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ScoreBird
Support/User Manual

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting

This guide covers the most common issues you may encounter with ScoreBird. Each section describes the symptom, likely causes, and numbered steps to resolve it. If you work through all the steps and the problem persists, contact support at support@scorebird.com or call 844-GOT-BIRD (844-468-2473) and press 1.

NeST Device Issues

NeST Shows "Offline" in the Web App or Game Day

Symptom: The device card on Game Day shows a red Offline badge.

  1. Check that the NeST has power — the status LED on the device should be lit. If the LED is dark, verify the power cable and adapter are seated.
  2. If connected via Ethernet, confirm the cable is firmly seated at both the NeST and the network switch. Try a different port on the switch.
  3. If connected via WiFi, confirm the network is reachable from the facility. Check whether other devices on the same network can reach the internet.
  4. If connected via Cellular, check whether the NeST has adequate signal at the facility. Cellular is a fallback and may be unreliable in enclosed buildings or during large events.
  5. Click Reboot on the device card. The NeST will restart in 30–60 seconds. Wait up to 90 seconds for the status to return to Online.
  6. If the NeST does not come back online after a reboot, check whether your venue firewall blocks outbound WebSocket traffic (port 443). ScoreBird requires persistent WebSocket connections to the cloud. Contact your IT department if firewall rules need to be adjusted.

Note: If the Last Online timestamp shows a date from several days ago, the NeST may have been powered off or disconnected from the network. Verify it is physically connected and powered before rebooting through the app.

NeST Was Online but Went Offline During a Game

Symptom: The device was Online at the start of the game but dropped to Offline mid-game.

  1. Check the physical network connection at the facility — a loose Ethernet cable is the most common cause of mid-game dropouts.
  2. If on WiFi, check whether another device or access point change caused a network disruption. Large crowds can saturate WiFi channels; Ethernet is strongly recommended for game-day use.
  3. If on Cellular, signal loss or carrier congestion in a crowded arena may have caused the disconnect. The NeST will attempt to reconnect automatically — wait 60 seconds before taking further action.
  4. Click Reboot on the Game Day device card to force a reconnect attempt.
  5. If the facility has a network switch or router that restarts on a schedule (common in school environments), verify that the NeST's switch port has not lost power from a PoE budget issue or a managed-switch policy.
  6. If outages happen consistently at the same venue, contact support@scorebird.com to investigate logs for a pattern.

Tip: For any high-stakes event, connect the NeST via Ethernet to the most reliable network at your facility. Avoid relying on WiFi or Cellular as a primary connection.

NeST Shows Online but Scores Aren't Updating on Overlays

Symptom: The device card shows green Online status, but broadcast overlays and virtual scoreboards are not reflecting live scores.

  1. Verify the scoreboard controller is actively running the game — not in standby, halftime, or demo mode. The NeST only transmits data when the controller is producing output.
  2. Check the scoreboard cable connection between the NeST and the controller's data output port. Reseat both ends.
  3. Open the device detail view and confirm the SB Config (scoreboard make and model) matches your physical scoreboard. An incorrect configuration means the NeST cannot parse the data stream. See Devices for how to update the scoreboard config.
  4. Verify that an active schedule is assigned to the device. Overlays only receive live data when a game schedule is running. See Game Day and Schedules.
  5. In your broadcast software, refresh the browser source (right-click → Refresh, or Interact → press F5). The overlay may have a stale connection.
  6. If the issue persists, contact support@scorebird.com and include the NeST serial number and the scoreboard make and model.

NeST WiFi Won't Connect

Symptom: You have entered WiFi credentials via the app or web portal, but the NeST does not connect to the wireless network.

  1. Confirm you entered the correct WiFi password. WiFi credentials are case-sensitive.
  2. Verify the NeST supports the network's security type. ScoreBird NeST devices support WPA2 and WPA3 personal networks. Enterprise networks (WPA2-Enterprise / 802.1X) require additional configuration — contact support@scorebird.com.
  3. Check that the WiFi network is a 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band that the NeST supports. Some routers broadcast a combined SSID; if connecting fails, try forcing the router to use 2.4 GHz for that SSID.
  4. Confirm the network is not hidden (SSID not broadcast). The NeST WiFi configuration requires an SSID to be visible.
  5. Verify that MAC address filtering is not enabled on the router. If it is, add the NeST's MAC address to the allowlist.
  6. Ensure the NeST is within range of the access point. Move the device closer to the router and retry.

