System requirements
What CBATONE needs to run properly, and how to fix it when it does not. Check this before you start. The tests are timed simulations, and a machine that struggles will teach you the wrong timing.
Check this computer
Runs the real requirements against the machine you are using now. Takes a couple of seconds and nothing is sent anywhere.
Browsers
Any of these, kept reasonably up to date. Internet Explorer is not supported and never will be.
| Browser | Minimum | Platform |
|---|---|---|
| Chrome | 60 or newer | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| Edge | 79 or newer | Windows, Mac |
| Firefox | 55 or newer | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| Safari | 15 or newer | Mac, on macOS Monterey or newer |
Hardware
| What | Minimum | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Computer or phone | 20 of the 27 tests run on a phone | Only 7 need hardware: 4 are flown on a joystick and the rest need a keyboard. Everything else is tap or click, so a phone is a perfectly good place to start. A desktop is still the honest advice for a full run, because that is how the real battery is sat. |
| Operating system | Windows 10 or newer · macOS 12 or newer · any current Linux · ChromeOS | Older versions cannot run a browser new enough for the 3D tests. |
| Memory | 4 GB, 8 GB comfortable | The 3D tests hold a scene in memory alongside your other tabs. |
| Graphics | Any card or built-in graphics from roughly 2015 onwards | Intel HD 4000, or any Apple Silicon Mac, is enough. It does not need to be a gaming machine. |
| Screen | 1280 × 720 or larger | DPT, CUT and FLAG put several panels side by side and need the width. |
| Sound | Speakers or headphones | ACT and RTT give their orders by voice. Without sound they cannot be attempted. |
| Joystick | Strongly recommended. Any USB flight stick | 4 tests (RTT, TRAC1, SMA, ACT) are flown on a stick in the real battery, and they use it ahead of the keyboard the moment one is plugged in. The arrow keys work as a fallback, but they are not how these tests are sat. |
| Rudder pedals | Needed for SMA only | On that one the stick moves the dot up and down and the pedals move it left and right, so the two hands are split, which is the thing it measures. No other test reads the pedals at all, so a stick alone is enough everywhere else. |
| Internet | Any working connection | Tests run inside your browser, so a brief drop mid-test will not interrupt you. |
Settings to check
Hardware acceleration must be ON
This is the single most common cause of problems. With it off, the 3D tests are either blank or extremely slow.
- Chrome / Edge: Settings → System → "Use graphics acceleration when available" → on, then restart the browser.
- Firefox: Settings → General → Performance → untick "Use recommended performance settings", then tick "Use hardware acceleration when available".
- Safari: on by default; no setting to change.
Sound unmuted, and allowed for this site
Browsers block sound until you interact with a page, which is why audio starts when you press Start rather than on load.
- Check the tab is not muted. Right-click the tab and look for "Unmute site".
- Chrome / Edge: click the padlock in the address bar → Site settings → Sound → Allow.
- Check your system volume and that the right output device is selected.
Not in battery-saver or low-power mode
Laptops in power-saving mode cap the frame rate, which changes the timing of every real-time test.
- Windows: Settings → System → Power & battery → set Power mode to Balanced or Best performance.
- Mac: System Settings → Battery → turn off Low Power Mode.
- Plug the laptop in while practising the real-time tests.
JavaScript enabled, and no aggressive blockers
Every test is built in JavaScript and runs on your own machine. Some privacy extensions strip the audio or speech features the tests need.
- If a test is silent or blank, try it with extensions disabled, or in a private window with extensions off.
If something is wrong
No sound, or no spoken orders
Check the tab is not muted and your volume is up. Speech needs a voice installed. On Windows: Settings → Time & language → Speech; on Mac: System Settings → Accessibility → Spoken Content. Some privacy-focused browsers remove speech entirely; use Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari.
The tunnel or radar is black or missing
Hardware acceleration is almost certainly off, as described above. Run the check at the top of this page: if 3D graphics shows a problem, that is your answer. Updating your graphics driver also fixes it on older Windows machines.
Everything feels slow, jerky, or behind my inputs
Close other tabs and programs, take the laptop off battery-saver mode, and check the Speed result at the top of this page. Below 30 frames per second the real-time tests are no longer a fair rehearsal.
My joystick or rudder pedals are not detected
Plug them in, then press a button or move an axis. Browsers deliberately hide game controllers until you have used them. Reload the page afterwards and run the check above. Any brand works; pedals are set up the first time you open SMA. If they still do not appear, try a different USB port, and check the stick works in your operating system’s own controller settings first.
The arrow keys do nothing
Click once on the test area first so the page has keyboard focus. Check no other window has stolen focus, and that you are not on a touchscreen-only device.
Panels are cut off or overlapping
Maximise the browser window. If you have zoomed the page, press Ctrl+0 (Cmd+0 on Mac) to return to 100%.
Still not working?
Run the check at the top of this page and tell us what it said, along with your browser and operating system. Try the free version on your own computer before buying Premium. If you have already bought it and the tests cannot be made to work on your machine, see the refund policy.