Why is the 3D viewport black in Diaz Editor?

Almost always a GPU driver issue. On Windows: update your GPU driver via NVIDIA GeForce Experience, AMD Radeon Software, or Intel Graphics Command Center, then restart. On macOS: System Settings → Software Update. On Linux: update Mesa drivers (sudo apt update + upgrade). If the viewport is still black, switch the renderer in Settings → Graphics → Renderer to 'Compatibility' as a fallback.

Why does Diaz Editor crash on startup?

Windows: usually missing Visual C++ runtime — install vc_redist.x64.exe from Microsoft. macOS: Gatekeeper blocking unsigned binary — System Settings → Privacy & Security → click 'Open Anyway'. Linux: missing libGL — run 'sudo apt install libgl1-mesa-glx libglu1-mesa'. If crashes persist, send the crash log (Help → Show Crash Log) to juan@diazatlas.com.

How can I improve 3D performance in Diaz Editor?

For large projects (200+ panels) enable Settings → Performance → Simplified Geometry. Reduce shadow quality from High to Medium. Close other GPU-heavy apps (Chrome with many tabs, Photoshop). On laptops, plug in power — most GPUs throttle on battery. If you are on Intel integrated graphics, expect 30-50% slower rendering than discrete NVIDIA/AMD.

What if my Diaz Editor project file is corrupt or won't open?

Check the autosave folder: Windows %APPDATA%/DiazEditor/autosave/, macOS ~/Library/Application Support/DiazEditor/autosave/, Linux ~/.config/DiazEditor/autosave/. The last 5 autosaves are kept. Copy the most recent .diaz file to your projects folder and open. If autosave is also corrupt, email juan@diazatlas.com with the file — we can usually recover the geometry via the binary format spec.

Why does the Diaz Editor auto-update fail to download?

Auto-update fetches from github.com/bongartzdiaz/diaz-editor-releases. If you are on a corporate network, the GitHub releases endpoint may be firewalled. Workarounds: (1) download the latest installer manually from diazatlas.com/download, (2) ask IT to allow github.com/bongartzdiaz/* and *.githubusercontent.com, or (3) set Settings → Updates → Channel to 'manual' and check periodically.

Troubleshooting — common issues

Reading time: 6 min · Updated: 2026-05-12

Black 3D viewport

Diaz Editor needs WebGPU (DirectX 12 on Windows, Metal on Mac). Solutions in order:

Update GPU driver (see install-windows for links)
Restart your PC (driver update sometimes requires reboot)
Check GPU mode: laptops with dual-GPU (Intel + NVIDIA) must run Diaz Editor on discrete GPU. Right-click Diaz Editor exe → "Run with graphics processor" → choose NVIDIA/AMD.
GPU too old? Diaz Editor doesn't run on pre-2017 GPUs. Test your system at webgpureport.org.

App crashes on startup

First collect the logs — they tell you what went wrong:

Windows: %APPDATA%\diaz-editor\logs\main.log
macOS: ~/Library/Logs/diaz-editor/main.log
Linux: ~/.config/diaz-editor/logs/main.log

Open the file. Find the last line with [error] or [fatal]. Send that snippet to juan@diazatlas.com with your version number (visible in installer name).

✓ Quick-fix in 70% of crash-cases: delete %APPDATA%\diaz-editor\settings.json and restart. This only resets UI preferences, not projects.

Slow performance / lag in 3D

Project >500 components: turn off "Real-time shading" via Settings → Renderer → "Shading mode: Static"
Memory usage >3 GB: older projects don't free memory. Save project + restart the app.
FPS <30: lower viewport resolution via Settings → Renderer → "Quality: Performance"
Antivirus scanner: add %APPDATA%\diaz-editor as exception (some AVs scan every project save)

Project file corrupt or won't open

Diaz Editor auto-backs-up every 60 seconds. Recover:

Open menu → File → "Restore last auto-backup"
Or: navigate to %APPDATA%\diaz-editor\backups\ and pick most recent .diaz.bak
Rename .diaz.bak to .diaz and open in the app

⚠ Never overwrite a corrupt project with Save → first Save As to new filename, then debug original.

Auto-update download fails

Firewall typically blocks api.github.com. Workarounds:

Whitelist github.com and api.github.com in your firewall
Or download manually: latest release on GitHub
For corporate firewalls blocking everything: email support for direct download link