Troubleshoot AI Skills

Having issues with your AI skills? Here's how to identify and fix common problems you might encounter.

Remember, start with the simplest solution first and gradually try more complex fixes if needed. Document what works for your specific use cases to save time in the future.

Quick tips for better results

Follow these tips to get the most out of your AI Skills:

• Keep tasks simple and focused on one goal at a time.
• Test thoroughly using various data types and edge cases.
• Save successful prompts for reuse in similar scenarios.
• Adjust prompts based on results to refine accuracy.
• Consider post-processing for cleaning up extracted data.
• Measure and monitor accuracy periodically.
• Document strategies and methods that worked well for future reference.

AI logs

The AI usage log (audit/artificial_intelligence.csv) and the AI input/output log (perflogs/ai/ai_input_output_activity.log) help you troubleshoot issues by providing detailed records of all AI activity within your Appian environment. By reviewing these logs, you can identify anomalies, track down errors, and verify whether the AI is functioning as expected. Additionally, it supports adherence to internal policies, industry standards, and regulatory requirements by offering a transparent view of AI activity.

The AI input/output log (perflogs/ai/ai_input_output_activity.log) also records the Model ID for generative AI executions, which helps administrators verify AI model usage and troubleshoot issues such as unexpected regional differences in feature output. For AI skills using a custom provider, the model ID appears as custom/<model_uuid> (for example, custom/550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000).

Administrators can enable the input/output log to capture additional details, including the inputs provided to the AI model and its response. This level of transparency empowers you to maintain control over AI usage and ensures compliance with evolving security and privacy standards.

See the Logging page for more information about the AI usage log and the AI Input/Output log.

Cannot process file error message

If you're having trouble processing your file with a structured document extraction AI skill, you might see this error message: The file cannot be processed because it exceeds the supported size or it may be corrupt.

• What happened: The structured document extraction AI skill supports PDF documents that are up to 15 pages or 7 MB. If the document exceeds either limit, the Extract from Document Smart Service will fail.
• What you can do: Check the document size and number of pages. If possible, split the file into smaller sections and try again. If the file is within limits but still fails, it may be damaged—try opening it to verify.

To get the best results, make sure your document uses at least 8pt font and has a resolution of 150 DPI.

Generative AI skills

If you're having trouble processing your file with a generative AI skill, the file may exceed the supported limits for your selected model and document processing mode.

• What happened: Generative AI skills have different file size and page limits depending on the model and document processing mode:
  • Text only mode: Supports up to 100 pages and 25 MB for all models.
  • Visual elements & text mode:
    • Claude 4+ models (Claude 4 Sonnet, Claude 4.5 Sonnet, Claude 4.5 Haiku) and Nova 2 Lite: Supports up to 100 pages and 24 MB.
    • Nova 2 Lite: Supports up to 100 pages and 18 MB.
    • Legacy models (Claude 3 Sonnet, Claude 3.5 Sonnet, Claude 3.7 Sonnet): Supports up to 20 pages and 25 MB.
• What you can do: Check the document size and number of pages against the limits for your selected model. If the document exceeds the limits, consider using a different model that supports larger files, or split the file into smaller sections. See the Document input type requirements for complete details.

Cannot configure AI skills

If you're having trouble configuring an AI skill, you might see this error message: Using Al Skills across two different Appian sites in the same browser is not currently supported. Try using separate browsers or an incognito/private window in your browser. You may see this message if you're signed into more than one Appian site in the same browser.

• What happened: Each Appian site uses cookies to manage AI Skill sessions. When multiple sites are open in the same browser, the browser can't isolate the cookies, which breaks the AI Skill functionality.
• What you can do:
  • Use different browsers. Open each Appian site in its own browser (for example, use Chrome for one and Firefox for another).
  • Close other Appian sites. If you're only working in one environment, close any other Appian tabs or windows that are open in the same browser.
  • If all AI skills are closed and the error still appears, try saving your prompt and refreshing the AI skill tab.
  • Clear your cookies and try again. If the problem continues, contact your system admin.

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