Tablet connectivity

The Vizito app needs an internet connection to sign a visitor in: every sign in is sent to Vizito’s servers the moment the visitor taps the last button, and that is also what sends the notification to the host. A tablet that keeps dropping off Wi-Fi therefore keeps failing at exactly that moment. This article is for that tablet. It covers the settings that make a tablet drop its connection, what the app does while it is offline, and the cases where the network itself is the problem.

Kiosk mode is not the fix. Guided Access on an iPad and app pinning on Android keep visitors inside the app; they do nothing for the connection. If someone suggested kiosk mode for a tablet that goes offline, that is a misunderstanding: see the end of this article.

What the app does while it is offline

  • The app does not queue sign-ins. A visitor who taps the last button while the tablet is offline sees “Error” with “Something went wrong. Please check your network connectivity, or contact Vizito Support.” and an “OK” button. Nothing has been stored, no host has been notified and no badge is printed, and “OK” returns the app to the welcome screen: the visitor signs in again from the start once the connection is back. Nothing is sent later on their behalf.
  • The tablet keeps showing what it already has. Hosts, visit types, sign-in fields and agreements are loaded when the app returns to the welcome screen, so the form still opens while the tablet is offline. That is why an offline tablet looks fine right up to the last tap.
  • When the app starts without a connection, it shows “Your tablet is offline. Check the network settings and try again.” and a “Connection status” panel with three checks: the Wi-Fi network, the internet, and the Vizito servers. The panel tells you which of the three fails. The app picks up by itself the moment the connection returns; there is nothing to tap.
  • “Could not reach the Vizito servers.” with “Please check this device’s internet connection and try again.” means the tablet has Wi-Fi but the request did not reach us. That is a firewall, a proxy or a captive portal on your network, or, rarely, an incident on our side. Check the status page first; if it is green, the cause is on the network.
  • Sign-ins that did reach us are safe. Everything that made it to the server is in the visitor log, and the host was notified from our side. A tablet that goes offline afterwards loses nothing.

While the tablet is down, visitors can still sign in on their own phone through contactless sign in or a static QR code on the desk, and reception can sign them in from the backoffice. Neither depends on the tablet’s connection.

Settings on the tablet that drop the connection

Work through these on the tablet itself. Most “the tablet goes offline every night” cases are one of the first three.

Power saving

  • Keep the tablet on power. Both iPadOS and Android throttle Wi-Fi and background activity on battery, and a tablet that drains overnight loses the connection long before it switches off.
  • Android, battery optimisation: open Settings > Apps > Vizito > Battery and choose “Unrestricted”. On a Samsung tablet also check Settings > Battery > “Background usage limits” and take Vizito out of “Sleeping apps” and “Deep sleeping apps”, and switch off “Adaptive battery” if the tablet keeps stopping the app.
  • Android, Wi-Fi power saving: on a Samsung tablet, open Settings > Connections > Wi-Fi, tap the three dots or “Intelligent Wi-Fi”, and switch off “Switch to mobile data” and, where it exists, “Wi-Fi power saving mode”. Older Android versions have “Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep” under the advanced Wi-Fi settings; set it to “Always”.
  • The screen going to sleep takes the connection with it on many Android tablets. Keep the screen on as described in Android kiosk mode and iPadOS kiosk mode, and switch on “Keep tablet awake” under “Account settings” > “General” > “Advanced settings”. See Advanced settings.

Wi-Fi settings

  • Auto-join. Tap the network in the tablet’s Wi-Fi settings and check that “Auto-Join” (iPad) or “Auto reconnect” (Samsung) is on, so the tablet comes back after the access point restarts.
  • Forget other networks. A tablet that also knows the guest network, a neighbour’s network or a phone’s hotspot may hop to it when the signal wavers. Forget every network but the one the tablet should use.
  • Private or random Wi-Fi address. iPads and recent Android tablets present a random MAC address per network. A network that filters or reserves addresses by MAC then sees a different tablet every so often. Either switch it off for this network (“Private Wi-Fi Address” on the iPad, “MAC address type” on Android, set to the phone or device MAC), or tell IT which address to allow.
  • Low Data Mode on the iPad (under the network’s own settings) and “Data saver” on Android should be off.

System updates that install overnight restart the tablet and, on Android, unpin the app. Set them to install at a time of your choosing, or leave the tablet on power so it comes back up.

Settings on the network that drop the connection

These need your IT department, and the “Connection status” panel tells you which one to point them at.

  • Signal. A tablet at the edge of an access point’s range shows the error now and then and recovers by itself. Move the access point, add one, or move the tablet. A tablet that only fails at busy times is on a saturated access point.
  • Band steering and roaming. Access points that push clients between 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, or between access points, drop the connection for a second each time. Pin the tablet to one band or one access point where the controller allows it.
  • DHCP lease time. A short lease means the tablet renews its address every few minutes and can drop off when the renewal fails. Give the tablet a fixed address or a DHCP reservation.
  • Captive portal. A guest network that asks for a click or a login when the session expires puts the tablet offline until somebody walks up and clicks. The app cannot do that. Use a network without a portal, or have IT exempt the tablet’s MAC address. See Network requirements.
  • Firewall or proxy. “Could not reach the Vizito servers.” on a tablet that browses the web fine means the hosts Vizito uses are blocked or inspected. The list of hosts and ports is in Network requirements; frontoffice.vizito.be on port 443 is the one the tablet needs.
  • Client isolation does not affect the connection to Vizito, but it stops the tablet from seeing a label printer on the same Wi-Fi.

Kiosk mode, once more

Guided Access on the iPad and app pinning or a kiosk app on Android lock the tablet to the Vizito app. They are worth setting up, and both articles above explain how. But they only decide what a visitor can tap. They do not keep Wi-Fi alive, they cannot re-join a network, and they do not make the app work without a connection. Set up kiosk mode for the reasons it exists, and fix a dropping connection with the settings on this page.

Checklist to send to IT

  1. Tablet on power, screen timeout at maximum or “Keep tablet awake” on.
  2. Vizito excluded from battery optimisation; Wi-Fi power saving and “Switch to mobile data” off.
  3. One known Wi-Fi network with auto-join on; private MAC address off or allowed.
  4. Network without captive portal; frontoffice.vizito.be reachable on port 443; fixed address or DHCP reservation.
  5. Signal strength at the tablet’s position checked at a busy time.

Still stuck? Contact us through the chat in the backoffice or at info@vizito.eu with the result of the “Connection status” panel and the make and model of the tablet.