diff --git a/plugin-repos/starlark-apps/tronbyte_repository.py b/plugin-repos/starlark-apps/tronbyte_repository.py
index ba647de0..1be7c981 100644
--- a/plugin-repos/starlark-apps/tronbyte_repository.py
+++ b/plugin-repos/starlark-apps/tronbyte_repository.py
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 Fetches app listings, metadata, and downloads .star files.
 """
 
+import json
 import logging
 import time
 import requests
@@ -49,6 +50,13 @@ def __init__(self, github_token: Optional[str] = None):
         self.base_url = "https://api.github.com"
         self.raw_url = "https://raw.githubusercontent.com"
 
+        # Why the last GitHub API call failed, in words a user can act on.
+        # _make_request used to log the reason and return a bare None, so
+        # every caller up the stack knew only that "something" went wrong --
+        # which is how an exhausted rate limit reached the store page as an
+        # empty grid with no explanation.
+        self.last_error: Optional[str] = None
+
         self.session = requests.Session()
         if github_token:
             self.session.headers.update({
@@ -70,29 +78,50 @@ def _make_request(self, url: str, timeout: int = 10) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]
         Returns:
             JSON response or None on error
         """
+        self.last_error = None
         try:
             response = self.session.get(url, timeout=timeout)
 
-            if response.status_code == 403:
-                # Rate limit exceeded
-                logger.warning("[Tronbyte Repo] GitHub API rate limit exceeded")
+            if response.status_code in (403, 429):
+                # 403 is both "rate limited" and "forbidden"; the remaining
+                # counter is what tells them apart, and the difference matters
+                # to whoever reads the message -- one is fixed by waiting or
+                # adding a token, the other is not.
+                remaining = response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Remaining')
+                if remaining == '0':
+                    self.last_error = (
+                        "GitHub API rate limit exceeded"
+                        f" ({response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Limit', '?')} requests/hour"
+                        f"{'' if self.github_token else ', unauthenticated'})."
+                        " Add a GitHub token in settings, or wait for the limit to reset."
+                    )
+                else:
+                    self.last_error = f"GitHub refused the request ({response.status_code})"
+                logger.warning(f"[Tronbyte Repo] {self.last_error}")
                 return None
             elif response.status_code == 404:
+                self.last_error = "Not found on GitHub"
                 logger.warning(f"[Tronbyte Repo] Resource not found: {url}")
                 return None
             elif response.status_code != 200:
+                self.last_error = f"GitHub API error {response.status_code}"
                 logger.error(f"[Tronbyte Repo] GitHub API error: {response.status_code}")
                 return None
 
             return response.json()
 
         except requests.Timeout:
+            self.last_error = "Timed out reaching GitHub"
             logger.error(f"[Tronbyte Repo] Request timeout: {url}")
             return None
         except requests.RequestException as e:
+            self.last_error = f"Network error reaching GitHub: {e.__class__.__name__}"
             logger.error(f"[Tronbyte Repo] Request error: {e}", exc_info=True)
             return None
         except (json.JSONDecodeError, ValueError) as e:
+            # Reachable whenever something on the path answers with HTML --
+            # a captive portal, a proxy error page, a DNS-hijacking router.
+            self.last_error = "GitHub returned a response that was not JSON"
             logger.error(f"[Tronbyte Repo] JSON parse error for {url}: {e}", exc_info=True)
             return None
 
@@ -125,33 +154,79 @@ def _fetch_raw_file(self, file_path: str, branch: Optional[str] = None, binary:
             logger.error(f"[Tronbyte Repo] Network error fetching raw file {file_path}: {e}", exc_info=True)
             return None
 
-    def list_apps(self) -> Tuple[bool, Optional[List[Dict[str, Any]]], Optional[str]]:
-        """
-        List all available apps in the repository.
+    def _list_app_dirs_via_trees(self) -> Optional[List[Dict[str, Any]]]:
+        """App directories via the git trees API, or None on failure.
 
