diff --git a/surfsense_backend/app/routes/editor_routes.py b/surfsense_backend/app/routes/editor_routes.py
index f54f18def..0fcbc475d 100644
--- a/surfsense_backend/app/routes/editor_routes.py
+++ b/surfsense_backend/app/routes/editor_routes.py
@@ -127,9 +127,16 @@ async def get_editor_content(
     chunks = sorted(document.chunks, key=lambda c: c.id)
 
     if not chunks:
+        doc_status = document.status or {}
+        state = doc_status.get("state", "ready") if isinstance(doc_status, dict) else "ready"
+        if state in ("pending", "processing"):
+            raise HTTPException(
+                status_code=409,
+                detail="This document is still being processed. Please wait a moment and try again.",
+            )
         raise HTTPException(
             status_code=400,
-            detail="This document has no content and cannot be edited. Please re-upload to enable editing.",
+            detail="This document has no viewable content yet. It may still be syncing. Try again in a few seconds, or re-upload if the issue persists.",
         )
 
     markdown_content = "\n\n".join(chunk.content for chunk in chunks)
@@ -137,7 +144,7 @@ async def get_editor_content(
     if not markdown_content.strip():
         raise HTTPException(
             status_code=400,
-            detail="This document has empty content and cannot be edited.",
+            detail="This document appears to be empty. Try re-uploading or editing it to add content.",
         )
 
     # Persist the lazy migration
diff --git a/surfsense_web/app/dashboard/[search_space_id]/documents/(manage)/components/DocumentsTableShell.tsx b/surfsense_web/app/dashboard/[search_space_id]/documents/(manage)/components/DocumentsTableShell.tsx
index 92ced6e47..0758307f7 100644
--- a/surfsense_web/app/dashboard/[search_space_id]/documents/(manage)/components/DocumentsTableShell.tsx
+++ b/surfsense_web/app/dashboard/[search_space_id]/documents/(manage)/components/DocumentsTableShell.tsx
@@ -748,6 +748,7 @@ export function DocumentsTableShell({
 																	onClick={() =>
 																		onOpenInTab ? onOpenInTab(doc) : handleViewDocument(doc)
 																	}
+																	disabled={isBeingProcessed}
 																>
 																	<Eye className="h-4 w-4" />
 																	Open
@@ -1020,6 +1021,10 @@ export function DocumentsTableShell({
 						<Button
 							variant="secondary"
 							className="justify-start gap-2"
+							disabled={
+								mobileActionDoc?.status?.state === "pending" ||
+								mobileActionDoc?.status?.state === "processing"
+							}
 							onClick={() => {
 								if (mobileActionDoc) handleViewDocument(mobileActionDoc);
 								setMobileActionDoc(null);
diff --git a/surfsense_web/components/documents/DocumentNode.tsx b/surfsense_web/components/documents/DocumentNode.tsx
index dd7731f22..691a6eb0d 100644
--- a/surfsense_web/components/documents/DocumentNode.tsx
+++ b/surfsense_web/components/documents/DocumentNode.tsx
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@ export const DocumentNode = React.memo(function DocumentNode({
 							</Button>
 						</DropdownMenuTrigger>
 						<DropdownMenuContent align="end" className="w-40" onClick={(e) => e.stopPropagation()}>
-							<DropdownMenuItem onClick={() => onPreview(doc)}>
+							<DropdownMenuItem onClick={() => onPreview(doc)} disabled={isProcessing}>
 								<Eye className="mr-2 h-4 w-4" />
 								Open
 							</DropdownMenuItem>
@@ -259,7 +259,7 @@ export const DocumentNode = React.memo(function DocumentNode({
 
 			{contextMenuOpen && (
 				<ContextMenuContent className="w-40" onClick={(e) => e.stopPropagation()}>
-					<ContextMenuItem onClick={() => onPreview(doc)}>
+					<ContextMenuItem onClick={() => onPreview(doc)} disabled={isProcessing}>
 						<Eye className="mr-2 h-4 w-4" />
 						Open
 					</ContextMenuItem>
diff --git a/surfsense_web/components/documents/FolderTreeView.tsx b/surfsense_web/components/documents/FolderTreeView.tsx
index f63d5da5c..7695923e3 100644
--- a/surfsense_web/components/documents/FolderTreeView.tsx
+++ b/surfsense_web/components/documents/FolderTreeView.tsx
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 "use client";
 
 import { useAtom } from "jotai";
-import { CirclePlus } from "lucide-react";
+import { Search } from "lucide-react";
 import { useCallback, useMemo, useState } from "react";
 import { DndProvider } from "react-dnd";
 import { HTML5Backend } from "react-dnd-html5-backend";
@@ -250,8 +250,9 @@ export function FolderTreeView({
 	if (treeNodes.length === 0 && (activeTypes.length > 0 || searchQuery)) {
 		return (
 			<div className="flex flex-1 flex-col items-center justify-center gap-3 px-4 py-12 text-muted-foreground">
-				<CirclePlus className="h-10 w-10 rotate-45" />
-				<p className="text-sm">No matching documents</p>
+				<Search className="h-10 w-10" />
+				<p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground">No matching documents</p>
+				<p className="text-xs text-muted-foreground/70 mt-1">Try a different search term</p>
 			</div>
 		);
 	}
diff --git a/surfsense_web/components/editor-panel/editor-panel.tsx b/surfsense_web/components/editor-panel/editor-panel.tsx
index 3ea36f800..7496e6aec 100644
--- a/surfsense_web/components/editor-panel/editor-panel.tsx
+++ b/surfsense_web/components/editor-panel/editor-panel.tsx
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 "use client";
 
