How to Fix Guardzilla Notification Lag and Delays
Receiving timely motion alerts is a fundamental function of your Guardzilla security camera. When there's a significant delay between an event happening and the notification arriving on your phone, it undermines the camera's purpose. This "notification lag" can be caused by a number of bottlenecks between your camera, the cloud servers, and your phone.
This professional guide will help you diagnose and resolve the common causes of delayed Guardzilla notifications, ensuring you get the alerts you need, when you need them.
## Understanding the Notification Journey
To troubleshoot effectively, it helps to understand the path an alert takes:
- Detection: Your Guardzilla camera detects motion.
- Upload: The camera processes the event and uploads a video clip or snapshot to Guardzilla's cloud servers.
- Processing: The servers process this information.
- Push Notification: The servers send a push notification to your smartphone via Apple's or Google's notification service.
- Receipt: Your phone receives the notification and displays it.
A delay at any stage in this chain will result in notification lag.
## Strengthening Your Network Connection
The most common point of failure is the connection between your camera and your router (Step 2).
- Check Camera's Wi-Fi Signal: A weak Wi-Fi signal means the camera will take longer to upload the event data. Try moving your camera closer to your Wi-Fi router. If you cannot move the camera, consider a Wi-Fi extender to boost the signal in that area.
- Reduce Network Congestion: If many other devices on your network are streaming videos, online gaming, or downloading large files, there is less upload bandwidth available for your camera. This can create a queue and delay the alert.
- Check Your Phone's Connection: Your phone also needs a stable internet connection (either Wi-Fi or strong mobile data) to receive the push notification promptly. If your phone has a poor signal, the alert will be delayed.
## Optimise Your Smartphone Settings
Sometimes the issue lies with how your phone is handling the incoming notifications.
- Disable Battery Optimisation for Guardzilla: Modern smartphones use aggressive battery-saving features that can put apps "to sleep" and delay their notifications.
- On Android: Go to 'Settings' > 'Apps' > 'Guardzilla' > 'Battery'. Select 'Unrestricted' or 'No optimisation'.
- On iOS: Background App Refresh is the key. Go to 'Settings' > 'General' > 'Background App Refresh' and ensure it is enabled for the Guardzilla app.
- Check Notification Permissions: Navigate to your phone's notification settings and ensure that all permissions are enabled for the Guardzilla app.
- Disable 'Do Not Disturb' Mode: Make sure your phone is not in a 'Do Not Disturb' or 'Focus' mode that could be silencing or delaying app alerts.
## Reboot and Reset Your System
A simple reboot can often clear temporary software glitches causing the lag.
- Power cycle the camera: Unplug your Guardzilla camera from the wall, wait a full 60 seconds, and then plug it back in.
- Reboot your router: Unplug your Wi-Fi router for 60 seconds as well. This can clear up network-related issues.
- Restart your phone: A quick restart of your smartphone can resolve app-related problems.
By systematically improving your network, checking your phone's settings, and performing a system reboot, you can eliminate the bottlenecks that cause notification lag and restore the timely alerts you rely on for your security.