EA not opening trades? Check these 10 things in order

The 10 checks

1. Read the logs. Open the Toolbox (Ctrl+T) and check the Experts and Journal tabs; a failed order shows its reason in brackets, such as [Invalid stops].
2. Algo Trading is on. The toolbar button is green, and “Allow Algo Trading” is checked on the EA’s Common tab.
3. Right chart. The symbol and timeframe match the setup guide, including your broker’s symbol name (XAUUSD.m or GOLD).
4. Market and hours. The market is open, and the time is inside the EA’s trading hours; a news filter may be pausing it.
5. No signal yet. The EA’s conditions may simply not have happened. A trend EA can wait days; check its on-chart status panel if it has one.
6. License. If the EA is licensed to specific account numbers, check that this account is registered and the license is active; a license problem usually shows as a message in the Experts tab.
7. Margin and lot size. There is enough free margin, and the lot size fits the broker’s minimum, maximum and step ([No money], [Invalid volume]).
8. Stop distance. Stops sit beyond the broker’s minimum stop level ([Invalid stops]).
9. Account access and type. You are logged in with the trading password, not the read-only investor password ([Trade disabled]), and the account type (hedging or netting) is the one the EA needs.
10. Connection and time. The connection status at the bottom right shows live data, the VPS is running, and the EA’s hours match your broker’s server time.