Troubleshooting

Short answers to keep you moving.

Can’t find Atom after installing?

  • Restart After Effects, then check Window → Extensions → Atom.
  • Reinstall the .zxp with ZXP Installer if it’s still missing.
  • Make sure you’re on After Effects CC 2022 (v22.0) or newer.

Manual ZXP installation

If ZXP Installer isn’t working, you can install Atom manually:

  1. Rename the .zxp file to .zip and unzip it to get the extension folder.
  2. Copy the folder to the extensions directory: /Library/Application Support/Adobe/CEP/extensions/
  3. Restart After Effects and check Window → Extensions → Atom.

Sign-in or licence hiccups

  • No sign-in email? Check spam, wait a minute, then resend or try another inbox.
  • Seat limit hit? Open Settings → Account → Deactivate device, then tap Refresh access.

OpenAI sign-in issues

  • Browser did not open: Click Sign in with OpenAI again, or copy the link if Atom shows one.
  • Signed in but Atom still asks: Return to the panel and tap Refresh.
  • Authentication error or missing_required_parameter: This is usually the OpenAI/Codex browser sign-in page failing before Atom receives a result. Try Codex CLI sign-in.
  • Wrong account: Sign out in Atom settings or your local Codex setup, then sign in with the OpenAI account you want to use.
  • Team-managed setup: Confirm Codex or Claude Code works outside Atom, then restart After Effects. See Team & Custom AI Setup.

Codex CLI sign-in fallback

Use this when Atom opens the OpenAI sign-in page, but the browser shows an authentication error.

Install Codex globally, then sign in from your terminal:

npm install -g @openai/codex
codex login

Complete the OpenAI sign-in in your browser, then restart After Effects and open Atom again.

Atom can install its own private Codex runtime, but that private runtime is not added to your terminal path. Installing Codex globally gives you a normal codex command and lets Codex handle the sign-in outside Atom.

Anthropic issues

  • Anthropic not detected: Restart After Effects and tap Refresh in Atom. Verify Claude Code works by running claude --version in a terminal.
  • Anthropic authentication error: Run claude in your terminal and complete the sign-in flow.
  • Non-standard install path: Make sure the Claude Code binary is on your system PATH so Atom can find it.

Automations not landing

  • Read the response cards. Atom explains what it found or why it stopped.
  • Tighten the scope: name the comp, the layers, or say “selected layers only”.
  • Undo, adjust the wording, and rerun in the same chat to build on context.

Feeling slow or stuck

  • Big comps and expression scans take a moment. Let Atom finish before stacking prompts.
  • Focus your request to speed things up and keep results tidy.
  • If requests fail, check that you are signed in and your AI provider account has available credits or an active plan.

File attachment issues

  • Unsupported file type: Atom supports images, PDFs, documents (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), text files, and audio (WAV, MP3). Video is not currently supported.
  • File too large: Images max out at 5MB, audio/PDFs/documents at 10MB, text files at 1MB. Compress or trim before attaching.
  • Attachment not processing: Try a different format. Some exotic image formats may not work. Convert to PNG or JPEG.

Need to report an issue?

- Tap **Share feedback** beneath the conversation. It bundles logs with your note. - Tell us what you asked for, what you saw, and any message in the thread. That's enough to help fast.