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title: Troubleshooting & FAQ description: Frequently asked questions and troubleshooting for Tests in Tidal Control sidebar_position: 3

Troubleshooting & FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can't I create or modify tests?

Tests are fully managed by Tidal Control and can only be modified by Tidal to ensure consistency and compliance quality.

Why tests aren't editable:

• Standardization - Tests are based on recognized compliance frameworks
• Quality control - Tidal ensures accurate test logic and up-to-date requirements
• Consistency - All organizations use the same test criteria for comparability
• Maintenance - Updates for new regulations are automatically rolled out

What you can adjust:

• Test in or out of scope - Link tests to relevant controls via control configuration
• Test frequency - Determine how often you refresh tests
• Integration settings - Configure or not configure external tool connections

Custom test requests:

1. Document business necessity - Why is a new test needed?
2. Describe test criteria - What should the test check exactly?
3. Support compliance framework - Which standard or requirement supports this?

What's the difference between internal and external tests?

Internal Tests (Tidal Control) focus on the quality of processes you execute within Tidal:

Characteristics:

• Platform native - Run within Tidal Control itself
• Configuration checks - Check your setup quality

Examples:

• "All assets should be assessed" - Checks accuracy and completeness of asset assessments
• "All risks should have owners assigned" - Verifies completeness of ownership assignment
• Policy tests - Check existence and presence of periodic review of required policies

External Tests (Integrations) focus on technical system compliance:

Characteristics:

• External connectivity - Retrieve data from other systems
• Technical validation - Check actual system configurations
• Real-time data - Reflect current state of external tools
• Dependent on configured integrations - Require active integration configuration

Examples:

• Microsoft encryption settings - Data security configuration in Microsoft tools
• AWS security baseline compliance - Cloud security configurations
• Identity provider settings - Multi-factor authentication configuration

When to use which type:

• Internal tests for management process maturity (Governance) and compliance documentation completeness
• External tests for technical control effectiveness and system compliance
• Combination for comprehensive compliance requirements coverage

How do test results affect my compliance scores?

Automatic compliance score calculation via test-control links:

In scope test impact:

• Test linked to control → Test result counts in control effectiveness
• Control effectiveness → Contributes to overall framework compliance score
• Framework score → Affects organization compliance percentage

Score calculation example:

Control A.01 has 3 linked tests:
- Test 1: Passed (✓)
- Test 2: Failed (✗)
- Test 3: Passed (✓)

Control effectiveness: 67% (2 of 3 tests passed)

Out of scope test impact:

• No impact on compliance scores or control effectiveness
• Informative for monitoring and future scope expansion
• Available for trend analysis and improvement insights

When are tests automatically executed?

Tidal tests refresh automatically as soon as something changes in the situation they relate to. You typically don't need to refresh these manually.

For example:

• Policy tests refresh when a Policy changes status (in the Policies page)
• Risk tests refresh when Risk details are adjusted and when Risk assessments are performed or adjusted
• Control tests refresh when Control details are adjusted or Control status changes etc.

Integrations must always be refreshed manually. When to refresh?

• System being tested is modified - after a major software release or configuration update
• Specific remediation actions performed in system - 2FA is enabled causing the Failed test to now Pass
• As part of PDCA cycle - when there's a task open under the Control 'Compliance monitored' and you need new results
• Periodically - even when no changes are known, it's still wise to run Tests periodically to confirm the situation hasn't changed

Can I request custom tests for my organization?

Custom test requests:

1. Document business necessity - Why is a new test needed?
2. Describe test criteria - What should the test check exactly?
3. Support compliance framework - Which standard or requirement supports this?

Send your requests via email to support@tidalcontrol.com or fill out the 'Request Feature' form in Tidal, and we'll get in touch as soon as possible.

Common Problems

Test remains in "Error" status

Error status implies a technical problem during test execution requiring direct action.

Common causes:

If the test has never worked:

• Integration: "Tidal Control"? Contact support@tidalcontrol.com immediately
• Is the Integration active? Check in Settings -> Integrations if the Integration for the relevant system is active
• Check in (the logs of) the relevant system if login credentials (API key or user credentials) are correct and active - Tidal needs an active API key or user credential with the right permissions to retrieve data
• Have you enabled the functionality? Some Integrations are dependent on services that need to be enabled in the source system. For instance, in a Microsoft environment, laptops can only be monitored when you have bought and setup Microsoft Intune first.

If the test previously worked, but now doesn't: Check the following possible causes:

• Have API credentials or usage rights expired or changed? - Many platforms require periodic update of API credentials for security reasons
• Is the system reachable? - Verify that the providing system is online for API access (e.g. via the status page)
• Has anything changed recently? - Sometimes software updates on the side of the system Tidal integrates with, or to Tidal, lead to failure of tests that previously worked

Come across an issue we haven't covered?

Send an email to support@tidalcontrol.com, and we'll get in touch as soon as possible.