element-hq / element-hq/element-web
Element Desktop went blank while reading rooms
- Dominant language
- TypeScript
- Stars
- 13.5k
- Forks
- 2.8k
- PR merge metrics
- PR metrics pending
Description
### Steps to reproduce
Cannot reliably reproduce, but it does happen now-and-then
### Outcome
#### What did you expect?
Not a white screen
#### What happened instead?
I was reading rooms using Shift+Alt+Arrows and Element suddenly went all white. It came back a second after I pressed Ctrl+Shift+I to open the dev console to rageshake.
I have also seen this a few times in the past but can't remember what I was doing then.

This issue has also been reported by a customer.
Their report:
> I'm seeing this "Message search initialisation failed" error on my Element Desktop client that's logged into our test on-prem server.
>
> That blank screen instance happened when I tried editing my "Also, I'm seeing..." message above and clicking save. This is on Windows 10. My versions are: Element version: 1.11.86 Crypto version: Rust SDK 0.7.2 (517d99b), Vodozemac 0.7.0
>
> A CTRL-SHIFT-R didn't do anything in the window. I had to quit the client and relaunch.
### Operating system
Debian 12
### Application version
Element version: 1.11.87 Crypto version: Rust SDK 0.7.2 (517d99b), Vodozemac 0.7.0
### How did you install the app?
Element Debian APT repo
### Homeserver
element.io Synapse 1.120.2
### Will you send logs?
Yes
Contributor guide
Research direction
No source file or test is identified. Start by reproducing the Shift+Alt+Arrows navigation on Debian 12 with Element 1.11.87 and inspect the Ctrl+Shift+I console for the reported “Message search initialisation failed” error; done means the blank-screen cause is identified, fixed, and regression-tested.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- typescript
- Domain
- desktop, frontend
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Needs clarification
- Newbie friendliness
- 25/100