Welcome to Help & Troubleshooting

GeoLab Help & Troubleshooting
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This category is the best place to ask questions, troubleshoot issues, and learn from the broader GeoLab community.

GeoLab Community Forum works best for questions that:

  • May be useful to other researchers or GeoLab users
  • Can benefit from discussion with peers and domain experts
  • Involve workflows, notebooks, datasets, or scientific computing approaches

Examples include:

  • Troubleshooting notebooks, code, or unexpected results
  • Questions about working with specific datasets in GeoLab
  • Performance optimization for research workflows
  • Sharing workflows, examples, or lessons learned
  • Discussing software updates or configuration changes

This forum is public and community-oriented, so thoughtful questions and answers help build a shared knowledge base for everyone using GeoLab.

When to Use the Help Desk Instead

Some issues are better handled directly by GeoLab administrators through the EarthScope Help Desk.

Please visit:
:backhand_index_pointing_right: EarthScope Help Desk

for issues such as:

  • Account creation problems
  • Password resets or login/access issues
  • Notebook server launch failures
  • Infrastructure outages or crashes
  • Technical problems requiring administrator intervention

Before contacting the help desk, you may still want to check:

  • Announcements for outage notices or maintenance updates
  • Existing Q&A posts to see whether others have already solved similar problems

Before You Post

Please take a moment to:

  • Search the forum for similar questions
  • Check GeoLab documentation and tutorials
  • Review any error messages carefully

If you still need help, feel free to ask!

What to Include in Your Post

Helpful posts usually include:

:brain: What are you trying to do?

Describe your goal or workflow.

Examples:

  • “I’m trying to load seismic data into a notebook.”
  • “I want to install a Python package.”
  • “I’m attempting to run a GPU workflow.”

:magnifying_glass_tilted_left: What have you already tried?

List any troubleshooting steps or commands you’ve already attempted.

This helps others avoid suggesting things you’ve already done.

:warning: What happened?

Include:

  • Error messages
  • Unexpected behavior
  • Screenshots (if helpful)

Copying the full error message is often extremely helpful.

:laptop: Environment Details (if relevant)

Helpful details might include:

  • Python or R
  • Libraries/packages being used
  • Browser or operating system
  • Dataset or workflow involved

Add Tags

Please add 1–2 tags to help organize your post.

Examples:

  • python
  • data-access
  • error
  • performance

Tags make it easier for others to find and answer questions.

Remember: You’re Probably Helping Others Too

If you have a question, there’s a good chance someone else will have the same one later.

By asking thoughtful questions and sharing solutions, you help build a useful community resource for GeoLab users across the geosciences.

Thanks for being part of GeoLab!