Nest Yale Locks Will Not Stay Connected..??

[angelleye]

I'm having the same issues that are being explained here:  https://www.googlenestcommunity.com/t5/Security/Nest-x-Yale-lock-keeps-going-offline/td-p/210228

It's not letting me reply to that thread for some reason, so I'm creating a new thread.

I just got two new Yale locks and installed them both with their Connect devices.  The Connect devices are very close to the locks that connect to them, and in very strong WiFi areas.

When I first installed them and set everything up it was working perfectly.  The next day both locks said OFFLINE.

When I go into the Connect Technical Info, it shows they're both disconnected from WiFi.  I went through the process of reconnecting to WiFi, and each time I would do this it would give me the green animation showing it was successfully connected.  However, it would still show offline when I check the tech. details.

I did the regular connection check for each of the Connect devices by unplugging them, pushing the button, it showed green like it's good on both.  I plugged them both back in, and checked again while they're plugged in.  Again, both giving me green lights as if it should be good.

Then I check the locks again, and they're still both offline.  At this point I went through the WiFi connection once more, and this time as soon as I completed that I got a notice from each one that it was running on battery power and I should check that they're plugged in.  I guess this was a delayed notice from when I unplugged them to check the connection.

Still, they were showing offline until a few hours later when we checked again, and now they were working.  

However, once again the next day (today) they are both showing offline again, and all of the same things are happening again.

Not a great experience so far, and I see many others having the same problem.  Should we expect an update soon, or what do we do about this?

The only "workaround" I see is to connect everything to an unsecured Guest network.  Not exactly a great solution for a SECURITY device to be connected to UNSECURED networks.  I can't even believe that's being floated as a "solution" to this problem.

Any info on how to actually resolve this problem would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!

[arki11a]

Same issue and quite frustrating a solution hasn’t been found yet. Been an issue for a while now

[angelleye]

I was chatting with their support, and they were telling me (incorrectly) to hold the button on the Connect down until it turned solid yellow, and then keep holding for 10 seconds until it shuts off.

When I do that, though, it doesn't shut off.  It starts pulsing yellow.  Then when I try to connect in the app it says "previous settings...need to be reset..."

We did that a few times, and they kept insisting that I need to hold the button for 10 seconds while it's solid yellow, so I was, for longer than 10 seconds, and it did the same thing every time.

They said it must be faulty (both of them, brand new) and would do an RMA on them.  Okay, fine.  So they did that and got it all in order.  

However, at the same time I saw somebody in one of these threads mention how if you "hold it too long and it turns solid yellow, then it's about to do a factory reset.  To avoid this, let go and push the button again to cancel that."

So then I realized, okay, I'm actually supposed to let go when it turns solid yellow, and sure enough, when I do that it moves from solid yellow to "off" and then back to blue pulsing.

The App allows me to scan the code and add it without giving me that error about previous settings.

However, then it got stuck when asking me the placement.  It seems to have still been seeing (in the app, not the device) that I had the location already used, even though I had already removed the Connect and Lock from the Nest app.  It got stuck there and just said "something went wrong".  I can't get past that point now.

At this point the chat rep ghosted me, so I guess I have 2 new Connect devices coming.  We'll see if that happens to be the issue.

[angelleye]

I received the RMA replacements of the connect devices, and the same exact thing is happening.

I didn't think much of it when I first got them, but the very first time I tried to connect a Nest Connect to my WiFi it just got stuck on that screen for awhile and then said there was a problem.  It never displayed the list of WiFi access points to choose from, and then let me select mine and type in the password.

Once it fails I click Try Again, and that time it worked, so I assumed it was good (and it was for a short period of time.)

These new ones are doing the exact same thing.  The first time I go through setup it hangs and says there's a problem.  Then I "Try again" and this time it displays the list of access points and lets me set that up.

When I do this the Connect shows the green light as if it's good to go.  However, the very next step is to choose a location for the device to be plugged in.  At this poing it hangs again and tells me the device is offline.

So I have 4 different Connect devices now that simply will not connect and stay connected reliably.  This leads me to believe it would be an issue with my router, however, I have ZERO problems with ANY other devices.  

Phone's, TV's, Pool pump, stove, fridge, sprinkler system, tablets, laptops, desktops...all connected reliably to the WiFi without ever having any issues.

Yet I have 4 Connect devices that simply will not stay connected.

What the heck am I supposed to do at this point?

