Appendix B. Message Reference

Every message NESSviewer can display, with what causes it. Messages are grouped by where they appear.

B.1 Startup

Message	Cause
Initializing…	Normal startup. Settings and services are being prepared.
Loading reference data…	Normal startup. The built-in CWE and CISA KEV data is loading.
Startup failed: {message}	Startup could not complete. Details are written to nessviewer-bootstrap.log in your %TEMP% folder.

B.2 Files page

The Files page does not display error messages. The strings below appear as values inside grid columns.

Message	Cause
Drag and drop .nessus scans, a test plan (.tpln), remediation plan (.xml), POA&M (.xlsx), or a folder of them — or use the buttons above	The grid is empty.
Drop scans, test plan, remediation plan, POA&M, or a folder of them	You are dragging files over the grid.
OK in the Compliance column	At least one business rule is enabled and this scan passes all of them.
Issues in the Compliance column	This scan fails at least one rule. The Dashboard’s Scan Information panel lists which.
Blank Compliance column	No business rules are enabled, so there is nothing to judge against.

B.3 Scan policy issues

Shown in the Policy issues section of the Dashboard’s scan details panel.

Message	Cause
Not all ports scanned ({range})	The scan policy did not cover the full port range. unknown appears when no range was recorded.
Scan is {n} days old (limit {m})	The scan is older than your maximum scan age.
Scan/plugin date gap {n} days (limit {m})	The plugin feed was stale relative to the scan date by more than your allowed gap.
Non-credentialed host(s) in scan	At least one host was scanned without working credentials.
Host(s) did not scan successfully	At least one host has a scan status that does not begin with Good.
No plugin Description/Synopsis/Solution in this export — enable “XML Plugin Attributes” in Security Center and re-export	The export was produced without plugin attributes.

B.4 Analyze — exceptions

Message	Cause
Existing exception loaded from the baseline — edits update it.	This finding already had an exception recorded.
Exception for {id} saved automatically (HH:mm:ss).	Saved successfully.
Not saved — open or create a baseline in Files > Baseline first.	There is no baseline open, so there is nowhere to store it.
Enter the vulnerability/plugin id for the exception.	The identifier field is empty.
Could not store the exception — is a baseline open?	The write failed.

B.5 Analyze — remediation tab

Message	Cause
Load or create a remediation plan on Files > Remediation Plan to edit these fields.	No plan file is loaded.
This finding has no remediation plan entry yet.	A plan is loaded but does not cover this plugin. Use Add to Plan.
Edits auto-save to {file name}	An entry exists and your changes are being written to that file.

B.6 Coverage checks

Message	Cause
Enter plugin id(s) and Run. / Enter software name(s) and Run.	The terms box is empty.
No scans loaded.	There is nothing to check against.
{n} host(s) in scope · {m} flagged row(s).	The check ran successfully.
Name the check before saving it to the library.	The Name: box is empty.
Saved “{name}” to the check library.	The check was saved.
Deleted “{name}” from the check library.	The check was deleted.
No saved checks to export — Save one to the library first.	The library is empty.
Exported {n} check(s) to {filename}.	The export succeeded.
No named checks found in that file.	The imported file contains no usable checks.
Imported {n} check(s) from {filename}.	The import succeeded.
Import failed: {message}	The file could not be read.
No enumerated software — load credentialed scans first.	Software can only be enumerated from credentialed scans.
No scans loaded — the plugin list comes from the loaded scan data.	Find… has nothing to list.
Check the item(s) to add first.	You clicked Add Selected with nothing ticked.
Added {n} item(s) — Run to evaluate.	Items were added. Click Run.
The selected items were already in the check.	Everything ticked was already present.
No results — enter plugin id(s) above and Run. Hosts come from the loaded scans; scope with OS terms or anchor plugins to compare like hosts.	The check has not been run yet.