Note: The NeST must be connected via Ethernet at least once before WiFi can be configured for the first time. If you are setting up WiFi during initial installation, connect via Ethernet first, configure WiFi through the app, then disconnect the Ethernet cable.

NeST Not Detected on Network After Connecting Ethernet

Symptom: You connected the NeST to a network switch via Ethernet but the device does not appear online and does not receive an IP address.

  1. Confirm the Ethernet cable is fully seated — you should hear or feel a click when inserting the connector.
  2. Try a different Ethernet cable. Patch cables can be faulty.
  3. Try a different port on the network switch. A port may be disabled or damaged.
  4. Check whether the switch port requires VLAN configuration. If your network uses VLANs, the port the NeST is on must be an untagged member of a VLAN that has internet access.
  5. Verify that DHCP is available on the network. The NeST requests an IP address via DHCP by default. If your network uses only static IP addresses, contact support@scorebird.com to configure a static IP for the device.
  6. Confirm the network switch is powered and operational — check for link lights on the port after connecting.

"Complete Activation" Badge Keeps Showing After Setup

Symptom: The device card on Game Day shows a Complete activation badge even after you have finished the setup steps.

  1. Confirm you completed all required steps during activation: facility assignment, scoreboard configuration, and network connection. All three must be set for the badge to clear.
  2. Open the device detail view and verify that SB Config is set to a specific make and model — not blank or set to a placeholder value.
  3. Verify that a Facility is assigned to the device. A device with no facility assigned is treated as incomplete.
  4. Confirm the device has been Online at least once since the configuration was saved. The badge may not clear until the NeST checks in with the cloud post-setup.
  5. Refresh the Game Day page or click Refresh in the filter bar. The badge status updates in real time but a manual refresh confirms you are seeing current data.
  6. If the badge persists after all steps are confirmed complete, contact support@scorebird.com with the NeST serial number.

Scoreboard and Data Issues

Scores on Overlay Don't Match the Physical Scoreboard

Symptom: The live scores shown in the broadcast overlay or virtual scoreboard do not match what is displayed on the physical scoreboard at the venue.

  1. Verify the SB Config on the NeST device matches the exact make and model of your physical scoreboard. Even minor model differences can affect data parsing. Open the device detail view and check the configuration.
  2. Confirm the scoreboard control panel is the source of truth — the NeST reads data from the controller's output port, not the scoreboard display itself. If the controller is in a test or demo mode, it may send different data than what appears on the board.
  3. Check the cable between the NeST and the controller data output port. A partially seated cable can cause intermittent or garbled data.
  4. Refresh the browser source in your broadcast software to ensure the overlay is displaying the most recent data, not a cached frame.
  5. If scores are consistently off by a fixed amount (e.g., always one behind), there may be a timing issue between the controller's data output and its display. Contact support@scorebird.com with the scoreboard make and model.

Wrong Sport Showing in Overlay

Symptom: The overlay is showing statistics for the wrong sport — for example, basketball shot-clock data during a football game.

  1. The sport displayed in the overlay is determined by the SB Config set on the NeST device. Open the device detail view and confirm the scoreboard configuration matches the sport being played.
  2. Verify the correct sport is selected on the scoreboard controller itself. Some multi-sport controllers output different protocols depending on which sport is active. If the controller is set to the wrong sport, the NeST will read the wrong data format.
  3. Check the schedule assigned to the device. If the schedule is set to the wrong sport, the overlay may load the wrong sport's template. Edit the schedule to correct the sport.
  4. If the sport on the controller and in ScoreBird both appear correct but the overlay still shows wrong data, the NeST configuration may need to be updated. Contact support@scorebird.com.

Overlay Shows Dashes or Zeros Instead of Live Scores

Symptom: The overlay loads and displays correctly, but all score fields show dashes (—) or zeros rather than live data.

  1. Confirm the NeST device is Online. If it is Offline, the overlay has no data source and will show placeholder values.
  2. Verify an active schedule is assigned to the NeST device for the current game. Without a schedule, live data is not associated with any overlay output.
  3. Check that the scoreboard controller is actively running the game — not in a reset, idle, or demo state. The NeST only receives data when the controller is actively outputting its score protocol.
  4. Confirm the cable between the NeST and the controller data port is firmly connected.
  5. Refresh the browser source in your broadcast software.
  6. If scores were previously updating but stopped, check whether the controller was restarted during the game. A controller restart may require a scoreboard cable reseat or a device reboot.