-        Returns:
-            Tuple of (success, apps_list, error_message)
+        The contents API caps a directory listing at 1000 entries and says
+        nothing about having truncated it, so the store showed the first 1000
+        apps of a repository that has more and looked complete while doing it.
+        The trees API caps far higher and sets `truncated` when it does, at
+        the cost of one extra call to resolve the `apps` tree.
         """
+        repo = f"{self.base_url}/repos/{self.REPO_OWNER}/{self.REPO_NAME}"
+
+        root = self._make_request(f"{repo}/git/trees/{self.DEFAULT_BRANCH}")
+        if not isinstance(root, dict):
+            return None
+
+        apps_sha = next(
+            (e.get('sha') for e in root.get('tree', []) or []
+             if e.get('path') == self.APPS_PATH and e.get('type') == 'tree'),
+            None)
+        if not apps_sha:
+            self.last_error = f"No '{self.APPS_PATH}' directory in the repository"
+            return None
+
+        tree = self._make_request(f"{repo}/git/trees/{apps_sha}")
+        if not isinstance(tree, dict):
+            return None
+
+        if tree.get('truncated'):
+            logger.warning(
+                "[Tronbyte Repo] GitHub truncated the app tree; the listing is incomplete")
+
+        return [
+            {'id': e['path'], 'path': f"{self.APPS_PATH}/{e['path']}", 'url': None}
+            for e in tree.get('tree', []) or []
+            if e.get('type') == 'tree' and e.get('path') and not e['path'].startswith('.')
+        ]
+
+    def _list_app_dirs_via_contents(self) -> Optional[List[Dict[str, Any]]]:
+        """App directories via the contents API. Capped at 1000 entries."""
         url = f"{self.base_url}/repos/{self.REPO_OWNER}/{self.REPO_NAME}/contents/{self.APPS_PATH}"
 
         data = self._make_request(url)
         if data is None:
-            return False, None, "Failed to fetch repository contents"
-
+            return None
         if not isinstance(data, list):
-            return False, None, "Invalid response format"
+            self.last_error = "GitHub returned an unexpected listing format"
+            return None
 
-        # Filter directories (apps)
-        apps = []
-        for item in data:
-            if item.get('type') == 'dir':
-                app_id = item.get('name')
-                if app_id and not app_id.startswith('.'):
-                    apps.append({
-                        'id': app_id,
-                        'path': item.get('path'),
-                        'url': item.get('url')
-                    })
+        return [
+            {'id': item.get('name'), 'path': item.get('path'), 'url': item.get('url')}
+            for item in data
+            if item.get('type') == 'dir' and item.get('name')
+            and not item['name'].startswith('.')
+        ]
+
+    def list_apps(self) -> Tuple[bool, Optional[List[Dict[str, Any]]], Optional[str]]:
+        """
+        List all available apps in the repository.
+
+        Returns:
+            Tuple of (success, apps_list, error_message)
+        """
+        apps = self._list_app_dirs_via_trees()
+        if apps is None:
+            # Fall back rather than fail: the contents API was what shipped,
+            # so a trees-only outage should not take the store down with it.
+            trees_error = self.last_error
+            logger.warning(
+                f"[Tronbyte Repo] Trees listing failed ({trees_error}); "
+                "falling back to the contents API")
+            apps = self._list_app_dirs_via_contents()
+            if apps is None:
+                return False, None, self.last_error or trees_error or "Failed to fetch repository contents"
 
         logger.info(f"Found {len(apps)} apps in repository")
         return True, apps, None
@@ -267,14 +342,22 @@ def list_all_apps_cached(self) -> Dict[str, Any]:
                     'categories': _apps_cache['categories'],
                     'authors': _apps_cache['authors'],
                     'count': len(_apps_cache['data']),
-                    'cached': True
+                    'cached': True,
+                    'error': None,
                 }
 
-        # Fetch directory listing (1 GitHub API call)
+        # Fetch directory listing (a small number of GitHub API calls)
         success, app_dirs, error = self.list_apps()
         if not success or not app_dirs:
-            logger.error(f"Failed to list apps for bulk fetch: {error}")
-            return {'apps': [], 'categories': [], 'authors': [], 'count': 0, 'cached': False}
+            # Returning an empty list here used to read downstream as "the
+            # repository has no apps", and the route reported that as a
+            # success -- so a rate limit, a DNS failure and an empty
+            # repository were all drawn as the same blank grid. Hand the
+            # reason back instead and let the caller surface it.
+            reason = error or "No apps found in the repository"
+            logger.error(f"Failed to list apps for bulk fetch: {reason}")
+            return {'apps': [], 'categories': [], 'authors': [],
+                    'count': 0, 'cached': False, 'error': reason}
 
         logger.info(f"Bulk-fetching manifests for {len(app_dirs)} apps...")
 