B.7 Software and Ports lists

Message	Cause
No list loaded — click New or Load.	No list file is open. Edits cannot be saved until one is.
{filename} — {n} port(s) (auto-saves)	A ports list is open and saving automatically.
{filename} — {n} item(s), {n} on list (auto-saves)	A software list is open. The second figure counts the entries with On List ticked.
Baseline: {filename} — … (edits save to the baseline)	Use Baseline is on; edits go into the baseline document.
Use Baseline is on — open a baseline in Files > Baseline.	Use Baseline is on but no baseline is open.
… · new list created / … · saved HH:mm:ss / … · stored in baseline HH:mm:ss	Confirmation that the last change was written.
File not found (removed from recent).	A file in the recent list no longer exists and has been dropped from it.
Open failed: {message} / Save failed: {message}	The file could not be read or written. Check it is not open elsewhere and that you can write to that folder.
No new ports to add — everything scanned is already on the list.	Nothing to review.
No new software to add — everything scanned is already on the list.	Nothing to review.
No ports enumerated from the loaded scans.	The scans found no open ports — usually means no scans are loaded.
No software enumerated from the loaded scans.	No credentialed scans are loaded, so nothing was enumerated.
Nothing to remove — all scan-identified ports are still present.	Your list matches the scans.
Nothing to remove — all scan-identified items are still present.	Your list matches the scans.
Added {n} port(s). / Added {n} item(s).	The review was applied.
Marked {n} port(s) removed. / Marked {n} item(s) removed.	Those entries now carry today’s removal date.
Updated {n} item(s).	A bulk update was applied.
Deleted {n} item(s).	Rows were permanently deleted.

B.8 Dialogs

Dialog	Text and buttons
No Baseline Open	Open or create a baseline in Files > Baseline first. — OK
Remove Items	Delete {n} item(s) from the list? This cannot be undone — use Mark Removed in the drawer to keep them with a removal date instead. — Delete / Cancel
Rename view	Tab name: — with the current name filled in
DVL export	Exported {count} file(s) to: followed by the folder, or No scan data to export. — OK
DVL export failed	The reason for the failure — OK

B.9 Report Builder

Message	Cause
Select at least one section.	You clicked Generate with nothing ticked. Nothing is written.
Nothing to generate under the current scope.	The preview found no rows — no scans loaded, or the scope excludes everything.
{n} section(s) · {rows} rows · {sheets} Excel sheet(s) · ~{pages} PDF page(s)	The normal preview summary.
Report written to {path}	The report was generated successfully.
Export cancelled.	You cancelled the save dialog.
Report generation failed: {message}	Generation failed. The message gives the reason.
Name the template before saving it.	The template name box is empty.
Select at least one section before saving a template.	A template with no sections would be useless.
Saved template “{name}”. / Replaced template “{name}”.	The template was saved, or overwrote one of the same name.
Could not write the template file.	The template could not be saved.
Choose a saved template to delete.	You clicked Delete without selecting a template.
Deleted template “{name}”. / Could not delete “{name}”.	The delete succeeded, or failed.
Loaded “{name}”.	The template was restored.
Loaded “{name}”. {n} section(s) in it are no longer available and were skipped.	The template referred to sections that no longer exist.
Could not open the file picker: {message}	The cover-logo picker failed to open.

B.10 Options — reference data

Message	Cause
Not loaded / Loaded (bundled)	The dataset’s current state.
{Source} {version} · {date} · {n} entries	An imported dataset, with its provenance.
Importing CWE… / Importing CISA KEV…	An import is in progress.
CWE updated — applies to scans loaded after this.	The import succeeded. Reload your scans.
CISA KEV updated — applies to scans loaded after this.	The import succeeded. Reload your scans.
CWE update failed: {message} / CISA KEV update failed: {message}	The file could not be read.
Reverted to the bundled reference data.	Reset to bundled completed.
Reset failed: {message}	Reset to bundled failed.
Settings are saved automatically.	Shown at the bottom of the Application tab. Not an error.