Using iOS and Google Wifi Access Points, cannot open Digital Wellbeing within the Google Home App. G

[netwerktek]

Using iOS and Google Wifi Access Points, cannot open Digital Wellbeing within the Google Home App. Get the message Couldn't open settings, TRY AGAIN. Rebooted phone, rebooted entire network, deleted Google Home App, still doesn't work, same error. App version 2.42.120 and iOS version 14.7.1. Found some Reddit posts but they are a few months old and either resolved itself or no further comments. Any help is appreciated.. Get the message Couldn't open settings, TRY AGAIN. Rebooted phone, rebooted entire network, deleted Google Home App, still doesn't work, same error. App version 2.42.120 and iOS version 14.7.1. Found some Reddit posts but they are a few months old and either resolved itself or no further comments. Any help is appreciated.

[Jasur]

June and still having the same problem. 

[ZDBrent]

I have deleted and re-installed.  I get the error "Couldn't Open Settings.  Try Again"

[Technophant]

I tried these steps also same results. IPadOS 13.5. Easy to conclude that this feature doesn’t work with iOS, yet. 

[AllenC]

I converted controlling my Google Mesh to the Google Home app and now cant use the Digital  Wellbeing feature.  Thus, our wifi is open to kids viewing anything, not good.  Also on IOS.

[RHM]

HELLO, I HAVE THE SAME ISSUE, THIS IS RIDICULOUS AS I HAVE INTENDED THIS TO HAVE CONTROL OVER DEVICES MY CHILDREN USE.,

[Jody13]

I have the opposite problem. It’s playing censored albums but I want explicit!!!

[jencooperemail]

I converted earlier this year from the google mesh app also and I cannot get digital wellbeing to work either.
I get the same error as described by others "couldn't open settings"
Im on ios 14.8, iphone XR

[neelieclarkyy]

I am using the google home app for a google nest hub and am also getting "Couldn't open settings, try again" and i need to get into that settings to edit my restrictions because I cannot edit my routines 

[Jeff]

Hey, all.

This isn't the official fix for this issue, but it is something worth giving a try that has seen some success with others in a similar situation. I'm going to ask you to toggle your cloud services in the Home app. The instructions for doing so are below. If you are dealing with a Nest Hub device in addition to WiFi, go ahead and do the power cycle on that as well. Here are those steps.

Open the Google Home app.

1. Tap the WiFi icon.

2. Tap Settings.

3. Select Privacy settings.

4. Toggle Nest WiFi cloud services OFF and wait for 30 seconds, then back ON.

Once done, close the Home app and perform a full network restart to ensure that the new settings are in place. To do this, I would recommend doing a power cycle on your network.

1. Disconnect the power adapter and the Ethernet cable from the Nest WiFi router.

2. Disconnect the power adapter from the Nest WiFi points.

3. Disconnect the power adapter from the modem. Allow all devices to stay disconnected from the power for 5 minutes.

4. Connect the power back to the modem only and wait for it to fully back up. All lights should be lit up before moving to the next step.

5. After the modem is back online, connect the Ethernet cable back to Nest WiFi router's WAN port (globe symbol port).

6. Connect the power back to the Nest WiFi router and to the Nest WiFi points. Wait until they're all fully back on.

If you are unable to access these settings or things still don't work, please come back and let me know, but hopefully this will clear up your issue. 

Thanks.

[AllenC]

Hi Jeff.  Appreciate you responding but, sadly, this did not work either.  My network cannot be controlled.  I spent alot of money getting it set up so my grandkids could come over and we could rest assured they could use our wifi safely.  I have an iPhone, obviously not an unique device, and you shut off my ability to control it.  Very confusing as to why Google would do that.  

[JoeMunsell]

Hi Jeff,

I tried this reboot process, but I still keep getting the same error message when I click on "Digital Wellbeing" . It states: "Couldn't open settings" "Try Again".

I'm trying to just block a couple problematic websites. Is there another way to go about this?

Thank you,

Joe

[Walhallen]

Yea or just don't buy google stuff if you have IOS.  I'm a pyton and C# senior programmer and I can tell you this looks like intentional. just to annoy IOS users. Yea I will return this POC and get something that works.

[Jeff]

Hey, AllenC.

Thanks for giving that a try. I'm sorry it didn't work out.

The overall issue is still being looked at internally and we're hoping to have a fix soon. In the meantime, I'll update things here as I know more. Sorry it's been so frustrating. If anything changes in your situation, please feel free to update the thread.

Thanks.

[Jeff]

Hey, AllenC.

That would actually probably work, yes. The thing is, that's a rough workaround and obviously it's better if we can just get things working on your setup as intended. But you can definitely borrow an Android device, log in, make the changes you need to make, and log back out of everything on the device. There are ways to run Android apps on PC as well, but it's not quite as easy.

If you do go that route, there are some users around here that have some experience doing that.

[Jeff]

Hey, AllenC.