@@ -341,7 +424,8 @@ def fetch_one(app_info):
             'categories': categories,
             'authors': authors,
             'count': len(apps_with_metadata),
-            'cached': False
+            'cached': False,
+            'error': None,
         }
 
     def download_star_file(self, app_id: str, output_path: Path, filename: Optional[str] = None) -> Tuple[bool, Optional[str]]:
diff --git a/test/test_web_error_detail.py b/test/test_web_error_detail.py
index 5362943a..55f81db8 100644
--- a/test/test_web_error_detail.py
+++ b/test/test_web_error_detail.py
@@ -116,7 +116,56 @@ def test_no_api_v3_handler_discards_its_exception(self):
 
         src = open("web_interface/blueprints/api_v3.py").read()
         tree = ast.parse(src)
-        generic = "An error occurred; see logs for details"
+
+        # This used to match one exact message string, so a handler that wrote
+        # its own wording was never checked. All thirteen Starlark routes did
+        # -- "Failed to browse repository" and friends -- and every one of them
+        # answered a 500 with no detail at all, which is how the app store
+        # spent three releases failing for reasons nobody could read. The rule
+        # is now the shape that matters: if it returns 5xx, it says why.
+        PRE_EXISTING = {
+            # Not part of this change. This set may shrink, never grow.
+            'backup_delete', 'backup_export', 'backup_list', 'backup_preview',
+            'backup_restore', 'backup_validate', 'checkout_branch',
+            'execute_system_action', 'get_git_branches', 'get_git_info',
+            'get_hardware_status', 'get_logs', 'get_system_status',
+            'get_system_version', 'scan_wifi_networks',
+        }
+
+        def enclosing_function(handler):
+            """Innermost function containing `handler`."""
+            best = None
+            for fn in [n for n in ast.walk(tree)
+                       if isinstance(n, (ast.FunctionDef, ast.AsyncFunctionDef))]:
+                if any(h is handler for h in ast.walk(fn)):
+                    if best is None or fn.lineno > best.lineno:
+                        best = fn
+            return best.name if best else '<module>'
+
+        def only_catches_importerror(handler):
+            """An `except ImportError` arm and nothing else.
+
+            A missing optional dependency is a configuration fact, not a
+            crash: the module name is the whole diagnosis and it is already
+            in the response, so a stack trace would be noise. Detail is still
+            required -- only the traceback log is excused.
+            """
+            t = handler.type
+            names = ([t] if isinstance(t, ast.Name)
+                     else list(t.elts) if isinstance(t, ast.Tuple) else [])
+            return bool(names) and all(
+                isinstance(n, ast.Name) and n.id == 'ImportError' for n in names)
+
+        def returns_5xx(handler):
+            for r in [n for n in ast.walk(handler) if isinstance(n, ast.Return)]:
+                v = r.value
+                if isinstance(v, ast.Tuple) and len(v.elts) == 2:
+                    code = v.elts[1]
+                    if (isinstance(code, ast.Constant)
+                            and isinstance(code.value, int)
+                            and 500 <= code.value < 600):
+                        return True
+            return False
 
         def logs_a_traceback(handler):
             """An error/exception-level log call carrying exc_info."""
@@ -161,11 +210,12 @@ def returns_the_detail(handler):
 
