Troubleshooting

Diagnostic procedures and solutions for common administrative issues

When an update does not appear on the website as expected, follow this diagnostic guide to identify and resolve the issue.

Diagnostic checklist

Before requesting technical assistance, review these five steps in order:

Step 1: Check the Google Sheet
        Verify that data was entered into the correct spreadsheet and tab.
        ↓
Step 2: Check required fields
        Verify that mandatory columns (names, URLs, dates, verification values) are completed.
        ↓
Step 3: Check GitHub Actions status
        Verify whether the update workflow ran and whether it completed with a green check mark or red X.
        ↓
Step 4: Check browser cache
        Perform a hard refresh (Ctrl + F5 on Windows or Cmd + Shift + R on Mac) to bypass cached pages.
        ↓
Step 5: Escalate to technical support
        If the issue remains unresolved, contact a technical administrator.

Troubleshooting reference

Problem Likely cause What to check Next step
A community contribution does not appear online The submission was approved, but the publication setting remains disabled, or the update workflow has not run. Editorial Review tab in ISA RC42 Community Submissions. Ensure review_status is approved and publish_on_site is yes. Then run a manual update.
A member does not appear in the directory The membership end date is in the past or formatted incorrectly. RC Membership End Date in Active Members RC42 Social Psychology. Ensure the date uses DD-MM-YYYY format and the expiration date is today or in the future. Run an update.
An expired member continues to appear as active The end date in the spreadsheet is set to a future date. RC Membership End Date in Active Members RC42 Social Psychology. Set the expiration date to a date in the past (e.g. 01-01-2023). The system moves the member to past members on the next run.
An academic resource does not appear on the Resources page Verification status is unverified or the web address is invalid. Verification status and URL in rc42_resources_workflow. Ensure Verification status begins with Verified (e.g. Verified official source) and the URL is active.
A subscriber did not receive the confirmation email The email address was misspelled or the message was routed to Spam. Subscribers tab in ISA RC42 Newsletter Database. Check address spelling, verify that status is pending, and ask the recipient to check Spam or Junk folders.
An active subscriber is not receiving Community Updates Subscriber status is not confirmed or the contribution update has not completed. Subscribers tab in ISA RC42 Newsletter Database. Verify that status is active (requires clicking the confirmation link) and check that the contribution is live on the website.
GitHub Actions displays a red X A mandatory column header was renamed, a cell was empty, or a date could not be read. Click the failed workflow run in GitHub Actions to inspect the error log. Correct the cell or restore the original column header in Google Sheets, then re-run the workflow.
The website shows outdated content after an update The browser is displaying a cached version of the page. Browser local cache. Perform a hard refresh using Ctrl + F5 (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + R (Mac).

When to contact a technical administrator

Contact a technical administrator if any of the following occur:

  • A GitHub Actions workflow repeatedly fails with a red X after verifying all spreadsheet entries and column headers.
  • The website https://isa-rc42.org displays a server error or fails to load.
  • The browser displays an SSL/TLS security warning (“Your connection is not private”).
  • GitHub Pages reports a custom domain or DNS misconfiguration.
  • Changes are required to navigation menus, global styling, or page layouts.
  • Google API credentials or GitHub Secrets need updating following an executive handover.

Guidelines to prevent system errors

  1. Do not rename column headers in Google Sheets: Synchronization scripts identify fields by exact header names (such as Member ID, review_status, and Verification status).
  2. Maintain the required date format: Always enter dates in DD-MM-YYYY for members and YYYY-MM-DD for community contribution deadlines.
  3. Do not remove the Google Service Account: The service account email requires Viewer access to read spreadsheet data.
  4. Do not edit generated data files directly in GitHub: Files in data/ are overwritten automatically on every synchronization.