Score Updates Are Delayed

Symptom: There is a noticeable lag between when the scoreboard changes and when the overlay or virtual scoreboard reflects the update — typically more than a few seconds.

  1. Check the NeST's connection type. Cellular connections introduce more latency than Ethernet or WiFi. If using Cellular, this may be normal behavior; switch to Ethernet or WiFi when possible.
  2. Verify the network at the venue is not congested. High traffic on a shared WiFi network can introduce delays.
  3. In your broadcast software, check whether the browser source has hardware acceleration enabled. Disabling GPU acceleration for the browser source can sometimes reduce rendering lag.
  4. Check the network path between the venue and the ScoreBird cloud. If you are behind a VPN or a proxy server, the WebSocket connection may be adding latency.
  5. If delays are consistently over 5 seconds on Ethernet, contact support@scorebird.com with the NeST serial number so the team can review device logs.

Overlay and Broadcast Issues

Overlay URL Is Blank or Shows an Error in OBS

Symptom: After adding the overlay URL to OBS (or another broadcast tool) as a browser source, the source is blank, shows a generic browser error, or fails to load.

  1. Verify the overlay URL is correct. Copy it directly from the Overlay Builder in the ScoreBird Portal — do not type it manually. A single character error will cause the source to fail.
  2. Confirm the URL begins with https:// — some broadcast software requires a secure URL.
  3. In OBS, open the browser source properties and increase the Width and Height to match your output resolution (e.g., 1920 × 1080). A source with zero dimensions renders as blank.
  4. Check that your OBS machine has an active internet connection. The overlay is a cloud-hosted page that must be reachable from the broadcast computer.
  5. If OBS shows a security error, ensure the Custom CSS field in the browser source is not accidentally overriding the page content.
  6. Try opening the overlay URL in a regular web browser on the same machine. If it loads correctly there but not in OBS, try disabling hardware acceleration in the OBS browser source properties.

Tip: For full setup instructions for OBS, see OBS Studio Setup.

Overlay Appears but Doesn't Update

Symptom: The overlay loads and displays correctly, but the scores never change even when the physical scoreboard updates.

  1. Confirm the NeST device is Online in the web app or Game Day.
  2. Verify an active schedule is assigned to the NeST and that the game is currently in progress (not ended or not yet started).
  3. Right-click the browser source in OBS and choose Interact, then press F5 to force a reload of the overlay page. This forces the browser to re-establish its WebSocket connection to the ScoreBird cloud.
  4. Check whether a browser source in OBS has its Shutdown source when not visible option enabled. If the source has been hidden at any point, the WebSocket connection may have been closed. Disable this option for live scoring sources.
  5. Confirm the overlay URL includes the correct NeST serial number or device identifier. An overlay URL pointing to the wrong device will appear to load but will never update.
  6. If none of the above resolves the issue, try removing and re-adding the browser source using the URL from the Overlay Builder.

Wrong Team Names in Overlay

Symptom: The overlay is showing incorrect team names — either placeholder names, names from a previous game, or the wrong teams entirely.

  1. Open the Schedule for the current game in the ScoreBird Portal and verify the correct home and away teams are set. Team names in the overlay come from the schedule, not the scoreboard.
  2. If the correct teams are in the schedule, refresh the browser source in your broadcast software to pull the latest data.
  3. Check whether the overlay has Custom team name overrides set in the Overlay Builder. If overrides are active, they will take precedence over the schedule. Clear them if they are not intentional.
  4. Confirm you are viewing the schedule for today's game — not a past game that shares the same device.

Overlay Looks Wrong for the Sport

Symptom: The overlay loads but displays incorrect fields for the sport — for example, showing a shot clock for a sport that does not use one, or missing a field that should be present.

  1. Verify the sport is set correctly on the NeST's SB Config. The overlay template is determined by the sport in the scoreboard configuration.
  2. Check the schedule sport assignment. If the schedule says "Basketball" but the scoreboard is configured for "Football," the overlay template may not match the data being received.
  3. Open the Overlay Builder and confirm the overlay was saved with the correct sport template. If the template was saved before the sport was corrected, it may need to be rebuilt.
  4. If the sport and configuration are correct but the overlay still displays unexpected fields, contact support@scorebird.com with the overlay URL and sport details.

Virtual Scoreboard Issues

Virtual Scoreboard Doesn't Appear on Website

Symptom: You added the embed code to your school or team website, but nothing appears where the virtual scoreboard should be.

