appears in the list and finishes processing.

6. The file is damaged, password-protected, or unreadable

How to tell: the red mark shows Could not read this file. Is it a supported, undamaged document?

1. Open the file on your computer. If it doesn’t open, ask the sender for a new copy.

2. If it asks for a password, remove the protection (for example, File › Info › Protect Document in Word, or save an unprotected copy of the PDF).

3. Re-save or export it (for example, Save as PDF) and upload the new copy.

Check: the new copy finishes processing with no red mark.

7. An email or zip could not be fully unpacked

How to tell: a pop-up says These emails or zip archives could not be opened or These files from an email or zip archive were not added.

1. Note the file names in the pop-up.

2. For a zip, keep the zip under 250 MB, both as a zip and once unpacked, with no more than 500 files inside. Zips nested more than 5 levels deep are not unpacked.

3. Extract the files that were left out and upload them on their own. Unsupported types or files over 100 MB inside the archive are skipped (see causes 1 and 2).

Check: every file you need appears in the list.

Prevent it next time

• Keep each file under 100 MB and each zip under 250 MB, both as a zip and once unpacked. Split large bundles by chapter or exhibit.

• Prefer PDF with selectable text over scans. If you must scan, use 200–300 dpi so files stay small and process faster.

• Remove passwords and protection before uploading.

• Wait for the spinner to stop before sending your prompt, so Noxtua can read the file in its answer.

• Keep the tab open and stay on a stable connection until uploads appear in the list.

• Upload large sets in batches of a few files rather than all at once.

Still not working

Contact Noxtua Support at support@noxtua.com, or ask your organization's Noxtua admin. Include:

• Browser and version (for example, Chrome 130) and operating system

• Time of the issue, with your time zone

• File details: name, type, size, and whether it is a scan

• Error text, copied exactly from the pop-up or the red mark’s tooltip

• Screenshot of the file list or chat showing the error or spinner

• What you already tried from this article

Don’t attach confidential client documents to the request unless Support asks for them.