The messages "waiting to receive initial updates from server" and "waiting for initial updates from server" will sometimes appear during normal operation of SpiderOak One and Groups in the GUI and on the command line. This appears when the application has queried our servers for updates and is awaiting a reply. Brief appearances of this message are normal and nothing to be concerned about.
Sometimes the message does not go away, and that does indicate a problem. Generally this is caused by something in your backup set on a computer not showing this message which should not be backed up. To fix this, first make sure all active devices on your account are running the latest version of SpiderOak One or Groups.
Next, check the backup set on each of your devices. Open the Backup tab and compare what you have selected against the list of "things not to back up" in the article What Data to Select for Backup. If you see anything in your backup set which is on the list of things which shouldn't be selected, deselect it and press Save. It's usually a good idea to remove the culprits from the Manage tab as well.
Do this on all your devices, not just the one with the obvious problem. Indeed, the cause is probably on a different device. This is because of the way the application feeds information from one device to another. There's a queue on-server which compiles a list of updates for your other devices. If something gets added to that list twice in quick succession - meaning you are backing up something you shouldn't - it can cause the whole update process to stall. So the solution is to correct your backup selection on each device.
Also on each device, turn off the LAN-Sync option.
Now that you have fixed the underlying problem, unstick the problem device by renaming the application data folder. How that is done depends on whether you use SpiderOak One or Groups.
Once you have renamed the application data folder, restart the application. You will be prompted for the email address associated with your account and your password. Then you will be asked to enter a name for this new computer. Do not do so; instead press "More Options" below and choose to reinstall the existing device. You will then go through syndication to set up this device once again with our servers. Renaming your application data will reset your One preferences on that computer to their default values, so you will want to review and adjust your settings as desired. Two settings to pay particular attention to are the ones mentioned above: what files you select to be backed up, and turn off the LAN-Sync option.
If this resolves your issue, you may delete the old application data folder that you renamed. It contains log files that SpiderOak support will need should the problem continue, so it would be prudent to hang on to it for a few days.