  1. Confirm the embed code was copied correctly and completely from the ScoreBird Portal. Even a truncated <iframe> tag will fail silently.
  2. Check whether your website's CMS or page builder strips <iframe> tags for security reasons. Many school website platforms (Finalsite, Blackboard, Edlio) require special permissions to embed external iframes. Check your CMS documentation or contact your website administrator.
  3. Verify your website is served over HTTPS. Browsers block HTTP pages from loading HTTPS iframes (mixed content). If your site is on HTTP, the embed will not load.
  4. Check whether a content security policy (CSP) on your website blocks frames from ScoreBird's domain. If you manage your own web hosting, add ScoreBird's embed domain to your CSP's frame-src directive.
  5. In your browser's developer tools, open the Console tab while viewing the page. Any iframe-related errors will appear there and will help diagnose the issue.

Virtual Scoreboard Shows Outdated Scores

Symptom: The virtual scoreboard is visible on the website but is showing a final score from a previous game, not the current live game.

  1. Confirm there is an active schedule assigned to the NeST device for the current game, and that the game has been started (not just scheduled).
  2. Verify the NeST is Online. If the device is offline, the virtual scoreboard will continue to display the last received data.
  3. Hard-refresh the page containing the embed on your website (Ctrl+Shift+R or Cmd+Shift+R). Browser caches can hold a previous rendering of the page.
  4. Check whether the iFrame URL includes a specific game ID or is a "current game" URL. If it points to a specific past game, it will always show that game's data. Use the current game embed URL from the Overlay Builder instead.
  5. If the scoreboard shows a final score from earlier today, confirm the new game schedule was saved and started — it is possible the previous game's session was not closed before the new one began.

iFrame Embed Isn't Sizing Correctly on the Website

Symptom: The embedded virtual scoreboard appears but is cut off, too small, has scrollbars, or overflows its container.

  1. Check the width and height attributes in the <iframe> tag. The default ScoreBird embed is sized for a specific aspect ratio. If your page container is narrower than the iframe width, it will overflow.
  2. To make the embed responsive, set width="100%" on the iframe and either set a fixed height or use a CSS aspect-ratio wrapper. For example: 
    <div style="position:relative; padding-bottom:56.25%; height:0; overflow:hidden;">
  <iframe src="YOUR_SCOREBIRD_URL" style="position:absolute; top:0; left:0; width:100%; height:100%; border:0;" allowfullscreen></iframe>
</div>
  3. If your CMS adds a fixed-height wrapper around embedded content, check that setting in your page editor and increase the height to accommodate the scoreboard.
  4. Disable any automatic image or iframe scaling plugins on your website that may be resizing the embed incorrectly.

Account and Access Issues

Can't Log In

Symptom: You cannot sign in to the ScoreBird Portal or mobile app.

  1. Confirm you are using the email address associated with your ScoreBird account. This is typically the email that received your invitation when the account was created.
  2. Passwords are case-sensitive. Check that Caps Lock is off.
  3. Click Forgot password on the login page and follow the reset instructions. Check your spam or junk folder if the reset email does not arrive within a few minutes.
  4. If you never set a password (your account was created via invitation), use Forgot password to set one — the invitation link may have expired.
  5. If the reset email does not arrive after checking spam, contact support@scorebird.com with your school name. The support team can resend access.

"Access Denied" or Redirected After Login

Symptom: You log in successfully but are immediately shown an "Access denied" message or redirected away from the page you were trying to reach.

  1. Confirm your account has been fully activated. If you accepted an invitation but did not complete the account setup, some areas of the app may be restricted.
  2. Verify that your role in the organization has permission to access the area you are trying to reach. Account owners can manage user roles under Settings → Users.
  3. If you are a member of multiple organizations, confirm you are viewing data for the correct organization. Check the organization selector in the top navigation.
  4. Clear your browser cookies and cache, then sign in again. Stale session data can sometimes cause unexpected redirects.
  5. Try signing in from a different browser or incognito window to rule out a browser extension conflict.
  6. If the issue persists, contact support@scorebird.com and include the email address associated with your account and the URL you were trying to access.

Invited User Never Received Invitation Email

Symptom: You sent an invitation to a new user, but they report never receiving it.

