Troubleshooting guide: device not showing up in the panel after installing Prey

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When deploying Prey across your fleet, ideally you'll see every protected device on your web panel almost immediately. If you have completed the installation but the device doesn't appear, it's usually due to an interruption in the linking process, strict network policies, or cloned hardware configurations.

Below, we outline the steps to identify the cause and successfully link your device.

Force manual device linking

If the installation finished successfully but the configuration window was accidentally closed, lost connection, or the silent process failed to authenticate, the computer will remain unlinked from your account. You can manually force this connection via the command terminal.

First, get your setup key:

  1. Log into your Prey web panel.
  2. Go to the + Add device section.
  3. Copy your Setup Key.

Then, execute the corresponding command for your OS (make sure to replace YOUR_SETUP_KEY with your actual key):

  • Open Command Prompt as Administrator:

    C:\Windows\Prey\current\bin\prey config settings update control-panel.api_key YOUR_SETUP_KEY

  • Open the Terminal app:

    sudo /usr/local/lib/current/bin/prey config settings update control-panel.api_key YOUR_SETUP_KEY

  • Open the Terminal:

    sudo /usr/lib/prey/current/bin/prey config settings update control-panel.api_key YOUR_SETUP_KEY

Note: You may need to restart the Prey agent for changes to properly reflect in the panel.

  • Windows: taskkill /f /im node.exe
  • macOS: sudo pkill -f prx
Prevent overwriting due to cloned hardware

Prey intelligently identifies each device using a unique hardware footprint. If you are deploying the app to machines from a cloned master image or reinstalling on computers with identical parameters, the system might interpret them as the same device, overwriting the existing record instead of adding a new one and consuming an additional license.

To fix this:

  1. Go to Settings > General Settings in your web panel.
  2. Disable the Identify devices when linking option.
  3. Retry linking the device.
Verify network, Antivirus, and Firewall restrictions

Corporate security policies or local antivirus software can block the Prey client from communicating with our servers.

Please refer to our guide on how to whitelist Prey in your security solution for detailed instructions on configuring exceptions for ports, domains, and executables.

Unattended deployment time

If you used silent installation methods (like MSI packages), the client runs in the background. Make sure the computer has a stable internet connection, is awake (not in sleep mode), and wait at least 2 minutes for it to make its first connection to the servers.

OS-specific checks

If the issue persists, verify that the installation package is fully compatible with your OS environment:

  • macOS (Installer Architecture): If you experienced a silent "payload extraction" error during installation, the downloaded package might not match your processor. Make sure you install the correct .pkg version: arm64 for Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3 chips) or x64 for Intel processors.

  • Ubuntu (System Dependencies): Prey requires certain packages to operate optimally. If they are missing, the installation might seem successful but will fail to connect. Open your terminal and run:

    • For recent Ubuntu versions:
      sudo apt install libgtk-3-dev scrot streamer mpg123
    • For Ubuntu 20 or older:
      sudo apt install python-gtk2 scrot streamer mpg123

    Note: On newer versions like Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, compatibility issues with these dependencies can occasionally occur when installing .deb packages.

Still need help?

If after checking these configurations your device still isn't reporting to the panel, you can contact us via the Help widget from your Prey panel.

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