> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://paperlinkai.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Processing and knowledge pages

> Learn the processing states, how Paperlink AI counts knowledge pages, and what to do when a document fails.

After you upload a document, Paperlink AI reads it and builds a search index. The bot can answer from the document only when it is Ready.

## Processing states

Each document in the Documents list shows one of these states.

| State | Progress | What it means |
| - | - | - |
| Queued | 5% | The document waits for its turn. |
| Reading | 40% | Paperlink AI extracts the text from the document. |
| Indexing | 85% | Paperlink AI adds the text to the search index. |
| Ready | 100% | The bot can answer from the document. |
| Failed | None | Processing stopped. The dashboard shows the reason. |

## How long it takes

Indexing waits for the search index to catch up. This step takes 1 to 3 minutes.

If a document shows no change for 10 minutes, the dashboard shows this message:

> Taking longer than usual. Refresh to check again, or reprocess it.

Refresh the page. If the state does not change, select **Reprocess** (the circular arrow). Reprocess keeps the old text until the new text replaces it. A failed reprocess keeps the old text.

## What a knowledge page is

Your plan limits the number of knowledge pages, not the number of documents. Paperlink AI counts knowledge pages in a different way for each format.

| Format | How Paperlink AI counts |
| - | - |
| PDF | One knowledge page for each parsed page. |
| DOCX, HTML, Markdown, TXT | The number of characters divided by 3,000, rounded up. The minimum is 1. |
| Website page | The number of characters divided by 3,000, rounded up. The minimum is 1. This is the same rule as for text files. |
| XLSX | One knowledge page for each sheet. A sheet over 3,000 characters adds the characters divided by 3,000, rounded up. |

If a document needs more knowledge pages than your plan has left, the upload fails.

## The monthly processing budget

Each month, you can send up to 3 times your plan's knowledge pages to the parser. A re-upload of an unchanged document is free, and so is a cache hit.

If processing stops before the parser completes, the pages do not count. This includes a file that the parser cannot read. This applies to uploads, reprocessing and website pages. If processing stops after the parser completes, the pages count. Usually, the next try of the same document is then free.

When you pass the budget, the dashboard shows this message:

> Processing limit reached: this needs about N pages and M of this month's L are left. It resets on YYYY-MM-DD; re-uploading unchanged files is free.

See **Pages processed this month** on **Billing**.

## When processing fails

> **Your plan has no room**
>
> > This needs about N knowledge pages, and your plan allows X (Y used or in progress). Delete documents or upgrade your plan.
>
> [Delete a document](https://paperlinkai.com/docs/guides/documents/delete.md) or upgrade.
>
> During the trial, the message says "your trial allows 100" and tells you to delete documents or wait until the trial ends. An upgrade does not add knowledge pages during the trial.

> **You used the processing budget**
>
> The dashboard shows the "Processing limit reached" message and the reset date.

> **Paperlink AI cannot read the PDF**
>
> > We couldn't read this PDF. If it is scanned, password-protected or corrupted, export it again as a text-based PDF and re-upload it.
>
> There is no OCR.

> **A temporary problem**
>
> Wait a few minutes. Then select **Reprocess** on the document row.

> **[Plans and limits](https://paperlinkai.com/docs/guides/account/plans.md)**
>
> Compare the knowledge pages that each plan includes.


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