I was setting one up as a continuous repeater at my house, plugged into an outlet with usb.
but it powered itself off at some point.
so I am not sure how to leave one powered on…
Can you double check the device to see if it actually powered off?
If the device is still ON, when you tap on the power button, the LED indicator light will turn ON immediately.
The device is designed never to power off, when connected to constant power.
1 Like
More discussion on this topic here:
http://community.gotennamesh.com/t/battery-life-on-stationary-relay/138/2?u=danielagotenna
And here:
http://community.gotennamesh.com/t/24-7-meshed-towns-dedicated-relays/139/13
1 Like
I will double check that next time it stops working. but when it does “power off” the phone that it is paired to doesnt see it in the app, and I have to unplug and hold the power button in for the phone to connect
Please note that a goTenna Mesh unit does NOT have to be paired to a phone at all in order to act as a relay node!
Noted, but the fact that the phone that is was paired to doesnt see it, or connect to it, and the red charge light is off, would lead me to believe it is no longer powered on…
Red charge light, turns OFF, after reaching 100% charge.
Did you try pairing with the device through the goTenna app?
The phone was paired prior with the app and works fine.
Let us know if it happens again (as no one else has reported this, but ya never know!) but goTenna Mesh is designed to repair with the iOS or Android device it was previously paired to the second the phone is on/near it again. In any case I just tested this with 3 Mesh units and 3 phones I have with me and they all repaired to their previously paired phones as supposed to.
The only reason that may not have happened is if you maybe paired that iOS or Android device to other goTenna Meshes in the meantime, I think? Or maybe you unpaired the Mesh device from the phone within the app accidentally? I suppose there might also be issues if you’re setting up a bunch of Mesh units at a time; if there are unpaired Mesh units nearby they might connect to the phone without you realizing it. (Which is why we recommend pairing one at a time so you don’t go crazy, which happens to us sometimes at the office, haha!)
Otherwise, AWESOME you’re setting up a stationary relay. Have you marked it on the imeshyou.com map? 
And what kind of environment are you in/what kind of use-cases are you anticipating?
1 Like
It has only happened after an extended period of time, so if you are testing. it will need to be over 24 / 48 hours.
I currently have the 2 units from the kickstarter order, and I have ordered another 4 pack,
I am testing in a populated area around my home currently with my office at 1 mile away. (trees and other 900mhz interference)
I will be using the gotennas mostly in the mountains and back country, but we would also like to try and set up some communications with family who live around 1 mile away, We are in the path of the eclipse Aug 21 and they anticipate cellular communications will be heavily taxed with an additional 500K people coming into the area.
1 Like
Amazing — jealous too, haha. PLEASE take photos for us… and report on how your family mesh works out!!
I feel like i’m seeing this a bit. I’ve paired and unpaired my two devices with my two phones numerous times. I have found on iOS that i sometimes need to force quit the iOS app for it to pickup the last paired unit (with the other unit OFF) once i leave the range of the paired unit for awhile.
1 Like
as an update.
3 days of testing with my dedicated relay only (no pairing to the other unit). Zero force quits required to repair once in range. Couple false positives where it said paired but the charge lvl then dropped to correct level once i force quit the app (zero sun so i knew the readings were wrong… force quit… relaunch and it showed correct 5% level). I have screen shots if they help.
@Advocate glad you could re-connect, without having to force quit the app.
Regarding the false positives – can you check if the battery charge level updates automatically after a few seconds (usually less than 30)?
Are you using an Android or iOS device?
Our unit that has been left plugged in is also still working, but we do see connections issues with the device paired to it if we leave Bluetooth range then come back.
so it looks like the hardware is running fine, just a ios bug.
If you leave Bluetooth range it will 100% disconnect. That’s not a bug though – just the limits of Bluetooth range.
A plugged in/stationary device however does not need to be paired to a phone @Rahul_Subramany can explain how to unpair that device so it isn’t always connecting/disconnecting from your smartphone as you walk by it
2 Likes
correct, We have unpaired when it is used as a stationary device now. I was more referring to once you are back into the bluetooth range the app doesn’t see it again until you do a reset on the app. or reboot.
@Idaho_Fluke Thanks for bringing this up.
What phone model & OS are you using?
How long do you stay out of Bluetooth range before you try to reconnect?
I did just update to the last IOS before leaving for the weekend. so I will need to test with 10.3.3.
Iphone 7 IOS 10.3.3 and also my ipad air 2 with 10.3.3
The testing I have been doing has been 8 hours for the one I leave at home plugged in.
I have tried pairing both at different times and so far see the same results. when i get home and open the app back up (if i left it running in the background) then it just has the lines in the battery and searching for device.
If I reboot then it will see it and work like normal again.