Health check - red, orange & green lights

paulr · July 1, 2021, 11:03am

The Health check feature helps to identify and diagnose common problems. It is highly recommended that you run these tests before joining a session.

Click on the Health check button and Flock runs several tests and produces a red, orange, green light for each test. This article describes what you can do if any of those tests produces an orange or red light.

Wired internet connection?

If this test is marked with an orange or red light, you are most probably using a WiFi internet connection instead of a Wired internet connection. If you think that you’re on a Wired connection but the test is showing WiFi, then it is possible that you have both types of connection active. Please check that WiFi is turned off.

For Singers: on WiFi you will be able to participate in a Flock session, but not fully. WiFi tends to have fluctuating speeds and as such, there is more latency. It is probable that your Choir Leader will need to mute you. You will still be able to hear everyone, but others will not hear you. Please notify your choir leader that you are on WiFi in advance of a session.

For Leaders: a wired connection is required. WiFi is not sufficient for you to support incoming connections from multiple choir members.

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Can we reach the flock server?

This is a test of can the Flock app connect to the internet and reach a server that we manage on the internet. If you are getting a red light on this test, there are a few possible reasons:

Your internet connection may not be working. Check if other applications are able to access the internet correctly.
It is possible, but unlikely, that a firewall on your computer is blocking the Flock app. Try turning off your firewall and run the Health check test again. If you get a green light, then you will need to add an exception to your firewall to allow Flock to access the internet.
It is possible that the Flock server is down.
In some countries that impose internet restrictions on their citizens, it is possible that your internet provider is blocking access to the part of the internet in which the Flock server is hosted. If you think this is what’s happening, please post a new message with your country/ISP details in the Get Help section of this forum.

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Central server can reach the flock app?

This is a test of can the central server connect back to the Flock app. If you are getting a red light on this test, there are a few possible reasons:

The most likely reason is that a firewall on your computer is blocking the incoming connection from the central server. Try turning off your firewall and run the Health check test again. If you then get a green light when re-running the Health check, you will need to re-enable the firewall and add an exception to your firewall to allow an incoming connection to the Flock app.
If you are on a professionally-managed network (e.g. corporate or university network) as opposed to a home network, it is possible that all incoming traffic is blocked by IT Administration. Please speak to your IT Administration for assistance. Note that Flock does not use a fixed port for incoming connections.
If you have a very old router, it may not support the capabilities needed for our central server to connect back into the Flock app. We use an available network port on your router to connect from inside your network to our server, and then our server tries to connect back to that same port on your router. Most modern Internet routers support this capability, but there can be older routers or network set ups that don’t support or permit this method of communication.

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How long to reach your router?

This test measures the amount of time it takes to reach your router. On a wired internet connection it should take less than 1 ms to reach your router. If you are getting a red light on this test, then possible reasons include:

You are using WiFi. Make sure you are connected via wired internet (ethernet).
Someone on your home network is using a lot of bandwidth, e.g. downloading big files, streaming video, etc.
There is a device on your home network that is not configured correctly and is flooding your network with data. Try disconnect other devices from your router (remove the ethernet cables) and switch off WiFi from other devices (tablets, phones, laptops, printers) and then re-run the health check. If you get a green light it means that one of the devices on your network is not configured properly. To identify the problematic device, for each device, re-connect to the network (either wired or WiFi) and run the healthcheck again. If the health check shows red, then you’ve found the device that is flooding the network with data.

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Download & Upload bandwidth

Red light(s): you don’t have enough bandwidth to run Flock. Depending on your internet provider, you may be able to subscribe to a plan which permits higher bandwidth (or you may need to change providers). See below for minimum requirements and additional explanation.
Orange light(s): when running this test, the result showed that you have sufficient bandwidth for Flock. However, internet providers sometimes “shape” the traffic which means that for periods of time you get less bandwidth than what is contracted in your plan. With an orange light you should be fine. The only reason it is orange is to say you’re in the range of the minimum bandwidth requirement. In the future, if you experience high latency during a Flock session then it might be because your provider is restricting your traffic.
No lights / Gray. This means Flock was not able to complete the test successfully. You can run the test yourself at https://www.speedtest.net/ and compare the results against the minimum bandwidth requirements below.

Bandwidth is a measure of data throughput - think of it like water flowing through a pipe. The bigger the pipe (i.e. more bandwidth), more data flows through it. This is different from speed, which is a measure of how fast the water is flowing. The upload and download tests measure your bandwidth. The minimum requirements are:

A Singer needs 1 Mbps download bandwidth and 1 Mbps upload bandwidth.
A Leader needs the same for each singer. So a Leader with a choir of 15 people will need approx 15 Mbps upload and download.

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Internet ping

Ping is a test that measures latency. The Flock app sends a very small amount of data out across the internet to another computer (in this case it’s a computer at speedtest.net), which then sends a small amount of data back. The time for those few data packets to go out and then come back is measured in milliseconds (ms). This is not the same measure of latency that you will experience in a Flock session. It’s simply an easy way to measure one type of latency to give you a sense of whether there are any problems. An orange light on this test, and green lights on the upload and download tests is generally not a problem. A red light on this test (i.e. a slow ping speed) could mean that you will have latency (delay) during your Flock sessions. Slow pings could be a result of the following issues:

Low quality router. It’s possible that your router is slowing down your internet speed. Internet providers that bundle a router with their offering usually provide a cheap router with a slow processor. You may want to consider upgrading to a new router with a faster processor and low latency.
Internet provider quality. It’s possible that your provider is using a technique called traffic shaping which among other things can limit the speed of your connection. You may want to consider trying a different

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Buffer size equals 128?

Ideally your buffer size in Flock Audio settings should be 128. If your sound card does not support 128 then you can try a larger number. As you increase the buffer size, latency will also increase. Above 200 the latency will start becoming much more noticeable.

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Sample rate equals 44,100 Hz?

Ideally your Sample rate in Flock Audio settings should be set to 44,100 Hz. However some hardware devices don’t support 44,100 in which case, if you’re a Singer, go for 48,000 Hz.
If you are a Leader, then a Sample rate of 44,100 Hz is required and you’ll need devices (e.g. headphone, mic and/or audio interface) which support 44,100.

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Computing challenge speed test

This is a test of how fast is your computer processor. A slow processor contributes to popping and crackling sounds in the audio. An orange light is just an estimation that this might be an issue. If this test shows a red light, the possible reasons are:

You have too many applications open. Try closing all other applications and then run the test again.
There is some other temporary problem on your computer. Try to reboot the computer and run the test again.
It is possible that your computer is too slow to run Flock. Check that your computer meets the minimum technical requirements: https://community.flock.digital/t/technical-requirements/75#heading–computer

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paulr · February 24, 2021, 4:56pm

paulr · February 26, 2021, 9:00am

paulr · February 26, 2021, 9:13am