Device delay behaviors

Question 

I have the following device delays configured in my profile:

BillsDevices.png

Sometimes, my SMS phone receives a notification, but my email doesn't; or, my text phone and mobile app get a message at the same time, but I don't receive an email. What's going on?

Environment

All versions of xMatters

Answer

So, the first thing to know about your device settings is that they only apply when YOU (the user) is the target of the notification. If your device is a member of a group, or if someone adds your device to the recipients list for a message, then xMatters sends the message to that device immediately — regardless of your device configuration settings. (Which is why we encourage people not to add devices as group members and to add people as message recipients, not their devices, except in specific situations.) 

For example, let's say that Bill (our user above) has two of his devices added as members of a group: the Android phone and the SMS phone. When the group is targeted for notification, xMatters treats the two devices as individual members of the group and notifies them at once; ignoring any priority, timeframe, or delay settings Bill might have set up. The notification would not be sent to any of his other devices because they weren't members of the group and thus wouldn't be targeted for notification. 

But what about situations where I'm the one targeted, and not my device? Don't device delays always apply?

There are other situations where it might seem like your device settings — especially delays — aren't being respected. The most common reason this happens is because the notification has been configured to only be sent to specific device types. 

Here's another example: let's say that someone creates a message to send to Bill and then changes the message options to target specific device types; in this case, mobile apps and text phones only. When the message goes out, Bill immediately gets the notification on his mobile app and on his text phone at the same time.

The reason for this is because each device delay is tied to the device above it in the user's list of devices. If the device with the associated delays is skipped or not factored into the notification process, as was the case for Bill's email, then the delay is also ignored. 

 

 

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