What DeckEdit OCR Error Messages Mean
If you see an error while converting a PDF or image to PowerPoint, this page explains what happened and the exact steps to try next.
Most DeckEdit errors mean one of three things: your browser's graphics driver hit a limit, the file is too large for your device, or your device does not support the acceleration DeckEdit needs. The fix is usually to reload the page, use a smaller file, or switch to a desktop browser.
Try these steps first
- Reload the page. This restarts the OCR engine and clears temporary memory.
- Try a smaller file. Use 1–2 pages first to confirm the engine starts on your device.
- Use Chrome or Edge on a desktop computer if you are on a phone, tablet, or an older laptop.
- Open /diagnostics to see exactly what DeckEdit detected about your browser and GPU.
Find your error message
Your GPU disconnected while running OCR
Your graphics driver stopped the WebGPU compute session. This is common on Windows with certain Intel, AMD, or older NVIDIA drivers when a slide is complex or system memory is low.
What to do: Reload the page. If it keeps happening, close other tabs or apps, use a smaller PDF, or update your graphics driver. DeckEdit cannot bypass a driver crash.
WebGPU could not start on this device
Your browser or operating system did not return a usable WebGPU adapter. This happens on iOS Safari, older browsers, virtual machines, some corporate devices with locked graphics settings, and Firefox even on supported hardware.
What to do: Open DeckEdit in Chrome or Edge on a desktop computer with a recent GPU. There is no workaround for phones or tablets because Safari and most mobile browsers do not expose WebGPU.
Your iPhone or iPad ran out of memory
iOS Safari has a strict per-tab memory limit and does not support WebGPU. DeckEdit falls back to WebAssembly OCR, which is slow and can crash on larger files.
What to do: Use a 1–2 page PDF, or move to a desktop browser for anything larger. Closing other tabs can help, but the real fix is to use a device with WebGPU support.
This device cannot run GPU-accelerated OCR
DeckEdit detected that your browser has no WebGPU adapter and no useful multi-threaded CPU path. Single-threaded CPU OCR on a desktop would take several minutes per slide and is disabled.
What to do: Open DeckEdit in Chrome or Edge on a desktop computer. Windows, macOS, and most Linux desktops with a recent GPU will qualify.
OCR could not finish reading this file
The engine stopped before it could process every text region. The most common causes are a file that is too large, a page with very dense text or images, or an unsupported browser.
What to do: Try a file under 10 pages, reload the page, and use Chrome or Edge on a desktop. If one specific page always fails, that page may be too complex for your current device.
What /diagnostics shows you
The diagnostics page lists the compute tier DeckEdit chose for your device, the WebGPU adapter the browser returned, your operating system and browser, and how much storage is available.
That information is not a fix by itself, but it tells you whether your device is expected to work or whether the limitation is hardware or browser policy.
When to switch devices
If you have tried reloading and smaller files and the error keeps appearing, the issue is likely your device or browser rather than the file.
- Phones and tablets: use a desktop computer. Mobile browsers lack WebGPU and have tight memory limits.
- Old laptops with integrated graphics: try Chrome or Edge, close other apps, and use smaller files.
- Corporate or locked-down machines: ask your IT team whether WebGPU is blocked by policy.
DeckEdit is honest about these limits because there is no server to hide the failure. The tool runs on your device, so the device has to be able to do the work.