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shiherlis's profile

Wednesday, January 3rd, 2024 7:54 PM

Power Outage & No App Ability

I know this has been touched upon by others (I believe, but I could be wrong). On NYE, we had a city/neighborhood power outage. My router and modem went down (I have a UPS for the two, but I realized the battery needs replacement – the new one should arrive today). I heard the audible alert from the Base telling me the system was using battery backup. I received texts stating there was a Power Outage and my home was still protected (backup battery in use). I also received a text letting me know the outage disconnected the Wi-Fi.

 

Here is the issue:

 

When I went to check the Base Station, the blue light was off. That could be normal, but I realized that in over eleven years of utilizing SimpliSafe, I have never noticed the light being off when armed. I went into the app to disarm and rearm it to ensure the system was working correctly in cellular mode, but it would not work. I tried three more times with the same result. I then went to my Keypad and disarmed and rearmed the system. Although that worked, an unusual lag and a message claimed my living room entry sensor was open (which was incorrect). If I remember correctly, that message was from 2-3 days prior (via the Keypad) but had never appeared before. I refreshed my system that day, so seeing the Base thought an entry sensor was open was odd.

 

I have noticed that I must be connected to Wi-Fi (on my phone or tablet) for the system to accept any changes. It does not have to be my network (sometimes I am away with family and friends or at a hotel), but it must be connected to Wi-Fi to make changes. I will read the forum, but this should not happen, correct? I am uncertain if the alarm would have gone off had I tested it. I will troubleshoot this week to see if I can replicate the problem and return with my findings. Something is wrong if I must be on a Wi-Fi network to utilize the app.

 

Happy New Year everyone.

Edit/Update:

Okay. So, I tested it on cellular only (not Wi-Fi), and I could make changes without issues. I will disconnect my router (and modem to replicate) later today when the new battery for my UPS comes in to see if that makes a difference. I do not understand why I could not make changes that NYE morning. I had full cellular coverage. Perhaps it was too big an outage, and there was more at play? But it is not the first time it has happened (which is why I always turn Wi-Fi on before going into the app – even when not at home). This morning, it would not load any devices (so I could make changes) until I turned my phone's Wi-Fi on.

 

It is something I need to investigate for sure.

Community Admin

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3K Messages

6 months ago

@shiherlis If you phone is connected to cellular data, you should still be able to use the mobile app to control your system as long as the Base Station is connected to Wi-Fi or cell. Your phone doesn't need to be connected to Wi-Fi to use the app, which I just tested myself as well. 

You mention that even yesterday morning you needed to turn your phone's Wi-Fi on to load your devices in the app, so this may be something we need to look into deeper. If you could please let me know your phone's model, operating system, and which version of the SimpliSafe app you are running, I will bring this information to our engineers for additional investigation.

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