  1. Ask the invited user to check their spam or junk folder. Invitation emails are sent from a ScoreBird domain and may be filtered by school email servers.
  2. Confirm the email address was entered correctly when the invitation was sent. Even a one-character typo sends the invitation to the wrong address.
  3. Resend the invitation from Settings → Users in the web app. Select the pending user and choose Resend Invitation.
  4. If the invitee's school or organization has strict email filtering (common in K–12 environments), they may need to whitelist scorebird.com in their email settings or ask their IT department to allow delivery.
  5. If the invitation still does not arrive after resending, contact support@scorebird.com with the invitee's email address and your organization name.

User Can See Wrong Organization's Data

Symptom: A user reports seeing data from a different school or organization that they should not have access to.

  1. This most commonly happens when a user is a member of multiple organizations — for example, a conference coordinator who manages several schools. Ask the user to check the organization selector in the top navigation and switch to the correct organization.
  2. If the user is not intentionally a member of the other organization, review Settings → Users in both organizations to confirm the user's membership. Remove them from any organization they should not belong to.
  3. If the data exposure appears to be a permissions or data isolation issue (not explained by multi-org membership), contact support@scorebird.com immediately with the affected user's email and the organizations involved.

Mobile App Issues

Mobile App Can't Connect or Shows Blank Screen

Symptom: After opening the ScoreBird mobile app, you see a blank screen, a loading spinner that never completes, or a connection error.

  1. Confirm your mobile device has an active internet connection — either cellular data or a WiFi network. Try loading a webpage in your browser to verify.
  2. Force-quit the app and reopen it. On iOS, swipe up from the bottom of the screen and swipe the app away. On Android, use the recent apps button and dismiss the ScoreBird card.
  3. Check whether a ScoreBird service update is in progress. Visit status.scorebird.com or check the ScoreBird social channels for any announced maintenance.
  4. Sign out of the app (if you can reach the settings) and sign back in. A stale authentication token can cause connection failures.
  5. If the app was recently updated, check the App Store or Google Play for any additional updates. A partial update can leave the app in an inconsistent state.
  6. Delete and reinstall the app. This clears any corrupted local data without affecting your account or organization data in the cloud.

Note: The mobile app uses the same Firebase authentication as the web app. If you can sign in on the web at customer.scorebird.com, your credentials are correct.

Pitch Count Data Not Saving

Symptom: You are entering pitch counts in the mobile app during a baseball or softball game, but the data does not appear to be saving or persisting after the session.

  1. Confirm you are connected to the internet while entering pitch counts. Data is saved to the cloud in real time; if the connection drops, entries may not sync.
  2. Verify you are entering counts within an active game schedule. Pitch count data must be associated with a schedule — it cannot be saved to a device with no active game.
  3. After entering counts, wait a moment and then navigate away from the screen and back. If the counts persist after navigation, they have been saved successfully.
  4. Check whether the pitch count feature is available on your subscription tier. Contact support@scorebird.com if you are unsure.
  5. If data disappears after force-quitting the app, it may not have synced before the app was closed. Ensure all entries are synced (connection icon shows green) before closing the app.
  6. If the problem is reproducible, contact support@scorebird.com and include the game date, facility, and a description of the steps you took.

Push Notifications Not Arriving

Symptom: You are not receiving push notifications from the ScoreBird mobile app for game status changes, device alerts, or score milestones.

  1. Confirm notifications are enabled for the ScoreBird app on your device. On iOS, go to Settings → Notifications → ScoreBird and ensure Allow Notifications is on. On Android, go to Settings → Apps → ScoreBird → Notifications.
  2. Verify that Do Not Disturb mode is not active on your device — it silences all notifications regardless of app settings.
  3. Check the notification preferences within the ScoreBird mobile app under your profile or settings. Confirm the notification types you want to receive are enabled.
  4. Sign out and back in to the mobile app to re-register your device's push notification token with ScoreBird's servers.
  5. If you recently reinstalled the app or switched devices, the push token may need a moment to register. Wait 5–10 minutes after reinstalling before testing notifications.
  6. If notifications still do not arrive, contact support@scorebird.com and include your device model, OS version, and app version.

Getting More Help

If none of the steps above resolve your issue:

  • Email: support@scorebird.com
  • Phone: 844-GOT-BIRD (844-468-2473) — press 1 for support
  • In-app: Click Tutorials in the top navigation bar for video walkthroughs

When contacting support, include the NeST serial number (found on the device card or the physical label on the device), the scoreboard make and model, and a brief description of the steps you have already tried. This helps the support team diagnose your issue faster.

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