The PC method involves having a setup that allows you to run Android apps on your PC. From there, the apps behave just as they would on your phone and you can manage things from the computer instead of your mobile device. This would still be considered a workaround, and we're working on that permanent fix for the mobile experience.

Thanks.

[AllenC]

Its better than being naked as I am now.....no pun intended.  How do I do this - can you provide a step by step?

[AllenC]

I tried to download the Google Home app to my PC but since it "not associated with any device", I was unable to download it.

Any ideas?

[oaname]

I cannot believe this is not fixed yet

[shiffamatic]

• But you can bet google would not hire you if you admitted to ever doing something this bad at a job during an interview at google. 

[Jhonleanmel]

Hey folks,

I wanted to follow up and see if you are still in need of any help. Please let me know if you are still having any trouble from here, as I would be happy to take a closer look and assist you further.

Thanks,
Mel

[Taf1]

still doesn’t work sorry 

[Jhonleanmel]

Hi Taf1,

Thanks for letting us know. Have you had the chance to try the steps above? If so, how was it?
 

Best,

Mel

[shiffamatic]

When trying to launch digital wellbeing, I get "Couldn't open Settings"

[Jhonleanmel]

Hi shiffamatic,

Thanks for the update. Have you had the chance to factory reset your network? If so, how was it?

Best regards,

Mel

[shiffamatic]

by factory reset, you mean unplug it?

[needwifihelp]

This is still an issue. But I'm guessing everyone working on this thread has been laid off as it was clearly not a priority for 3 years.

[shiffamatic]

Transparency is key.  I’m sure there is some VP in charge of this group who is paid well enough to just tell us sorry the feature is not coming. 

[Jeff]

Hey shiffamatic,

A factory reset is more than just a power cycle. It resets the device to the state it was in when it shipped from the factory. Here's an article explaining the process from beginning to end: https://goo.gle/3C1oDpv.

If you have any other questions, just let us know.

Thanks,

Jeff

[shiffamatic]

Same error when trying to open digital well-being.  "Couldn't open settings"

[Jeff]

Hey everyone,

I have a little bit to add here. 

Family Wifi was created for WiFi devices and controls what other connected devices can access and when. It's possible some are looking for the Family WiFi feature and are coming across the Digital Wellbeing feature due to its similarity. This article gives a bit more clarification and context for Family WiFi and how it should be used: https://goo.gle/3zpjuFF. 

If you're accessing the Digital Wellbeing settings, take a look at Family Wii and see if that's the actual resolution you're needing.

Thanks,

Jeff

[Jeff]

Hey, AllenC.

The issue I personally run into with the PC Android app is that in many cases they aren't actual Google products, so my ability to recommend for those is very limited. There are also a wide variety of methods for using Android on PC or Mac. I have a hard time speaking to any of them specifically, but in general, if you are logged into your Google account on the app, it should sync properly with all your Google services. I'm sorry I can't offer more support than that, I was hoping someone else in the community could chime in on that.

Thanks.

[Jeff]

Hey, all.

I'm still waiting for an update on this issue. As of now, nothing has come out from our internal support teams, but I'll update the thread as I know more. If anybody here has seen anything work for them, please share it for the rest.

Thanks.

[42below]

Hi Jeff, I have the same issue: when clicking on “Digital well-being” under home settings- features it says: “Coudn’t open settings”. I have researched for some months already but have not seen any official statement from Google how to solve this issue. I am really looking forward to your feedback and a resolution to this issue.

[Ivouken]

Another one with The same problem!

[Jeff]

Hey, all.

While there's no fix yet, in some other threads where this same issue is being discussed, others are seeing things work intermittently. Have any of you noticed the app working normally one day only to go back to being limited the next? We're trying to get this all sorted out, so any additional insight of what you're seeing would be helpful. Hopefully a fix is coming soon.

Thanks.

[Jeff]

Hey, all.

I don't have a solid answer on a fix yet, but I did learn something today that might be causing this issue for some of you. You might have an issue with your permissions in iOS affecting Home's ability to function fully. If you can review your app permissions in Home, there might be some permissions that need to be enabled to free things up. Take a quick look at that and see if it works for you.

Thanks.

[AllenC]

Jeff.  Really appreciate you keeping this moving forward.  Can you walk a technologically challenged guy like me through exactly what to do here?  How do I review my app permissions and what/how do I enable things to fee them up?  Do I go on Google on my desktop?  My Google Home app on my iphone?  Help...

[shiffamatic]

I'm in "settings" google home and all I see is -location, Bluetooth, local network, Siri , notifications, background app refresh and cellular data.  Nothing I see looks like it can be changed to fix it. 

[Jeff]

Hey, everyone.

For those looking to check their app permissions in iOS, this article shows you how to get in there: https://bit.ly/3G9xXH1

Make sure to review the different categories, but privacy permissions are probably a good place to start.

Thanks.

[AllenC]

Did not work, I am on iOS 15.  Does not have a permission for Google Home.