coredyn Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 Has anyone else had success with the new iOS c4 app connecting outside of the same wifi connection using a vpn? Since I updated I can no longer connect remotely... I have my VPN setup using openvpn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
control4user007 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 8 hours ago, coredyn said: Has anyone else had success with the new iOS c4 app connecting outside of the same wifi connection using a vpn? Since I updated I can no longer connect remotely... I have my VPN setup using openvpn. Having the same issue. OS 2 app worked fine with the same VPN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turls Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Would be interesting to know if other VPN apps have the same issue on iOS. ProtonVPN is free. I don't have OS3 yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anish Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Same issue with me. Custom VPN. Worked perfect with os2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anish Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Same issue with me. Custom vpn. Was working just fine in os2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoelC Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Hi Folks, I'm the manager of the Mobile and Embedded UI teams at Control4. Thank you for bringing this to our attention! I can assure you we didn't intentionally disable VPN use. However, VPN use through the app isn't an officially supported feature. Currently, 4Sight is the only supported way to connect remotely. Our apps rely on multicast networking and SSDP to find the primary controller's IP address. Most VPNs are not enabled to transmit multicast packets to a client device. In OS 2, the apps had a manual IP address setting. By using the manual IP address setting, you could bypass the need for multicast. To simplify app configuration for the customer, we removed the manual IP setting. We are currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks. Also, VPN does work on Android as long as the app has connected one time. VPN works on Android due to a speed optimization that caches the last known IP address. As long as the address hasn't changed, VPN will continue to work. We are also evaluating adding that optimization into iOS to speed up the iOS connection time overall. As a side benefit, that will also enable VPN access, if we decide to add it to iOS. Thanks again! Joel South Africa C4 user, lukas.polivka, msgreenf and 1 other 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amr Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 Joel, what about countries where 4sight does not work cause the Internet Authority shuts down IPSec and 4sight is useless to use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
control4user007 Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 1 hour ago, JoelC said: Hi Folks, I'm the manager of the Mobile and Embedded UI teams at Control4. Thank you for bringing this to our attention! I can assure you we didn't intentionally disable VPN use. However, VPN use through the app isn't an officially supported feature. Currently, 4Sight is the only supported way to connect remotely. Our apps rely on multicast networking and SSDP to find the primary controller's IP address. Most VPNs are not enabled to transmit multicast packets to a client device. In OS 2, the apps had a manual IP address setting. By using the manual IP address setting, you could bypass the need for multicast. To simplify app configuration for the customer, we removed the manual IP setting. We are currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks. Also, VPN does work on Android as long as the app has connected one time. VPN works on Android due to a speed optimization that caches the last known IP address. As long as the address hasn't changed, VPN will continue to work. We are also evaluating adding that optimization into iOS to speed up the iOS connection time overall. As a side benefit, that will also enable VPN access, if we decide to add it to iOS. Thanks again! Joel Thanks for the response Joel! Glad to see more C4 employees on the forum to answer these kinds of questions. Hope you guys decide to bring it back to iOS! South Africa C4 user 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monster_34 Posted October 13, 2019 Share Posted October 13, 2019 Good day... I got same message when while registering new controller. How can i ressolve this? thanks.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosenqui Posted November 1, 2019 Share Posted November 1, 2019 On 6/7/2019 at 7:39 PM, JoelC said: ... Also, VPN does work on Android as long as the app has connected one time. ... That's only true if WiFi happens to be active . If you're out & about and not connected to any WiFi, but have your VPN active and tunnelling over the cellular IP network you get: Unable to Connect Please join a WiFi network connected to your system, or contact your dealer to enable Anywhere Access through 4Sight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon L Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 I have found that using OpenVPN on iOS (13.3 as it happens) when connected to 4G does NOT enable remote connection to my C4 system but if I am connected to another wifi network via VPN it does. I use this maybe 2x per year to turn on garden lights before returning home via a boat at night (ie cannot be wifi connected) and do not want to pay an annual subscription to 4sight for this sole (trivial) purpose, so would really like to find a solution to connecting via VPN+4G to do this. Any suggestions? (as someone else has said, it worked fine under C4 OS2). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lippavisual Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 Create a vpn to your network and in your phone. Turn vpn on before trying to connect with the app. