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TimeOtter

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

”Token has expired”

The OAuth token needs to be refreshed. Delete the token and re-authenticate:

Terminal window
rm ~/.cal-token.json
timeotter

“Access Denied” during OAuth

  1. Make sure you added your email as a test user in Google Cloud Console
  2. Click Advanced → Go to TimeOtter (unsafe) to proceed

”Invalid credentials”

Verify your credentials file exists and is valid:

Terminal window
cat ~/.cal-credentials.json

If missing or corrupt, re-download from Google Cloud Console.

Calendar Issues

No Events Found

  1. Check that CalendarID is correct in your config
  2. Verify you have upcoming events in your calendar
  3. Try using "primary" as the CalendarID

Wrong Calendar

Find your calendar ID:

  1. Open Google Calendar
  2. Click the three dots next to your calendar
  3. Select Settings and sharing
  4. Scroll to Integrate calendar
  5. Copy the Calendar ID

Cron Issues

TimeOtter Not Running Automatically

  1. Check cron is running:

    Terminal window
    systemctl status cron

  2. Verify the cron entry:

    Terminal window
    crontab -l

  3. Check cron logs:

    Terminal window
    grep CRON /var/log/syslog

Events Not Triggering

  1. Verify the marker comment is in your crontab
  2. Run timeotter manually to see generated entries
  3. Check that event times are in the future

”Command not found” in Cron

Cron uses a limited PATH. Use the full path to timeotter:

Terminal window
0 * * * * /home/user/go/bin/timeotter

Or to your command:

CmdToExec = "/usr/bin/mpv ~/alarm.mp3"

Configuration Issues

Config File Not Found

Create the config directory and file:

Terminal window
mkdir -p ~/.config/timeotter
touch ~/.config/timeotter/config.toml

Invalid TOML Syntax

Check your config for common issues:

  • Strings must be quoted: CalendarID = "email@gmail.com"
  • No trailing commas
  • Use = not :

Validate your TOML:

Terminal window
cat ~/.config/timeotter/config.toml

Command Issues

Command Not Executing

  1. Test the command manually:

    Terminal window
    mpv ~/alarm.mp3

  2. Check file permissions

  3. Use absolute paths in CmdToExec

Audio/Video Not Playing

Cron runs without a display. For GUI commands:

CmdToExec = "DISPLAY=:0 mpv ~/alarm.mp3"

For audio:

CmdToExec = "paplay ~/alarm.wav"

Getting Help

If you’re still stuck:

  1. Check GitHub Issues
  2. Open a new issue with:
    • Your config file (redact sensitive data)
    • Error messages
    • Steps to reproduce