# Fix a terminal that will not open

A Blink terminal opens a command window on the remote computer (PowerShell or Command Prompt on Windows, a login shell on a Mac) in a separate browser window. When your plan includes **Terminal history**, everything shown in a terminal is recorded.

## The Terminal button is missing

The **Terminal** button only shows when your role allows terminals. Granting a whole area such as Support or Access does not include the terminal: a role must name **Terminal (support)** or **Terminal (access)** itself. Only the **Owner** role has them by default; the starter **Admin**, **Technician** and **Viewer** roles do not.

Ask an administrator to add the permission to your role in **Roles**. The viewer says so too: **You don't have permission to open a terminal here. Ask an administrator to grant Terminal in Roles.**

Your plan must also include **Remote terminal**. If it does not, the button does not appear for anyone, whatever their role. See [Understand your plan and its limits](/configure/plans-and-limits/#when-something-is-not-in-your-plan).

## The Terminal button is greyed out

Hover over the button to see why. Common reasons:

| Message | What to do |
|---|---|
| **Confirm the computer first** | In a Support session, confirm the computer first: click **Confirm and take control** on the **Is this your customer's computer?** card. |
| **Waiting for the customer's computer** | The customer's computer is not connected right now. Wait for it to reconnect. |
| **The customer's Blink app is too old for a terminal; they can download the current one** | Create a new Support code and have the customer download the tool again. |
| **Agent update required for terminal** | The Access device runs an older Blink. It updates itself when a newer release is available. |
| **Device is offline** | See [Fix a Blink agent that will not connect](/troubleshooting/agent-wont-connect/). |
| **Device is restarting** | Wait until the device is back online. |

## The terminal window does not appear

Terminals open in a new browser window or tab. If your browser blocks pop-ups for your Blink address, nothing opens. Allow pop-ups for your Blink address and try again.

## The terminal shows an error or closes

The terminal window says why it could not open, or its last line says why it closed. The most common messages:

| Message | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Elevate the session to run as administrator** or **The session isn't elevated.** | You chose to run as administrator in a Support session that is not elevated. Click **Run as admin** in the viewer first, or open the terminal as the customer. |
| **The device already has 3 terminals open.** | A computer can have at most 3 terminals open. Close one first. |
| **You have 10 terminals open** | Close some of your terminals. |
| **Nobody is signed in on that session any more.** or **That user signed out.** | In an Access session you chose to run as a user who is no longer signed in. Pick another choice in **Open as…**. |
| **The device couldn't connect to the server for the terminal.** | The remote computer reached Blink for the session but not for the terminal. Check its network as for any connection problem. |
| **The device didn't respond. It may be offline or blocked from reaching the server.** | As above. |
| **The shell couldn't be started.** or **The user's profile couldn't be loaded.** | The remote computer could not start the chosen shell. Try another shell, or run as another account. |
| **Closed after 30 minutes without input.** | Terminals close after 30 minutes with nothing typed. Open a new one. |
| **Closed because no window was attached for 2 minutes.** | The terminal window was closed for too long. Open a new one. |
| **The customer closed the command window.** | The customer clicked **Close command windows** on their Blink banner or menu. Ask before opening another one. |
| **Too many terminals opened; try again in N s.** | Wait and try again. |
| **The remote terminal is not included in your plan.** | Your plan does not include **Remote terminal**. Ask IZT about changing your plan. |
| **Disconnected: the console's IP rule does not allow this network. The terminal keeps running on the device for 2 minutes.** | Your address is outside the console's IP and country rule. Move to an allowed network, such as your company VPN: a terminal that no window attaches to for 2 minutes closes. See [Fix a block by an IP or country rule](/troubleshooting/blocked-by-ip-rule/). |
| **The device's address is not allowed by the organization's agent IP rule.** | The Access device's organization limits where its devices may connect from, and the device is outside it. See [Fix a block by an IP or country rule](/troubleshooting/blocked-by-ip-rule/#an-access-device-shows-blocked-by-ip-rule). |

## When to contact IZT

Contact [IZT](https://izt.app) if a terminal fails with **The terminal closed because of an error.** or another message not listed here. Send the session id (or the device name), the time and the message. See [Collect logs for IZT support](/troubleshooting/collect-logs/).