         offenders = []
         for h in [n for n in ast.walk(tree) if isinstance(n, ast.ExceptHandler)]:
-            seg = ast.get_source_segment(src, h) or ""
-            if generic not in seg:
+            if not returns_5xx(h):
+                continue
+            if enclosing_function(h) in PRE_EXISTING:
                 continue
             missing = []
-            if not logs_a_traceback(h):
+            if not logs_a_traceback(h) and not only_catches_importerror(h):
                 missing.append("error-level log with exc_info")
             if not returns_the_detail(h):
                 missing.append("describe_exception(e) in the response")
diff --git a/test/web_interface/test_starlark_pixlet_routes.py b/test/web_interface/test_starlark_pixlet_routes.py
index 82c13ef9..24fab51e 100644
--- a/test/web_interface/test_starlark_pixlet_routes.py
+++ b/test/web_interface/test_starlark_pixlet_routes.py
@@ -393,3 +393,358 @@ def test_the_value_resolves_against_the_app_directory(self, starlark_dir, tmp_pa
     def test_it_matches_the_default_a_reader_falls_back_to(self, starlark_dir, tmp_path):
         """Stored and defaulted values must mean the same thing."""
         assert self._install(tmp_path)['star_file'] == 'demo.star'
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# The store loaded, then stopped loading, and nothing anywhere said why.
+#
+# #535 restored the routes, so the 404 was gone -- but two failure modes
+# underneath it produce the same blank grid, and neither could be read from
+# outside. On the device this was diagnosed on, /repository/browse answered
+# 200 with 1000 apps in 27s while GitHub reported 18 of 60 unauthenticated
+# requests remaining, with 48 installed plugins checking for updates against
+# the same budget. When that budget runs out the store goes blank and says
+# nothing at all.
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _repository_module():
+    """Load tronbyte_repository.py the way the blueprint does."""
+    import importlib.util
+    import sys
+    from pathlib import Path
+
+    path = (Path(__file__).resolve().parents[2]
+            / 'plugin-repos' / 'starlark-apps' / 'tronbyte_repository.py')
+    spec = importlib.util.spec_from_file_location('_tronbyte_repo_under_test', path)
+    module = importlib.util.module_from_spec(spec)
+    sys.modules['_tronbyte_repo_under_test'] = module
+    spec.loader.exec_module(module)
+    return module
+
+
+class _Resp:
+    """Enough of requests.Response for the paths under test."""
+
+    def __init__(self, status_code=200, payload=None, headers=None, raises=None):
+        self.status_code = status_code
+        self._payload = payload
+        self.headers = headers or {}
+        self._raises = raises
+
+    def json(self):
+        if self._raises is not None:
+            raise self._raises
+        return self._payload
+
+
+class TestTheJsonGuardIsNotItselfACrash:
+    """`except (json.JSONDecodeError, ValueError)` with no `import json`.
+
+    Evaluating that tuple raises NameError, so the guard written for exactly
+    this case never ran: a non-JSON body -- a captive portal, a proxy error
+    page, a DNS-hijacking router answering for api.github.com -- came out as
+    a 500 instead of the None the caller was written to handle.
+    """
+
+    def test_a_non_json_body_returns_none(self):
+        repo = _repository_module().TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.session.get = lambda *a, **k: _Resp(
+            raises=ValueError("Expecting value: line 1 column 1 (char 0)"))
+
+        assert repo._make_request("https://api.github.com/anything") is None
+
+    def test_it_says_the_response_was_not_json(self):
+        repo = _repository_module().TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.session.get = lambda *a, **k: _Resp(raises=ValueError("nope"))
+
+        repo._make_request("https://api.github.com/anything")
+        assert 'JSON' in (repo.last_error or ''), repo.last_error
+
+
+class TestAnExhaustedRateLimitSaysSo:
+    """60 requests/hour unauthenticated, shared with every update check."""
+
+    def test_the_message_names_the_rate_limit(self):
+        repo = _repository_module().TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.session.get = lambda *a, **k: _Resp(
+            status_code=403,
+            headers={'X-RateLimit-Remaining': '0', 'X-RateLimit-Limit': '60'})
+
+        assert repo._make_request("https://api.github.com/anything") is None
+        assert 'rate limit' in (repo.last_error or '').lower(), repo.last_error
+
+    def test_it_mentions_being_unauthenticated_when_there_is_no_token(self):
+        repo = _repository_module().TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.session.get = lambda *a, **k: _Resp(
+            status_code=403,
+            headers={'X-RateLimit-Remaining': '0', 'X-RateLimit-Limit': '60'})
+
+        repo._make_request("https://api.github.com/anything")
+        assert 'unauthenticated' in (repo.last_error or ''), repo.last_error
+
+    def test_a_plain_403_is_not_reported_as_a_rate_limit(self):
+        repo = _repository_module().TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.session.get = lambda *a, **k: _Resp(
+            status_code=403, headers={'X-RateLimit-Remaining': '57'})
+
+        repo._make_request("https://api.github.com/anything")
+        assert 'rate limit' not in (repo.last_error or '').lower(), repo.last_error
+
+
+class TestAFailedFetchIsNotAnEmptyRepository:
+    """list_all_apps_cached turned every failure into an empty app list.
+
+    The route then reported that as a success, so a rate limit, a DNS failure
+    and a genuinely empty repository were all drawn as the same blank grid.
+    """
+
+    def test_the_reason_comes_back_with_the_empty_list(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.list_apps = lambda: (False, None, "GitHub API rate limit exceeded")
+
+        result = repo.list_all_apps_cached()
+        assert result['count'] == 0
+        assert 'rate limit' in result['error'].lower(), result
+
+    def test_a_failure_is_not_cached_as_an_empty_repository(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.list_apps = lambda: (False, None, "boom")
+        repo.list_all_apps_cached()
+
+        assert module._apps_cache['data'] is None, \
+            "a failed fetch was cached, so the store stays empty for 2 hours"
+
+    def test_a_successful_fetch_reports_no_error(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+        repo.list_apps = lambda: (True, [{'id': 'a', 'path': 'apps/a'}], None)
+        repo._fetch_raw_file = lambda *a, **k: "name: A\nsummary: s\n"
+
+        assert repo.list_all_apps_cached().get('error') is None
+
+
+class TestTheStoreReportsWhyItIsEmpty:
+    """The route's half of the same failure."""
+
+    @pytest.fixture
+    def failing_repo(self):
+        repo = MagicMock()
+        repo.return_value.list_all_apps_cached.return_value = {
+            'apps': [], 'categories': [], 'authors': [], 'count': 0,
+            'cached': False,
+            'error': 'GitHub API rate limit exceeded (60 requests/hour, '
+                     'unauthenticated).',
+        }
+        repo.return_value.get_rate_limit_info.return_value = {'remaining': 0}
+        with patch('web_interface.blueprints.api_v3._get_tronbyte_repository_class',
+                   return_value=repo):
+            yield repo
+
+    def test_browse_does_not_call_a_failure_a_success(self, client, failing_repo):
+        body = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/browse').get_json()
+        assert body['status'] == 'error', body
+
+    def test_browse_answers_502_not_200(self, client, failing_repo):
+        resp = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/browse')
+        assert resp.status_code == 502, resp.get_json()
+
+    def test_the_reason_reaches_the_page(self, client, failing_repo):
+        body = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/browse').get_json()
+        assert 'rate limit' in body['message'].lower(), body
+
+    def test_categories_reports_it_too(self, client, failing_repo):
+        resp = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/categories')
+        assert resp.status_code == 502
+        assert 'rate limit' in resp.get_json()['message'].lower()
+
+    @pytest.fixture
+    def working_repo(self):
+        repo = MagicMock()
+        repo.return_value.list_all_apps_cached.return_value = {
+            'apps': [{'id': 'quoteoftheday'}], 'categories': [], 'authors': [],
+            'count': 1, 'cached': False, 'error': None,
+        }
+        repo.return_value.get_rate_limit_info.return_value = {'remaining': 57}
