# Safety and limitations

> Read this before you use live accounts. Each point is short and links to the page that explains it.

Last verified: 2026-09-14
Canonical page: https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/safety-and-limitations
Product: Copilink Standalone
Markdown of: https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/safety-and-limitations


## Quick facts

- Product: Copilink Standalone
- Direct Tradovate and Rithmic desktop workflow
- Windows x64, macOS Intel, and macOS Apple silicon
- Local copying with per-follower sizing, account safeguards, analytics, and journaling

## What it does

What Copilink can't guarantee and the conditions that reduce protection, from broker execution and existing positions to one instrument at a time, market data, and closing the app.

## Why traders choose Copilink Standalone

- Choose a direct Tradovate and Rithmic desktop workflow on Windows or macOS, or stay entirely inside NinjaTrader 8 with the dedicated add-on.
- Manage exact or ratio-based follower sizing, per-account safeguards, and prop-firm-style risk rules from one focused workflow.
- Keep copying local on the trader's machine while cloud sync powers web analytics and journaling.

## Your broker has the final say

Copilink sends orders, changes, cancellations, and close requests, but it does not guarantee they fill. Your broker decides whether they're accepted and how they fill. A success message in Copilink means a request went out without an error, not that an order filled or an account is flat. After a rejection, disconnect, flatten, protection or risk action, or restart, check positions and working orders in your broker platform.

## Know these before you trade

_Limitations and where they're explained_
| Limitation | What it means | Read more |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Copilink must be running | Nothing is copied or protected while the app is closed, you're signed out, or the computer sleeps. Broker-side limits keep working. | [What Copilink needs to run](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/install-and-sign-in#requirements) |
| Existing positions aren't copied | Enabling a profile doesn't match positions already open. Start flat. | [Start flat](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/profiles-and-sizing#start-stop-edit) |
| Whole contracts only | Follower size rounds down, and below 1 means no order. | [Follower size](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/profiles-and-sizing#ratio-calculation) |
| Fills differ between accounts | Price, timing, and partial fills vary. Copilink corrects position size but can't make fills identical. | [Partial fills and corrections](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/how-copying-works#partial-fills) |
| Orders aren't resent | An unanswered order or change isn't retried, so it can't double up. Only cancellations are retried. | [Orders are never sent twice](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/how-copying-works#no-resends) |
| Protection needs one instrument | Two instruments or contract months open on an account pause follower protection for it. Copying continues. | [One instrument at a time](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/follower-protection#availability) |
| Fast limits need live prices | Without market data, P&L limits are slower or not checked. Copying continues. | [Why live prices matter](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/market-data-and-live-pnl#why-it-matters) |
| Limits need trusted P&L | If P&L is stale, partial, or missing, Copilink doesn't check limits and keeps copying. | [How limits are calculated](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/account-risk-limits#pnl-requirements) |
| A leader limit stops everything | Closes the leader and every enabled follower and turns the profile off. | [When a limit is reached](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/account-risk-limits#leader-and-follower-actions) |
| Disconnects don't close trades | Positions stay open, and trades during the gap aren't replayed. | [When a connection drops](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/manage-connections#when-a-connection-drops) |
| Closing leaves orders working | Closing Copilink or signing out doesn't cancel orders or close positions. | [Signing out or closing Copilink](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/install-and-sign-in#sign-out) |
| Flatten isn't a stop button | Copying resumes after a successful flatten if the profile is still enabled. | [Flatten and close actions](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/how-copying-works#flatten) |
| Stop-loss sync can't resize ATM stops | NinjaTrader ATM strategy stops reject outside changes. | [Where it works](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/stop-loss-sync#atm-orders) |
| Broker rules are separate | Tradovate and prop-firm limits calculate and act on their own. | [Tradovate broker limits](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/account-risk-limits#broker-rules) |
| History is what Copilink saw | Trades made while Copilink was closed may be missing. | [How Copilink records trades](https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/trade-log-and-web-journal#how-history-works) |

## Before you trade live

- Check each new account, contract, and order type with one micro contract trade before you trade full size.
- Start every account flat, with no working orders.
- Keep your broker platform open so you can check positions.
- Don't trade the leader while the profile isn't Active, a connection is down, or a limit or lock is showing.
- After anything unexpected, protect the broker account first and investigate Copilink second.

## Sources

- https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/safety-and-limitations
- https://copilink.com/standalone
- https://copilink.com/standalone/user-guide/safety-and-limitations