Notifications

You can enable XProtect Mobile to notify users when an event occurs, such as when an alarm triggers or something goes wrong with a device or server.

Notifications are always delivered, regardless if the app is running or not. When XProtect Mobile is open on the mobile device, the app delivers the notification. System notifications are also delivered even when the app is not running. Users can specify the types of notifications they want to receive. For example, a user can choose to receive notifications for the following:

  • All alarms
  • Only alarms assigned to them
  • Only alarms related to the system

    These might be when a server goes offline or comes back online.

You can also use push notifications to notify users who don't have XProtect Mobile open. These are called push notifications. Push notifications are delivered to the mobile device and are a great way to keep users informed while they're on the go.

By default, notifications are disabled.

Using push notifications

To use push notifications, your system must have access to the Internet.

Push notifications use cloud services from Apple, Microsoft, and Google:

  • Apple Push Notification service (APN)
  • Microsoft Azure Notification Hub
  • Google Cloud Messaging Push Notification service

There is a limit to the number of notifications that your system is allowed to send during a period of time. If your system exceeds the limit, it can send only one notification every 15 minutes during the next period. The notification contains a summary of the events that occurred during the 15 minutes. After the next period, the limitation is removed.

See also Requirements for notifications setup and Notifications tab.

Set up push notifications on XProtect Mobile server

To set up push notifications, follow these steps:

  1. In Management Client, select the mobile server, and then click the Notifications tab.
  2. To send notifications to all mobile devices that connect to the server, select the Notifications check box. Read the warning about your personal data and select Yes if you want to proceed.
  3. To store information about the users and mobile devices that connect to the server, select the Maintain device registration check box.

The server sends notifications only to the mobile devices in this list. If you clear the Maintain device registration check box and save the change, the system clears the list. To receive push notifications again, users must reconnect their device.

Enable sending push notifications to specific or all mobile devices

To enable XProtect Mobile, notify users when an event occurs by sending push notifications to specific or all mobile devices:

  1. In Management Client, select the mobile server, and then click the Notifications tab.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • For individual devices, select the Enabled check box for each mobile device listed in the Registered devices table
    • For all mobile devices, select the Notifications check box. Read the warning about your personal data and select Yes if you want to proceed

Stop sending push notifications to specific or all mobile devices

There are several ways to stop sending push notifications to specific or all mobile devices.

  1. In Management Client, select the mobile server, and then click the Notifications tab.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • For individual devices, clear the Enabled check box for each mobile device. The user can use another device to connect to the XProtect Mobile server
    • For all devices, clear the Notifications check box

To temporarily stop for all devices, clear the Maintain device registration check box and then save your change. The system sends notifications again after users reconnect.

Remove one or all registered devices from the Registered devices list

When you uninstall the XProtect Mobile app or disable the device, the device data may still be kept in the VMS database.

The VMS removes the device registration data when:

  • You remove a user from the system.

  • Milestone Care Plus has not been renewed for more than 180 days.

However, there are scenarios when the device registration data is not automatically removed.

You must manually remove one or all registered devices when:

  • A user has lost his phone.

  • You want to uninstall the mobile server completely and remove its data.

  • A user has stopped using the XProtect Mobile client app or notifications.

  • You have added an Active Directory (AD) group to a VMS role and the permissions for a user have changed. When you add an AD group, the VMS does not see the users in that role. If you remove a user from an AD group or restrict the user from using the mobile server, you must also manually remove the user's device from the list.

To remove a registered device:

  1. In Management Client, select the mobile server, and then click the Notifications tab.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • For individual devices, select the device and then select Remove.
    • For all devices, select Remove all.