Troubleshooting External Access

IFS Cloud Mobile External Access

Please refer to How to access IFS Cloud from the Internet for the steps that must be followed to allow external access to the Authentication Provider end point of the IFS Middleware Server if using DB Authentication.

Special External Connection Setup

Your environment may be setup so that your app can syncronize data with IFS Cloud when connecting in a specific way, so we recommend documenting those steps clearly so that users are familiar with how to connect, identify when they are not properly connected, and recognize how the app behaves when it is incorrectly connected.

For example, it may need a VPN to be active, and in such case, your users should know how to confirm that the VPN is active. Similarly, the app may work only when connected through a specific wifi access point, for example in a warehouse or an intranet, and in this case it is best to educate users to forget other wifi connections to ensure the device does not silently connect to a wrong network.

A common sign that the device is incorrectly connected is that no data is synced to the device (e.g.: new jobs do not show up) and the changes done on the device are not visible on the back end. If a user suspects that data is not syncing, the first step to try is to manually sync the device. If a Manual Sync fails to update data (e.g.: “My Work” and/or the work pool in MWO), confirm with your back office colleagues that new data is available and marked for transfer to mobile. It might be that some work needs to be re-sent to mobile, and this can be done by right clicking the Task and clicking Transfer to Mobile.

If this does not resolve the sync issue, the remaining option is to re-initialise the app. Please note that any outgoing transactions from the phone (e.g. jobs being returned to the server) may fail as a result of a re-initialisation. It is recommended to carry out this step, at a point when there are no outgoing transactions, for example the start of a shift.

Updating of App version

It is also important to note that most devices default to updating apps only over wifi. If your devices work mostly over 4G, remember to ensure that app updates are enabled over any network. If Purchase Authentication is enabled, it may need to be disabled as well, for this setting to take full effect.