Working Offline
| Platform: | WebMobile |
|---|---|
| Plan Type: | BasicEssentialPremiumEnterprise |
| User Type: | RequesterFull UserAdministrator |
Offline mode lets technicians use the MaintainX® mobile application to update work orders while they're offline or have limited internet connectivity.
Offline mode uses a "cache" of work orders stored on your device. As you work, MaintainX updates the local copies of your work orders. When you deactivate offline mode and reconnect to the internet, you can sync the updated work orders in your cache with your organization.
Depending on your settings (see Offline Caching Settings), MaintainX either syncs your work orders automatically, or you have to sync them manually.
Offline Mode Requirements​
Before you switch to offline mode, you have to connect to the internet so MaintainX can create or update the cache of work orders you can access while you're offline.
Activate Offline Mode​
MaintainX activates offline mode automatically if it can't connect to the internet. You can also activate offline mode manually.
To activate offline mode:
- On the Overview screen of the MaintainX mobile application, select Account.
- On the My Account screen, select Offline Settings.
- Toggle the Is Offline setting.
Offline Caching Settings​
You can control how MaintainX caches work orders on your device and when it syncs your local copies with your organization.
Adjusting the offline caching settings can improve performance if the MaintainX mobile application lags or crashes on your device. For details, see our troubleshooting article, MaintainX Mobile Application Lags or Crashes.
To access the offline settings:
- On the Overview screen of the MaintainX mobile application, select Account.
- On the My Account screen, select Offline Settings.
The following table explains the available offline settings:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Available Storage | Shows you how much memory is available to store cached work orders. |
| Save work orders assigned to | Specify whether MaintainX should cache work orders assigned only to you, or to you and your teams. |
| Update cache when | Specifies when and how the cache is updated.
|
| Cache Limit | Choose how many work orders to cache on your device. MaintainX automatically adjusts the cache so the number of cached work orders is within the new limit. |
| Cache last updated | The date and time MaintainX last synced your local work orders with your organization. |
| Clear local cache | Deletes your local work orders. You can't clear the cache while offline mode is on. |
Update the Cache Manually​
To update the cache manually, from the offline settings, tap the Cache last updated setting.
Turn Off Caching​
To turn off caching, from the offline settings, select Save work orders assigned to > Disable Caching to stop caching work orders locally.
If you turn off caching, changes you make while offline won't be saved.
How MaintainX Caches Work Orders​
MaintainX rebuilds the cache for offline mode when you do any of the following:
- Open the To-do view or the Calendar view in the Work Orders module and load work orders.
- Update the cache manually from the offline settings.
Cache Eligibility​
Work orders are only eligible to be cached if they respect the offline settings. For example, if you configured your settings to cache only work orders assigned to you, those assigned to your teams but not to you directly won’t be cached.
Building the Cache​
MaintainX adds eligible work orders to the cache based on due date—work orders due soonest are added first. It limits the cache to the number of work orders specified in the Cache Limit setting.
If work orders change while you have them loaded in the Work Orders module, MaintainX rebuilds the cache periodically to include the updates. This only happens if the updated work orders respect the offline settings.
Using Offline Mode with Multiple Organizations​
If you belong to more than one MaintainX organization and you plan to use offline mode, keep the following information in mind:
- You can't switch organizations while you're offline. You must connect to the internet first.
- When you switch organizations, MaintainX refreshes the cache. That's because work orders are organization-specific, so you need a cache of work orders for the current organization before you can access them offline.
For example, let's say you've been working offline on work orders for Organization 1, but now you need to work on a work order for Organization 2—still offline.
When you deactivate offline mode and connect to the internet, MaintainX first syncs your cache with Organization 1 so the updates you made while offline are in the system.
When you switch to Organization 2, MaintainX refreshes the cache to replace Organization 1's work orders with Organization 2's work orders.
Now you can activate offline mode again, and work on Organization 2's work orders offline.
Using Offline Mode in Workstation Mode​
​Workstation mode turns public computers or public devices running the MaintainX application into multi-user access terminals. It makes it easier for multiple users to use MaintainX from the same device.
You can activate offline mode for a device in workstation mode, but you should be aware of the following details and limitations:
- You must be connected to the internet to log into a workstation device.
- After you log into the device, you can activate offline mode and work on even if you don't have an internet connection.
- If you log out, you can't log in again until you connect to the internet.
If your organization has an inactivity timer set up for workstation devices (see Update the Inactivity Timer), inactive users will be logged out after the inactivity period even if the device is in offline mode. They won't be able to log in again until the device can reconnect to the internet.