 import { useAtomValue, useSetAtom } from "jotai";
-import { AlertCircle, XIcon } from "lucide-react";
+import { FileQuestionMark, RefreshCw, XIcon } from "lucide-react";
 import dynamic from "next/dynamic";
 import { useCallback, useEffect, useRef, useState } from "react";
 import { toast } from "sonner";
@@ -200,10 +200,22 @@ export function EditorPanelContent({
 					<EditorPanelSkeleton />
 				) : error || !editorDoc ? (
 					<div className="flex flex-1 flex-col items-center justify-center gap-3 p-6 text-center">
-						<AlertCircle className="size-8 text-destructive" />
-						<div>
-							<p className="font-medium text-foreground">Failed to load document</p>
-							<p className="text-sm text-red-500 mt-1">{error || "An unknown error occurred"}</p>
+						{error?.toLowerCase().includes("still being processed") ? (
+							<div className="rounded-full bg-muted/50 p-3">
+								<RefreshCw className="size-6 text-muted-foreground animate-spin" />
+							</div>
+						) : (
+							<div className="rounded-full bg-muted/50 p-3">
+								<FileQuestionMark className="size-6 text-muted-foreground" />
+							</div>
+						)}
+						<div className="space-y-1 max-w-xs">
+							<p className="font-medium text-foreground">
+								{error?.toLowerCase().includes("still being processed")
+									? "Document is processing"
+									: "Document unavailable"}
+							</p>
+							<p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground">{error || "An unknown error occurred"}</p>
 						</div>
 					</div>
 				) : isEditableType ? (
diff --git a/surfsense_web/components/layout/ui/tabs/DocumentTabContent.tsx b/surfsense_web/components/layout/ui/tabs/DocumentTabContent.tsx
index ac279cd4d..849bdbea5 100644
--- a/surfsense_web/components/layout/ui/tabs/DocumentTabContent.tsx
+++ b/surfsense_web/components/layout/ui/tabs/DocumentTabContent.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 "use client";
 
-import { AlertCircle, Pencil } from "lucide-react";
+import { FileQuestionMark, PenLine, RefreshCw } from "lucide-react";
 import { useCallback, useEffect, useRef, useState } from "react";
 import { toast } from "sonner";
 import { PlateEditor } from "@/components/editor/plate-editor";
@@ -160,15 +160,35 @@ export function DocumentTabContent({ documentId, searchSpaceId, title }: Documen
 	if (isLoading) return <DocumentSkeleton />;
 
 	if (error || !doc) {
+		const isProcessing = error?.toLowerCase().includes("still being processed");
 		return (
-			<div className="flex flex-1 flex-col items-center justify-center gap-3 p-6 text-center">
-				<AlertCircle className="size-10 text-destructive" />
-				<div>
-					<p className="font-medium text-foreground text-lg">Failed to load document</p>
-					<p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground mt-1">
+			<div className="flex flex-1 flex-col items-center justify-center gap-4 p-8 text-center">
+				<div className="rounded-full bg-muted/50 p-4">
+					{isProcessing ? (
+						<RefreshCw className="size-8 text-muted-foreground animate-spin" />
+					) : (
+						<FileQuestionMark className="size-8 text-muted-foreground" />
+					)}
+				</div>
+				<div className="space-y-1.5 max-w-sm">
+					<p className="font-semibold text-foreground text-lg">
+						{isProcessing ? "Document is processing" : "Document unavailable"}
+					</p>
+					<p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground">
 						{error || "An unknown error occurred"}
 					</p>
 				</div>
+				{!isProcessing && (
+					<Button
+						variant="outline"
+						size="sm"
+						className="mt-1 gap-1.5"
+						onClick={() => window.location.reload()}
+					>
+						<RefreshCw className="size-3.5" />
+						Retry
+					</Button>
+				)}
 			</div>
 		);
 	}
@@ -229,7 +249,7 @@ export function DocumentTabContent({ documentId, searchSpaceId, title }: Documen
 						onClick={() => setIsEditing(true)}
 						className="gap-1.5"
 					>
-						<Pencil className="size-3.5" />
+						<PenLine className="size-3.5" />
 						Edit
 					</Button>
 				)}
diff --git a/surfsense_web/components/new-chat/source-detail-panel.tsx b/surfsense_web/components/new-chat/source-detail-panel.tsx
index b02b2e217..9c1167efe 100644
--- a/surfsense_web/components/new-chat/source-detail-panel.tsx
+++ b/surfsense_web/components/new-chat/source-detail-panel.tsx
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 "use client";
 
 import { useQuery } from "@tanstack/react-query";
-import { BookOpen, ChevronDown, ExternalLink, FileText, Hash, Sparkles, X } from "lucide-react";
+import { BookOpen, ChevronDown, ExternalLink, FileQuestionMark, FileText, Hash, Sparkles, X } from "lucide-react";
 import { AnimatePresence, motion, useReducedMotion } from "motion/react";
 import { useTranslations } from "next-intl";
 import type React from "react";
@@ -392,12 +392,12 @@ export function SourceDetailPanel({
 									animate={{ opacity: 1, scale: 1 }}
 									className="flex flex-col items-center gap-4 text-center px-6"
 								>
-									<div className="w-20 h-20 rounded-full bg-destructive/10 flex items-center justify-center">
-										<X className="h-10 w-10 text-destructive" />
+									<div className="w-20 h-20 rounded-full bg-muted/50 flex items-center justify-center">
+										<FileQuestionMark className="h-10 w-10 text-muted-foreground" />
 									</div>
 									<div>
-										<p className="font-semibold text-destructive text-lg">
-											Failed to load document
+										<p className="font-semibold text-foreground text-lg">
+											Document unavailable
 										</p>
 										<p className="text-sm text-muted-foreground mt-2 max-w-md">
 											{documentByChunkFetchingError.message ||