Docs / Using Rotorloop
Alerts
Get told when something needs attention: on your phone, your computer and your team chat.
An alert rule watches readings as they arrive. When something stays wrong for long enough, Rotorloop raises an alert in the app and tells the people and chats who asked to hear about it. When things are back to normal, the alert clears by itself.
Set up an alert
- Open Alerts, then Rules. Admins can create and change alerts; everyone can see them.
- Start from a common alert (Room too warm, Room too cold, Equipment stops reporting, Site goes offline) or choose New alert.
- Choose what to watch for and which points. One alert can watch many points; each point raises its own alert.
- Set for at least: how long it must last before anyone is told.
- Choose Normal or Urgent, check the live preview, and choose Start watching.
What an alert can watch for
| Watch for | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Goes above / goes below | Temperatures, pressures, power, levels: any reading that is a number. "All room temperatures" adds every room at once. |
| Is a value | On/off points and modes, such as a fan that is Off, an alarm that is On, or a unit left in a mode. |
| Stops reporting | A reading that goes missing or that the controller reports as faulted. Pick one point per piece of equipment, so a dead controller raises one alert, not twenty. |
| Site goes offline | No word from the site's Connector for the time you choose, for example a power cut or the site's internet going down. The building keeps running on its own controls meanwhile. |
No false alarms from blips
- An alert is raised only after the condition has lasted the time you set. Choose At once for alarms that matter immediately.
- It clears only after things have been back to normal for a minute, so a reading hovering at the line doesn't flap.
- Stale or faulted readings never raise or clear a limit alert. While the site is out of touch, alerts stay as they were.
- The same alert on the same point notifies people at most every 10 minutes, however often it comes and goes.
When an alert is raised
The Alerts tab shows a count of alerts nobody has acknowledged yet, and rooms and equipment with an alert are marked in the lists. Each alert says what and where, when it started, and the latest reading.
Acknowledge it to let everyone know you're on it, with an optional note. Operators, admins and owners can acknowledge; viewers can see alerts. Acknowledging doesn't change any equipment.
Past alerts stay under Earlier this week in the app and are kept for 90 days.
Phone and computer notifications
- Open Alerts › Notifications on the phone or computer you want alerts on.
- Choose Urgent only or All alerts, then Turn on alerts on this device and allow notifications when the browser asks.
- Send a test to check it arrives. Repeat on each device you use; they're listed under Your other devices.
Notifications arrive even when Rotorloop is closed. Urgent ones stay on screen until dismissed. Tapping one opens the Alerts tab.
On iPhone and iPad: open Rotorloop in Safari, tap Share, choose Add to Home Screen, then open Rotorloop from the Home Screen and turn alerts on there. This is how Apple allows web apps to send notifications.
Each message is encrypted for that one browser. The phone or browser maker's notification service delivers it but can't read it.
Team chat
Admins can post alerts to a channel under Alerts › Notifications › Team chat. Paste the channel's webhook address, choose urgent only or all alerts, then send a test.
| Chat | Where to get the address |
|---|---|
| Slack | Add the Incoming Webhooks app to a channel and copy its Webhook URL. |
| Microsoft Teams | In the channel, open Workflows and choose "Post to a channel when a webhook request is received". Copy the address it gives you. |
| Google Chat | In the space, open Apps & integrations, then Webhooks. Add one and copy its URL. |
| Anything else | Any HTTPS address that accepts a JSON POST. Each message includes the event (raised, cleared or test), a title, details, urgency and a link to the app. |
A webhook address works like a password for the channel, so Rotorloop keeps it secret: after it's saved, only the start and the last few characters are ever shown again.
Who can do what
- Everyone can see alerts and turn on notifications for their own devices.
- Operators can also acknowledge alerts.
- Admins and owners can create and change alert rules and team chats. Those changes are in the activity log.