+        with patch('web_interface.blueprints.api_v3._get_tronbyte_repository_class',
+                   return_value=repo):
+            yield repo
+
+    def test_a_working_fetch_is_still_a_success(self, client, working_repo):
+        resp = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/browse')
+        assert resp.status_code == 200
+        assert resp.get_json()['status'] == 'success'
+
+
+class TestACrashCarriesItsDetail:
+    """Seventeen Starlark handlers answered 5xx with no detail at all."""
+
+    def test_browse_returns_the_exception_detail(self, client):
+        with patch('web_interface.blueprints.api_v3._get_tronbyte_repository_class',
+                   side_effect=ImportError("No module named 'yaml'")):
+            body = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/browse').get_json()
+
+        assert 'yaml' in body.get('details', ''), body
+
+    def test_status_returns_the_exception_detail(self, client):
+        with patch('web_interface.blueprints.api_v3._get_starlark_plugin',
+                   side_effect=RuntimeError("plugin manager is not attached")):
+            body = client.get('/api/v3/starlark/status').get_json()
+
+        assert 'plugin manager is not attached' in body.get('details', ''), body
+
+
+class TestTheListingIsNotCappedAtOneThousand:
+    """The contents API caps a directory at 1000 entries and does not say so.
+
+    tronbyt/apps returns exactly 1000 through that endpoint, which is the cap
+    rather than the app count -- the store looked complete while showing a
+    truncated repository.
+    """
+
+    def _repo_with_tree(self, module, count):
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+        entries = [{'path': 'app%04d' % i, 'type': 'tree'} for i in range(count)]
+
+        def fake_request(url, timeout=10):
+            if url.endswith('/git/trees/main'):
+                return {'tree': [{'path': 'apps', 'type': 'tree', 'sha': 'deadbeef'}]}
+            if url.endswith('/git/trees/deadbeef'):
+                return {'tree': entries, 'truncated': False}
+            raise AssertionError("unexpected request: %s" % url)
+
+        repo._make_request = fake_request
+        return repo
+
+    def test_more_than_a_thousand_apps_are_listed(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = self._repo_with_tree(module, 1400)
+
+        ok, apps, err = repo.list_apps()
+        assert ok, err
+        assert len(apps) == 1400
+
+    def test_the_path_is_still_the_one_manifest_fetches_use(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = self._repo_with_tree(module, 3)
+
+        _, apps, _ = repo.list_apps()
+        assert apps[0]['path'] == 'apps/app0000', apps[0]
+
+    def test_dotfiles_and_files_are_skipped(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+
+        def fake_request(url, timeout=10):
+            if url.endswith('/git/trees/main'):
+                return {'tree': [{'path': 'apps', 'type': 'tree', 'sha': 'x'}]}
+            return {'tree': [{'path': '.github', 'type': 'tree'},
+                             {'path': 'realapp', 'type': 'tree'},
+                             {'path': 'README.md', 'type': 'blob'}]}
+
+        repo._make_request = fake_request
+        _, apps, _ = repo.list_apps()
+        assert [a['id'] for a in apps] == ['realapp']
+
+    def test_it_falls_back_to_the_contents_api(self):
+        """A trees outage must not take the store down with it."""
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+
+        def fake_request(url, timeout=10):
+            if '/git/trees/' in url:
+                repo.last_error = "GitHub API error 500"
+                return None
+            return [{'name': 'fallbackapp', 'path': 'apps/fallbackapp', 'type': 'dir'}]
+
+        repo._make_request = fake_request
+        ok, apps, err = repo.list_apps()
+        assert ok, err
+        assert [a['id'] for a in apps] == ['fallbackapp']
+
+    def test_both_paths_failing_reports_the_reason(self):
+        module = _repository_module()
+        repo = module.TronbyteRepository()
+
+        def fake_request(url, timeout=10):
+            repo.last_error = "Timed out reaching GitHub"
+            return None
+
+        repo._make_request = fake_request
+        ok, apps, err = repo.list_apps()
+        assert not ok
+        assert 'Timed out' in err, err
+
+
+class TestTheStoreUsesTheTokenTheUserConfigured:
+    """The store authenticated with a key nothing ever writes.
+
+    The three repository routes read `github_token` off config.json. Nothing
+    writes that key: config.template.json has no such field, no setting
+    offers it, and the token the user actually configures goes to
+    config_secrets.json as `github.api_token`, which PluginStoreManager loads
+    and every other GitHub caller uses.
+
+    So the store ran unauthenticated at 60 requests/hour on the same per-IP
+    budget as 48 plugins' update checks, while the configured token sat
+    unused raising that same budget to 5000. On the device this was found on,
+    /plugins/store/github-status reported `authenticated: true` with a
+    rate_limit of 5000 while /starlark/repository/browse reported a limit of
+    60 -- the store going blank was that 60 running out.
+    """
+
+    def test_the_store_managers_token_is_used(self):
+        from web_interface.blueprints import api_v3 as mod
+
+        with patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'plugin_store_manager',
+                          MagicMock(github_token='ghp_configured')):
+            assert mod._starlark_github_token() == 'ghp_configured'
+
+    def test_a_hand_edited_config_key_still_works(self):
+        from web_interface.blueprints import api_v3 as mod
+
+        cfg = MagicMock()
+        cfg.load_config.return_value = {'github_token': 'ghp_by_hand'}
+        with patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'plugin_store_manager',
+                          MagicMock(github_token=None)), \
+             patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'config_manager', cfg):
+            assert mod._starlark_github_token() == 'ghp_by_hand'
+
+    def test_no_token_anywhere_is_not_an_error(self):
+        from web_interface.blueprints import api_v3 as mod
+
+        cfg = MagicMock()
+        cfg.load_config.return_value = {}
+        with patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'plugin_store_manager',
+                          MagicMock(github_token=None)), \
+             patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'config_manager', cfg):
+            assert mod._starlark_github_token() is None
+
+    def test_an_unreadable_config_does_not_take_the_store_down(self):
+        from web_interface.blueprints import api_v3 as mod
+
+        cfg = MagicMock()
+        cfg.load_config.side_effect = OSError("config.json is unreadable")
+        with patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'plugin_store_manager',
+                          MagicMock(github_token=None)), \
+             patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'config_manager', cfg):
+            assert mod._starlark_github_token() is None
+
+    def test_browse_hands_the_token_to_the_repository(self, client):
+        from web_interface.blueprints import api_v3 as mod
+
+        repo = MagicMock()
+        repo.return_value.list_all_apps_cached.return_value = {
+            'apps': [], 'categories': [], 'authors': [], 'count': 0,
+            'cached': False, 'error': None,
+        }
+        repo.return_value.get_rate_limit_info.return_value = {'remaining': 4999}
+
+        with patch.object(mod.api_v3, 'plugin_store_manager',
+                          MagicMock(github_token='ghp_configured')), \
+             patch('web_interface.blueprints.api_v3._get_tronbyte_repository_class',
+                   return_value=repo):
+            client.get('/api/v3/starlark/repository/browse')
+
+        repo.assert_called_once_with(github_token='ghp_configured')
diff --git a/web_interface/blueprints/api_v3.py b/web_interface/blueprints/api_v3.py
index a9079b05..865789f0 100644
--- a/web_interface/blueprints/api_v3.py
+++ b/web_interface/blueprints/api_v3.py
@@ -8858,7 +8858,7 @@ def get_starlark_status():
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] get_starlark_status failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark status'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark status', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/install-pixlet', methods=['POST'])
 def install_pixlet():
@@ -8884,11 +8884,13 @@ def install_pixlet():
         else:
             return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': f'Failed to download Pixlet: {result.stderr}'}), 500
 
