Geofencing Schedule not working

[SmartHomeDK]

First topic - and I want to say thank you for a great forum. I've found a lot of good stuff in here already!

Now to something that I haven't been able to solve:

My "Scheduled" mode works perfectly, when I select it.

But whenever I set Geofencing to "Away" -> "Armed" and "Home" -> "Scheduled" the Scheduled mode doesn't work. I've tried restarting the base after saving updates and I'm running the latest firmware.

I can see that others have experienced the same problem and "solved" it thorugh Life360, IFTTT etc., but I would prefer if the Arlo app could do the job as intended.

Any solutions?

[sarge247]

I'm having the same issue. 

When I view the mode screen, I just see the geofencing icon with nothing next to it, and no motion or audio is detected on any camera. 

Tried restarting the base station, completely deleting and recreating everything both on a computer and from the app. 

Haven't found a solution yet, but at least I know I'm not the only one having this issue. 

[JessicaP]

Some devices have battery optimization settings that close or put apps to sleep after they have been idle for a period of time. Check your mobile devices settings and be sure that an exception is made for Arlo if you are running battery saving settings. Also make sure that you have the Arlo app running in the background.

You can also try disabling your device on "Enabled Devices" and re-enabling it and see if that fixes the issue.

[SmartHomeDK]

It changes stage. So geofencing works, but when Geofencing = Home = Schedule Armed, it doesn't work. So it's basically Schedule Armed while using Geofencing that's broken.

[JessicaP]

The Arlo development team is currently investigating this issue where some users are experiencing that geofencing and scheduling is not working as expected. We will provide an update as soon as we have more information to share with the community.

[SmartHomeDK]

Thanks for the update.

I've temporarily solved it with SmartThings and a virtual switch + IFTTT. But it would be cool if the Arlo app did what it says that it does.

[sarge247]

any update on when this will be addressed?

This has been an issue for months and still no resolution that I have found to correct it.

I try it almost every day to see if it's fixed but it has not worked once since it stopped working. 

[SmartHomeDK]

It would be cool if the Arlo-team could solve this. However, my current setup with SmartThings and a virtual switch + IFTTT works perfectly. 

But for sure, the scheduling in Geofencing mode needs to be fixed for users without SmartThings.

[sarge247]

Hello? Any updates???

[Bdgd]

Really need an update on this. As a user that purchased cameras based on geofencing being made available and relying on that functionality for different security modes, this is incredibly frustrating. I dont want to have to go through yet another hub like Smartthings, or use the unreliability of IFTTT, I just want the arlo system and features to function as it should.

[SmartHomeDK]

Well, now that the IFTTT integration is down/broken/removed it's a real shame that the Geofencing Schedule doesn't work.

I'll try Stringify as a temporary solution, but honestly I think that Arlo should be able to make this work without any third party integration.

[FF503]

I see that Arlo is working on a fix for the problems with the schedule mode in Geofencing. Has Arlo found a fix and if so how do I get it? I have already had a theft outside my home due to this function not working.

[Pootle78]

I also use Geofencing to Arm cameras (with a custom mode) when away from home, and control by schedule when at home. Recently I noticed this setup had stopped working correctly, presumably due to an App/Firmware update or some other recent change on Arlo’s side that unfortunately did not go through rigorous regression testing.

I agree this is big security concern as despite notifications reporting Geofencing Zone transition, the actual mode isn’t respecting what has been setup, instead I noticed the system is being Disarmed when Away.

I use Geofencing for the convenience and peace of mind/security to arm the system when Away. However I cannot rely on the notifications “Geofencing is now in Away Mode” and assume, incorrectly, that the system is Armed.

Without actually checking the Mode menu in the app whilst Away (and waiting for the status to refresh to see it isn’t correct) this bug might be going unnoticed for lots of users. No recordings in the library during an Away period might be the only indication of the bug, but users may unknowingly attribute this to an absence of trigger events for that period, where in reality the system is actually Disarmed.

I’ve reported directly to Arlo already and they state they are working on the problem, but I’m curious to know how many other users are experiencing this issue. Due to the subtle nature of the bug it may be something the user isn’t even aware of, or perhaps using a custom mode (Away) plus schedule (Home) for geofencing setup isn’t a common choice.

Are any other iOS users seeing problems with geofencing not working properly, particularly with Custom and Schedule modes used (vs a basic Armed/Disarmed setup)?

Regardless, if you use Geofencing configuration at all, I’d recommend checking the actual mode periodically to confirm the system is respecting your desired settings, don’t assume that iOS notification “Geofencing is now in Away Mode” is actually Arming your system.

[Pootle78]

I had an update from Arlo regarding my report on this issue:
“... Although it is not a paid feature, it is a priority and the team is working hard to resolve the remaining bugs. ...”

I’m not sure exactly how to interpret this, but it implies there may be a tendency to prioritize fixes for paid features vs “free”. I hope that isn’t the case as I consider this bug something that is affecting pretty basic, expected functionality (that was present and working when I purchased the system).

It’s a little frustrating that there seems to be a pattern of introducing support for new products and features without rigorous QA/regression testing, that would otherwise ensure existing functionality doesn’t break.

[TKNT81]

See my post for a sort of workaround.

It looks like it it a bug in the Android app only.

https://community.arlo.com/t5/Arlo-Pro/ARLO-GEOFENCING-SCHEDULE-amp-GEOFENCING-ENABLED-NOTIFICATION/...

[Pootle78]

It’s not a bug isolated to Android, I have only iOS devices, and geofencing is not working.
My specific setup is Geofencing Mode set to a “Custom” Mode when Away, and “Schedule” when Home.
Issue: on Away Mode transition - once both phones leave zone, received notification alert (“Geofencing at Home is now Away Mode”) - system does not report correct “Custom” Mode State, instead shows “Disarmed”.
I reported to Arlo and have been testing other settings combinations to help them find the root cause. They agree there are issue with the logic that decides when the mode should switch from Home to Away, and also with Schedule mode.
Basically, don’t use Geofencing Mode until they fix it, since it may well be leaving your system Disarmed when Away.