[angelleye]

I went ahead and tried the idea I saw elsewhere in this forum about setting up a guest network on my WiFi, leaving it unsecured, and connecting the Connect to that.

I reset the Connect, then went through setup and again it failed to load any WiFi list at all the first time.  I said "Try again" and this time it did load the list as usual on the second attempt, and I connected to the guest WiFi successfully.

Then it quickly went through the placement part of setup without failure this time, and I was thinking this might be the solution.

However, now the lock will not connect to the connect.  Ugh!!!  It just says it failed, and gives a message about ensuring your Connect is on and online (which it is as shown by the green light and the "Online" status in the Nest app), and that your phone is connected to the same network as the Connect device.

So then I thought, oh, of course, my phone isn't on this guest connection.  Okay fine, that's annoying, but I'll go ahead and switch my phone to the guest network to see if it works then.

Nope, nada.  Same problem.  Yale lock won't connect to the Connect device at all.

It seems to be staying connected to the guest network in general, so at least I can set keys and use the keypad on the lock itself to lock/unlock the door.  

That's a step in the right direction, but this whole experience is just horrible, and now I just want to return the things, but I've already paid my handyman to install these things on two doors, and if I remove them...I won't have locks on my doors!  

And I don't have the original packaging because when I first set everything up it seemed to work, so I threw all that stuff away, which means I can't return it to the store I bought it from.

Google...Nest...WTF...??

[janthadeus]

Hi angelleye,

Don’t give up on us yet. This isn’t the experience we want you to have. Let’s have a better look — could you try creating a new home structure then add your Connect and lock? 

Here’s how: 

1. Open the Nest app .
2. At the top left, tap Menu .
3. Tap Add > Continue.
4. Give your home a name > tap Next.
5. Enter your new home's address > tap Next.
6. Choose if you want to use your phone's location to help with Home/Away Assist for your new home.

Thanks,

JT

[janthadeus]

Hey there,

It's me again. I want to make sure you're all good — did those steps work?
 

Regards,

JT

[angelleye]

Hi, thanks for trying to help.  Unfortunately this didn't help either.

I've put together a doc of this entire experience and all the troubleshooting I've done with no resolution:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VEjSEAhifxABIRX7nXt3zNQLS9dQM0_oFo5iwW_LDXg/edit?usp=sharing

It also outlines all the inconsistencies there are with what's documented vs. what chat support would tell vs. what actually works.

At this point I have 4 different Connect devices all doing the same thing.

If I connect them to my regular 2.4GHz Wi-Fi (5 Ghz never shows up) with a Wi-Fi password, then the lock will connect to the Connect device.  However, it's not stable, just like before.  I can barely get through setup before it disconnects and shows offline again.  If I do make it through setup, the lock will connect, but again, the Connect device goes offline very shortly after and will not stay connected.  All 4 of them.

If instead I do what I've seen in other threads, and I create a guest network that does not have a Wi-Fi password, then the Connect devices will connect and stay connected to my WiFi network.  This at least allows me to use the features at the keypad directly. However, the locks will not connect to the Connect devices in this mode.

As soon as I change them back to password protected WiFi instead of guest then the lock will find it again, but again, they won't stay connected.

The document I provided above also outlines how I went through every troubleshooting step, including making changes on the router.  For example, multicast was disabled on my router, so I enabled that thinking that would be the answer...nope, no luck.

I also tried enabling IPv6 because I saw it said you need that if using Nest Protect, which I'm not, but I'd figured I'd give it a try anyway.  No luck.

Got any other tips to try?

[janthadeus]

Hi there,
 

Thanks for your patience. I appreciate your efforts trying those additional troubleshooting steps. Could you try pairing your Connect to a mobile hotspot then let me know how it goes? In rare cases, your Wi-Fi settings may be causing issues with your Nest × Yale Lock during setup. If you’re still having difficulty setting up your lock after trying a mobile hotspot, verify that your Wi-Fi settings meet the requirements. Take a look at this article: Recommended Wi-Fi network and router settings.

Best,

JT

[janthadeus]

Hey there,

I just wanted to follow up to see if you still need our help. Please let us know as we would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Best regards,

JT

[janthadeus]

Hi there,

Just checking in to make sure that you saw my response. I'll be locking this thread if I won't hear back from you again in 24 hours. Should that happen, feel free to create a new one if you have more questions or have other concerns in the future. 

Thanks,
JT