-    except subprocess.TimeoutExpired:
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Download timed out'}), 500
+    except subprocess.TimeoutExpired as err:
+        logger.exception("[Starlark] Pixlet download timed out")
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Download timed out',
+                        'details': describe_exception(err)}), 500
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] install_pixlet failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to install Pixlet'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to install Pixlet', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 
 # The remaining eleven routes #330 dropped, restored the same way: apps CRUD,
@@ -8897,6 +8899,32 @@ def install_pixlet():
 # these the store lists nothing and installing anything answers with the same
 # generic 404 the Pixlet button did.
 
+def _starlark_github_token() -> Optional[str]:
+    """The GitHub token the Starlark store should authenticate with.
+
+    These routes used to read `github_token` off config.json, a key that is
+    written nowhere and offered by no setting -- so the store always ran
+    unauthenticated at 60 requests/hour, on the same per-IP budget every
+    plugin update check spends, while the token the user had actually
+    configured sat in config_secrets.json raising the same budget to 5000.
+    The store going blank was that budget running out.
+
+    Prefer the store manager's token, which is the one the settings UI
+    writes and validates; keep the config.json key as a fallback so a
+    hand-edited config still works.
+    """
+    token = getattr(api_v3.plugin_store_manager, 'github_token', None)
+    if token:
+        return token
+
+    try:
+        config = api_v3.config_manager.load_config() if api_v3.config_manager else {}
+        return config.get('github_token')
+    except Exception:
+        logger.warning("[Starlark] Could not read config for a GitHub token", exc_info=True)
+        return None
+
+
 def _get_tronbyte_repository_class() -> Type[Any]:
     """Import TronbyteRepository from plugin-repos directory."""
     import importlib.util
@@ -9271,7 +9299,7 @@ def get_starlark_apps():
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] get_starlark_apps failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark apps'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark apps', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/apps/<app_id>', methods=['GET'])
 def get_starlark_app(app_id):
@@ -9337,7 +9365,7 @@ def get_starlark_app(app_id):
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] get_starlark_app failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark app'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark app', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/upload', methods=['POST'])
 def upload_starlark_app():
@@ -9404,17 +9432,19 @@ def upload_starlark_app():
                 pass
 
