Use a notification to share general information with users or communicate something about a specific device, known as a Spot. Create the notification in the browser and check that it appears in the recipient's mobile app. The notification type determines how recipients and visibility are selected.

Permissions and selecting the notification type

You need permission to create notifications of the selected type. A manager's permission to create general notifications is determined by the general notification permissions of their manager role. Permissions for Spot notifications are determined by the selected Spot's folder permissions. Viewing and editing each require separate permissions. Being able to open the creation form does not guarantee permission to save.

  • Spot notification relates to a single Spot. It appears in the Spot's notifications in the mobile app during the specified period for users who have access to the Spot. Recipient roles are not selected.
  • General notification is targeted at mobile roles. It appears in the general notifications list for users who belong to at least one of the selected roles. No Spot or number of days for visibility is selected.

Create a notification

  1. In the browser menu, open Manage tasks → Notifications. Select Create new notification at the top of the page.
  2. Select Notification type at the top of the form. The default is Spot notification. Choose the type carefully: it cannot be changed on the form for a saved notification.
  3. Fill in Notification heading and, if needed, Description. The heading is required and can contain up to 50 characters. The description is optional.
  4. Select the required Notification date. Also complete the type-specific selections described below.
  5. Save using the Create new notification button at the bottom of the form. A successful save displays the message New notification was created. If saving fails, correct the reported field errors or have your permissions checked.

Write the heading so that users can understand the required action directly from the list. In the description, explain what will happen, when, and who to contact if needed.

Spot notification: Spot and active period

Select the target in the form's Select spot field. A Spot is required. Set Show # days before and Show # days after. Both default to 0, and accepted values are whole numbers from 0 to 1999. The value 2000 cannot be saved, even though the field's error message states an upper limit of 2000.

The active period starts on the notification date minus the number of days before. It ends on the notification date plus the number of days after; the notification remains active until the end of the final day. For example, a notification date of 10 October, two days before and one day after gives a period of 8–11 October. When both values are 0, the notification is active on the notification date.

The Spot notification lists on Android and iOS show only active notifications. The Spot must be active and accessible to the recipient; restricted access to the Spot based on a tag is also taken into account. The end of the period does not delete the notification: it remains available for viewing in the browser according to permissions. Saving a Spot notification does not trigger the push notification process used for general notifications.

General notification: mobile roles and notification date

Select recipients in the Roles to which the notification is sent field. You can select several mobile roles. The roles available to a manager are limited to their permitted mobile roles and the roles of their own mobile user account, if they have one. The user information in the role selector helps you check the target audience.

You can save with no roles selected, but the notification will then have no mobile recipients and no push notifications will be generated for it. Visibility in the list is based on the user's current roles: adding or removing a role may change which notifications the user sees.

The notification date does not schedule the publication of a general notification or determine when it expires. Even a notification dated for a future day may appear in the mobile list immediately after saving. The list is sorted by notification date, from newest to oldest.

The notification date is used in push notification processing. Creating or editing a general notification dated today immediately queues push processing; a notification dated for a future day is processed during the scheduled processing associated with its notification date. Editing a notification dated today may therefore also cause a new push notification.

A push notification and the app's notification list are separate things. A successful save does not confirm delivery to the phone. If needed, check notification permission on the recipient's phone and the permitted notification times; see the article Mobile notification settings.

Check the saved notification and its visibility

Open the saved notification in the Notifications table by clicking its heading. Check the type, heading, description and notification date. For a Spot notification, also check the Spot and the period determined by the day values; for a general notification, check the recipient roles. The table's Start date and End date describe the active period of a Spot notification; they do not limit a general notification's visibility in the mobile app.

If you correct any information, save using the Save button at the bottom of the open form. A general notification's notification date can no longer be changed once its previously saved date is today or in the past. The restriction is based on the saved date, so the date cannot be moved into the future either. This restriction does not apply to the notification date of a Spot notification.

Also verify the result using the recipient's account in the correct organization. On Android and iOS, general notifications are available through the Notifications button in the Browse view. For a Spot notification, open the relevant Spot and select Notifications from its action options. Check the heading and content. The Spot notification must be active when you check it; for a general notification, check the recipient's current role. See also Reading notifications in the mobile app.

Check read receipts for a general notification

Open the general notification from the browser table and select Read log on the form. The Users who have read the notification tab shows the saved read records for individual users and the Read at time. The Users who have not read tab shows the current mobile users in the target roles who have no read record.

Opening a general notification from the mobile notification list sends a read record to be saved. Check the saved receipt in the browser: the notification appearing as read in the mobile app or the receipt of a push notification alone does not confirm delivery. A read receipt also does not indicate that the user has carried out the instructions in the notification.

The unread list changes as roles and their memberships change, so it is not a historical list of recipients at the time of sending. Previously saved read records remain when a notification is edited; they do not prove that the user has also read the corrected content. This read receipt view is not available for Spot notifications.