trying to follow along with your video, and it's not working. Enter this command to install curl -fsSL https://get.tomsparkbox.com/install.sh | sudo bash then i need to login for the first time i enter the bootstrap token and make up a password but this is where im stuck says another first run claim is in progress retry in a few seconds i wait try again and nothing stll gets the same error then i enter sudo /opt/sparkbox/sparkboxup, and it still doesn't work ive deleted everything and started fresh and still get the same error code i got docker and its upto date and also followed the troubleshoot documentation for the dashboard too still nothing help me please and thank you.
8 replies
Chris wrote:
The 'first run claim in progress' error happens when multiple bootstrap requests hit the server at the same time—it's a safety lock. Try: wait 15+ seconds, then retry once from a single browser tab. If it persists, restart your dashboard (sudo systemctl restart sparkbox) and try the bootstrap again. Let me know if you're still stuck after that.
Chris wrote:
Welcome, and no worries — you're closer than you think! Good news: your bootstrap token and password already went through, so there's nothing left to re-enter — that's a one-time step, which is why it won't prompt for the token again. The 'Could not load services' message just means the dashboard opened before your services finished starting. On a fresh install that's completely normal — SparkBox is still downloading and starting the containers, which can take several minutes. Try this: run sudo sparkbox up, wait a few minutes, then hard-refresh the page (Ctrl+Shift+R). To check progress, run sudo sparkbox status — it lists each service and whether it's running. Still stuck after that? Paste what sudo sparkbox status shows and we'll get Tom on it.
camorlinga wrote:
i did what you said and when i entered the command it said failed to restart sparkbox.service: unit sparkbox.service not found
Chris wrote:
That one is on me — the command I gave you was wrong. SparkBox does not run as a system service, so it was never going to work. Here is the real fix for this exact error, the same one Tom put in the installer for exactly this: run sudo sparkbox up — that clears the stale first-run lock. Then reload the dashboard page in ONE tab and enter your bootstrap token and password again. Lost the token? Print it again with: sudo sparkbox bootstrap-token. If it still says claim in progress after that, paste exactly what you see and I will put it straight in front of Tom.
Chris wrote:
Quick check in: did running sudo sparkbox up and then retrying the bootstrap clear that claim-in-progress error? If you're still hitting it after that, paste exactly what the error shows now and we'll get Tom on it directly. You've been patient troubleshooting this — let's get it sorted.
mvthias wrote:
Hey, i am having the same exact issue. I was able to input my bootstrap and enter a password, but it doesn't let me enter the site. Now when i try to go on to the dashboard, it says "Could not load services" after entering my password on the welcome screen. I have ran sudo sparkbox up, but it doesnt let me re input my bootstrap. PS: I am a total noob lol, much respect to everyone that has found success!
mvthias wrote:
Thank you Chris! Here is what sudo sparkbox status shows, ~$ sudo sparkbox status / | | | | ) \ \| ' \ / | '| |/ / \ / \ \/ / ) | |) | (| | | | <| |) | () < |/| ./ \,|| ||\\/ \//\\ || SparkBox v1.6.395 - Self-Hosted Privacy Stack Created by Tom Spark | youtube.com/@TomSparkReviews Network profile: private Module Status: ○ adguard (disabled) - AdGuard Home ○ audiobookshelf (disabled) - Audiobookshelf ○ authelia (disabled) - Authelia ○ backup (disabled) - Backups ○ bookstack (disabled) - BookStack ○ budget (disabled) - Actual Budget ○ changedetection (disabled) - Changedetection.io ○ cloud (disabled) - Cloud Storage ● core (enabled) - Core Infrastructure ● dashboard (enabled) - TomSparkBox Dashboard ○ ebooks (disabled) - Ebooks & Comics ○ emby (disabled) - Emby ○ files (disabled) - File Browser ○ freshrss (disabled) - FreshRSS ○ frigate (disabled) - Frigate NVR ○ gitea (disabled) - Gitea ○ gotify (disabled) - Gotify ○ hearth (disabled) - Hearth Chat ○ homarr (disabled) - Homarr ○ homeassistant (disabled) - Home Assistant ○ immich (disabled) - Immich ○ jellyfin (disabled) - Jellyfin ○ jellystat (disabled) - Jellystat ○ linkding (disabled) - Linkding ○ localai (disabled) - Local AI ○ matrix (disabled) - Matrix Chat ○ mealie (disabled) - Mealie ○ media (disabled) - Media Center ○ metrics (disabled) - Metrics & Dashboards ○ monitoring (disabled) - Monitoring ○ n8n (disabled) - n8n ○ navidrome (disabled) - Navidrome ○ paperless (disabled) - Paperless-ngx ○ photoprism (disabled) - PhotoPrism ○ pihole (disabled) - Pi-hole ○ pinchflat (disabled) - Pinchflat ○ plex (disabled) - Plex ○ searxng (disabled) - SearXNG ○ speedtest (disabled) - Speedtest Tracker ○ stirling-pdf (disabled) - Stirling PDF ○ syncthing (disabled) - Syncthing ○ tailscale (disabled) - Tailscale ○ tdarr (disabled) - Tdarr ○ vaultwarden (disabled) - Vaultwarden ○ vpn (disabled) - Remote Access VPN Container Status: NAMES STATUS PORTS sb-dashboard Up 52 minutes (healthy) 0.0.0.0:8443-8443/tcp sb-npm Up 52 minutes (healthy) 0.0.0.0:80-81-80-81/tcp, [::]:80-81-80-81/tcp, 0.0.0.0:443-443/tcp, [::]:443-443/tcp sb-portainer Up 52 minutes 8000/tcp, 9443/tcp, 0.0.0.0:9000-9000/tcp, [::]:9000-9000/tcp sb-homepage Up 52 minutes (healthy) 0.0.0.0:3000-3000/tcp, [::]:3000-3000/tcp
Chris wrote:
Great news is buried in that output: your box is healthy. core, dashboard, npm and homepage all show 'Up ... (healthy)' — that's exactly how a fresh install looks before you enable any apps, so nothing is broken. 'Could not load services' just means the page couldn't confirm your login as it loaded — a session hiccup, not a service failure. Try this: close every dashboard tab, open ONE fresh tab (or a private/incognito window), go to the same address where you set your password, and log in again, then hard-refresh (Ctrl+Shift+R). Still stuck? Tell me the exact web address in your browser bar and whether you see a 'Not secure' warning, and I'll get Tom on it directly.