     except (OSError, IOError) as err:
-        # The detail goes to the log, not the response: it names absolute
-        # paths on the device, which the caller has no business seeing. The
-        # generic Exception arm below already did this; these two did not.
+        # This used to withhold the detail because it names absolute paths on
+        # the device. A full disk and a bad permission are indistinguishable
+        # without it, though, and describe_exception redacts credentials and
+        # truncates -- the same trade-off every other handler here makes.
         logger.exception("[Starlark] File error uploading starlark app: %s", err)
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'File error during upload'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'File error during upload',
+                        'details': describe_exception(err)}), 500
     except ImportError as err:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] Module load error uploading starlark app: %s", err)
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to load app module'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to load app module', 'details': describe_exception(err)}), 500
     except Exception as err:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] Unexpected error uploading starlark app: %s", err)
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to upload app'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to upload app', 'details': describe_exception(err)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/apps/<app_id>', methods=['DELETE'])
 def uninstall_starlark_app(app_id):
@@ -9445,7 +9475,7 @@ def uninstall_starlark_app(app_id):
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] uninstall_starlark_app failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to uninstall Starlark app'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to uninstall Starlark app', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/apps/<app_id>/config', methods=['GET'])
 def get_starlark_app_config(app_id):
@@ -9492,7 +9522,7 @@ def get_starlark_app_config(app_id):
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] get_starlark_app_config failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark app config'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to get Starlark app config', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/apps/<app_id>/config', methods=['PUT'])
 def update_starlark_app_config(app_id):
@@ -9609,7 +9639,8 @@ def update_fn(manifest):
         except Exception as e:
             logger.error(f"Failed to save config.json for {app_id}: {e}")
             logger.exception("Failed to save Starlark configuration for %r", app_id)
-            return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to save configuration'}), 500
+            return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to save configuration',
+                            'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
         # Also update manifest for backward compatibility
         app_data.setdefault('config', {}).update(data)
@@ -9621,7 +9652,7 @@ def update_fn(manifest):
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] update_starlark_app_config failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to update Starlark app config'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to update Starlark app config', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/apps/<app_id>/toggle', methods=['POST'])
 def toggle_starlark_app(app_id):
@@ -9661,7 +9692,7 @@ def update_fn(manifest):
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] toggle_starlark_app failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to toggle Starlark app'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to toggle Starlark app', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/apps/<app_id>/render', methods=['POST'])
 def render_starlark_app(app_id):
@@ -9690,7 +9721,7 @@ def render_starlark_app(app_id):
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] render_starlark_app failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to render Starlark app'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to render Starlark app', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/repository/browse', methods=['GET'])
 def browse_tronbyte_repository():
@@ -9703,14 +9734,22 @@ def browse_tronbyte_repository():
     try:
         TronbyteRepository = _get_tronbyte_repository_class()
 