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Costa Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 On 6/8/2019 at 2:39 AM, JoelC said: Hi Folks, I'm the manager of the Mobile and Embedded UI teams at Control4. Thank you for bringing this to our attention! I can assure you we didn't intentionally disable VPN use. However, VPN use through the app isn't an officially supported feature. Currently, 4Sight is the only supported way to connect remotely. Our apps rely on multicast networking and SSDP to find the primary controller's IP address. Most VPNs are not enabled to transmit multicast packets to a client device. In OS 2, the apps had a manual IP address setting. By using the manual IP address setting, you could bypass the need for multicast. To simplify app configuration for the customer, we removed the manual IP setting. We are currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks. Also, VPN does work on Android as long as the app has connected one time. VPN works on Android due to a speed optimization that caches the last known IP address. As long as the address hasn't changed, VPN will continue to work. We are also evaluating adding that optimization into iOS to speed up the iOS connection time overall. As a side benefit, that will also enable VPN access, if we decide to add it to iOS. Thanks again! Joel Hello Everybody, It was very helpful to use app via VPN to check some changes and solve troubleshooting consideing that we are C4 dealers. And it is quite strange to ask to client to pay 99$ to make us possible to connect remotely and even more strange to pay 99$ by ourselves, to make our job And what is more strange that after installing OS 3.x.x (doesn't remember which one) application was working via VPN remotely for some time and later stopped forever. So I bet it worked in OS3 and then C4 turned it off, it is very unusual to "simplify" something not from the start but in the middle. You wrote that you are "currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks" - will it happen this century ? Maybe we don't know and there is another solution ? Anish 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoelC Posted February 19, 2020 Share Posted February 19, 2020 @Costa I'm sorry that you are feeling frustrated by the app's lack of VPN support. Unfortunately, VPNs haven't ever been fully supported, even in OS 2. However, if you can setup a VPN to forward multicast packets, then SDDP should work and allow the app to find Director. We haven't intentionally done anything to take away or block VPNs, it's mainly that VPNs aren't compatible with how the apps discover Director. I discourage using 4Sight or a VPN for support. Instead, I encourage dealers to use Composer Pro and a remote monitoring tool (e.g. OvrC). Personally, I find a lot of value in having a 4Sight subscription that allows me to receive push notifications, answer my door with Intercom Anywhere, and monitor my home remotely (not to mention Alexa or Google voice). But that's me and I am biased. *Disclaimer: I work for Control4. RE: evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting. I can't comment on when or if it will be brought back. At the time of my original post we were looking into bringing it back for other, not vpn, related reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tokead Posted March 9, 2020 Share Posted March 9, 2020 That's only true if WiFi happens to be active . If you're out & about and not connected to any WiFi, but have your VPN active and tunnelling over the cellular IP network you get: Unable to Connect Please join a WiFi network connected to your system, or contact your dealer to enable Anywhere Access through 4Sight.My 4Sight just expired and my dealer is away, so I wanted to use my VPN, which I’ve had for years (currently OpenVPN on Pakedge RK1 and iOS). I get the same error over LTE. I just logged into my hotel’s WiFi, and I can access my system. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted March 9, 2020 Share Posted March 9, 2020 You can sell for new your 4sight at customer.control4.com. You do not need a dealer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tokead Posted March 10, 2020 Share Posted March 10, 2020 You can sell for new your 4sight at customer.control4.com. You do not need a dealerI know; I’d like to support him versus bypassing directly to C4Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted March 10, 2020 Share Posted March 10, 2020 Dealer still gets a cut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tokead Posted March 10, 2020 Share Posted March 10, 2020 Dealer still gets a cutAh, didn’t know that. I did ask him. Feel better now. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopedogg88 Posted March 10, 2020 Share Posted March 10, 2020 It's better to buy it through your dealer though... Otherwise Control4 takes half... Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alt Posted March 10, 2020 Share Posted March 10, 2020 On 6/7/2019 at 4:39 PM, JoelC said: Hi Folks, I'm the manager of the Mobile and Embedded UI teams at Control4. Thank you for bringing this to our attention! I can assure you we didn't intentionally disable VPN use. However, VPN use through the app isn't an officially supported feature. Currently, 4Sight is the only supported way to connect remotely. Our apps rely on multicast networking and SSDP to find the primary controller's IP address. Most VPNs are not enabled to transmit multicast packets to a client device. In OS 2, the apps had a manual IP address setting. By using the manual IP address setting, you could bypass the need for multicast. To simplify app configuration for the customer, we removed the manual IP setting. We are currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks. Also, VPN does work on Android as long as the app has connected one time. VPN works on Android due to a speed optimization that caches the last known IP address. As long as the address hasn't changed, VPN will continue to work. We are also evaluating adding that optimization into iOS to speed up the iOS connection time overall. As a side benefit, that will also enable VPN access, if we decide to add it to iOS. Thanks again! Joel "We are currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks." +1 Please bring this back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe926 Posted May 13, 2020 Share Posted May 13, 2020 On 3/9/2020 at 8:27 PM, Alt said: "We are currently evaluating bringing back the manual IP address setting to provide a workaround for misconfigured networks." +1 Please bring this back! Yes please bring this back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.