Cloud sync status
This page explains the delivery information in Settings → Cloud reporting on the BioTrack PC: what each state means, how BioTrack sends and retries, and what to do if delivery keeps retrying or is paused. It is for administrators and anyone who checks that cloud reporting is working.
The transmission strip
Section titled “The transmission strip”The strip at the top of the Cloud reporting group shows:
| Label | What it shows |
|---|---|
| State | What the sender is doing now. See the table below. |
| Subscription paid until | Shown while the PC’s cloud subscription is paid. See Licences and billing. |
| Waiting on this computer | How many records are in the outbox and not yet accepted by the cloud, shown as a number of events. This includes daily records, leave, calendar, correction and rota records as well as scans. |
| Refused by the cloud | Shown only when the cloud refused some changes. See Refused changes. |
| Last accepted | When the cloud last confirmed a batch, in the site’s time zone. Not yet means no batch has been accepted. |
States
Section titled “States”| State | Meaning | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Off | No cloud address is saved, so nothing is sent. A linked PC always has one; Off usually means cloud reporting was turned off. | Ask BioTrack support before turning it back on. |
| Up to date | The sender is running and nothing is waiting, or the last batch was accepted. | None. |
| Sending | A batch is on its way to the cloud. | None. |
| Retrying | The last attempt failed. Records are safe on this computer and BioTrack will try again. A Delivery is retrying notice shows the reason. | Usually none. See If delivery keeps retrying. |
| Paused | The PC has no active cloud subscription, so the cloud is not accepting its attendance. | None, if your organisation does not pay for cloud reporting. Otherwise see If reporting is paused. |
| Stopped | The collector’s cloud sender has stopped, usually because the BioTrack collector service is shutting down or restarting. | If it stays like this, check the service. See Connection states. |
| Waiting | A cloud address is saved but the sender has not picked it up yet, or the app cannot read the sender’s status. | Wait a minute. If it persists, check that the collector service is running. |
Retrying, Paused and Stopped are shown in amber. The Connection page shows the same state under Cloud reporting, with Paused: no subscription for a paused PC.
How delivery works
Section titled “How delivery works”- Every 30 seconds the BioTrack collector checks the outbox. It runs in the background, so delivery continues while the BioTrack window is closed.
- Small batches. Each batch holds up to 11 records. When delivery is working, BioTrack sends batch after batch, up to 64 in a row, before pausing until the next check. A large backlog after an outage catches up without waiting 30 seconds between every batch.
- Nothing is marked sent until the cloud confirms it. If the cloud’s reply is missing, late or incomplete, the batch goes back into the outbox and is sent again later. The cloud recognises records it already has, so sending a batch twice does not create duplicates.
- Growing waits after failures. After a failed attempt, BioTrack waits before retrying that batch. The wait roughly doubles with each failure, with some randomness added, and never exceeds 15 minutes.
Local attendance never waits for the cloud. Scans are saved and shown in BioTrack straight away, whatever the cloud state.
If reporting is paused
Section titled “If reporting is paused”Paused means the cloud is refusing this PC’s attendance because its subscription has not been paid, or has ended. A notice explains which:
- Cloud reporting is paused: no cloud subscription. The PC has never had one.
- Cloud reporting is paused: the subscription has ended. The notice also gives the date the PC’s attendance in the portal will be deleted if the subscription is not renewed.
Nothing is lost on the PC: it keeps collecting, and records wait in the outbox. A pause is not an error, and BioTrack does not count it as a failed attempt.
An administrator of your BioTrack account can pay or renew in the portal under Licences. The PC learns about the payment within about 15 minutes and then sends what it held back. To check straight away, an administrator on the PC can select Check now in Settings → Cloud reporting.
If delivery keeps retrying
Section titled “If delivery keeps retrying”A short spell of Retrying is normal, for example during an internet outage. If it lasts longer than you expect:
- Note the time, the Waiting on this computer count and the message under Delivery is retrying.
- Check that this computer can reach the internet, and that your firewall allows
sync.biotrack.co.zw. See Network and firewall. - Check that the Windows clock is correct. The cloud refuses requests from a computer whose clock is more than five minutes out.
- Leave Cloud API address as it is. It was set when the PC was linked; change it only when BioTrack support asks you to.
- Contact BioTrack support with the details from step 1.
Over the following checks, Waiting on this computer should keep growing while delivery fails, and fall once it recovers.
Refused changes
Section titled “Refused changes”Occasionally the cloud refuses one record it can never accept, for example a record already older than your organisation’s retention period. The cloud stores everything else in the batch and returns the refused record with a reason.
BioTrack then sets that record aside: it stays on this computer, unchanged, and is not sent again. Everything else keeps flowing. The strip shows Refused by the cloud with a count, and a notice says Some changes were refused. The support bundle lists each refused record’s type, time and reason, without its contents. See Logs and support.
Rotate the signing key
Section titled “Rotate the signing key”The cloud recognises this installation by its signing key. Your organisation may ask you to replace it on a schedule or after a security concern. Only an administrator can do this.
- Open Settings → Cloud reporting.
- In Installation identity, select Rotate signing key.
- In Rotate the cloud signing key?, select Rotate key.
BioTrack creates a new key on this computer, proves to the cloud that it holds it, and only then retires the old one. When it finishes, you see Signing key rotated to version followed by the new number, and Key version and Key last rotated update. Attendance collection continues throughout, and the PC fetches its licence again for the new key.
If rotation is interrupted, for example by a network drop or a restart, BioTrack keeps the new key and finishes the same rotation before it sends any more batches. An unfinished rotation expires in the cloud after 24 hours; BioTrack then discards the unused new key and shows Pending cloud key rotation expired; start the rotation again. Delivery continues with the current key.
If an installation is revoked
Section titled “If an installation is revoked”BioTrack can revoke an installation, for example when a computer is retired, lost or may be compromised. Revoking also releases its licence. From then on the cloud refuses every delivery from that PC, and the next time the PC checks its licence it stops collecting and shows This PC’s licence was released. Revocation cannot be undone. See Link this PC.