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Inspectors | Error: Failed to Send Payload During Inspection (Self-Managed Agent)

Inspectors running on Self-Managed Agents may occasionally return the error “Failed to send payload,” even after following Inspector-specific troubleshooting steps, if there's a system time mismatch between the Agent machine and Liongard’s platform.

Updated over 3 weeks ago


Why Does This Happen?

When using a Self-Managed Agent, communication with Liongard’s platform is time-sensitive. If the Agent machine's clock is out of sync with UTC by more/less than 15 minutes (900,000 ms), authentication fails.

This will be reflected in the Agent logs with a detailed error, indicating that the request time differs too much from the server time.


Steps to Resolve

1. Initial Troubleshooting

Before checking logs, perform these standard steps:

  • Run Inspector in Debug + Clear Cache Mode

    • Go to the affected Inspector.

    • Select Run > Debug + Clear Cache.

  • Restart the Liongard Agent Service

    • Open Services.msc on the Agent host.

    • Locate Liongard Agent → Right-click and choose Restart.

  • Reinstall the Agent (if needed)

    • Uninstall the existing Agent.

    • Download the latest Agent installer from Liongard.

    • Reinstall and re-register the Agent.

If issues persist, proceed to log review.


2. Check Logs for Time Skew Error

  1. On the Agent host machine, navigate to:

    C:\Program Files (x86)\Liongard\Liongardinc\Logs

  2. Open the most recent error.log file in a text editor.

  3. Search for the following entries:

Sample Error Message

{ "$fault": "client", "$metadata": { "httpStatusCode": 403 }, "Code": "RequestTimeTooSkewed", "MaxAllowedSkewMilliseconds": "900000", "RequestTime": "20250411T132358Z", "ServerTime": "2025-04-11T14:23:59Z", "level": "error", "message": "The difference between the request time and the current time is too large.", "name": "RequestTimeTooSkewed", "stack": "RequestTimeTooSkewed: The difference between the request time and the current time is too large." }

🛑 This confirms a system time mismatch (skew) between the Agent and the Liongard platform.


3. Correct System Time on Agent Machine

To fix the skew:

Option 1: Command Line Sync

Open Command Prompt as Administrator and run:

w32tm /resync

If it fails:

net stop w32time net start w32time w32tm /resync

Option 2: Windows Settings

  1. Go to Settings > Time & Language > Date & Time.

  2. Toggle Set time automatically to ON.

  3. Click Sync now.

🔒 Ensure the Agent has access to a reliable NTP server (e.g., time.windows.com). For domain environments, confirm the domain controller is time-synced.


4. Rerun the Inspector

Once time sync is complete:

  1. Go to the affected Inspector.

  2. Run it in Debug + Clear Cache mode again.

  3. The Inspector should now complete successfully.


Notes & Best Practices

  • Domain Environments: Agents often inherit time from domain controllers. Make sure the DC is properly syncing with an external NTP source.

  • Air-gapped or restricted environments: Configure time sync to an internal NTP server.

  • Recurring Issues: Consider enforcing GPO policies to keep system clocks accurate.


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