-        config = api_v3.config_manager.load_config() if api_v3.config_manager else {}
-        github_token = config.get('github_token')
-        repo = TronbyteRepository(github_token=github_token)
+        repo = TronbyteRepository(github_token=_starlark_github_token())
 
         result = repo.list_all_apps_cached()
 
         rate_limit = repo.get_rate_limit_info()
 
+        # An upstream failure used to arrive here as an empty app list and go
+        # out as 'success', so the store drew an empty grid and said nothing.
+        # 502: the request was fine, GitHub was not.
+        if result.get('error'):
+            return jsonify({
+                'status': 'error',
+                'message': result['error'],
+                'rate_limit': rate_limit,
+            }), 502
+
         return jsonify({
             'status': 'success',
             'apps': result['apps'],
@@ -9723,7 +9762,7 @@ def browse_tronbyte_repository():
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] browse_tronbyte_repository failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to browse repository'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to browse repository', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/repository/install', methods=['POST'])
 def install_from_tronbyte_repository():
@@ -9740,9 +9779,7 @@ def install_from_tronbyte_repository():
         TronbyteRepository = _get_tronbyte_repository_class()
         import tempfile
 
-        config = api_v3.config_manager.load_config() if api_v3.config_manager else {}
-        github_token = config.get('github_token')
-        repo = TronbyteRepository(github_token=github_token)
+        repo = TronbyteRepository(github_token=_starlark_github_token())
 
         success, metadata, error = repo.get_app_metadata(data['app_id'])
         if not success:
@@ -9811,23 +9848,25 @@ def install_from_tronbyte_repository():
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] install_from_tronbyte_repository failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to install from repository'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to install from repository', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 @api_v3.route('/starlark/repository/categories', methods=['GET'])
 def get_tronbyte_categories():
     """Get list of available app categories (uses bulk cache)."""
     try:
         TronbyteRepository = _get_tronbyte_repository_class()
-        config = api_v3.config_manager.load_config() if api_v3.config_manager else {}
-        repo = TronbyteRepository(github_token=config.get('github_token'))
+        repo = TronbyteRepository(github_token=_starlark_github_token())
 
         result = repo.list_all_apps_cached()
 
+        if result.get('error'):
+            return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': result['error']}), 502
+
         return jsonify({'status': 'success', 'categories': result['categories']})
 
     except Exception as e:
         logger.exception("[Starlark] get_tronbyte_categories failed")
-        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to fetch categories'}), 500
+        return jsonify({'status': 'error', 'message': 'Failed to fetch categories', 'details': describe_exception(e)}), 500
 
 
 def _starlark_virtual_plugins() -> list: