Fix Blink View problems

Blink View lets the customer show you their phone camera from a web page on the phone. When something goes wrong, start from what you or the customer sees and work through the matching section. For how Blink View works, see See the customer’s phone camera with Blink View and Blink View on the customer’s phone.

The Blink View button is missing

The Blink View button in the viewer’s toolbar only shows when all of these are true:

• Your license includes Blink View. Blink View is an add-on. If your license does not include it, contact IZT. If the add-on is removed while you are in a session, creating a code says Blink View is not included in your plan.
• Your role allows it. In Support sessions you need Blink View (support), in Access sessions Blink View (access). The starter Technician and Admin roles include them. So do roles with All Support permissions, All Access permissions or All permissions. Custom roles that list permissions one by one do not, until an administrator adds the permission in Roles. See Roles and permissions.
• The session is still running. The button disappears once the session has ended.

You do not need the Blink View permission to watch a camera another technician accepted: everyone in the session sees it.

The code does not work

The customer types the code on view.blink.izt.app. The page answers:

Message	What to do
That code didn’t work. Check it with your technician.	Check the six digits with the customer. A code works once and lasts 10 minutes, and a cancelled code stops working at once. If it has expired or was used, click Create code again.
Too many tries. Please wait a minute and try again. (or a number of minutes)	Too many wrong codes were typed. Wait the time shown, then type the code again carefully.
Blink View is not reachable right now. Please try again in a moment.	Wait a moment and try again, or create a new code. If it keeps failing, contact IZT.

If the customer scanned the QR code or opened a link, the page on the phone can show:

• That link didn’t work: the link was already used, was cancelled or has expired. Create a new code and send the new link or QR code.
• Too many tries: wait a few minutes, then open the link again.

If your server was activated with a license file, there is no 6-digit code at all: the panel shows Scan the QR code with Copy link. Give the customer the QR code or send them the link instead.

A session can have at most 3 codes waiting at once. Creating a fourth says This session already has 3 codes waiting. Cancel one first. Click Cancel code on one you no longer need.

Online and offline activation

Whether customers get a 6-digit code or a direct link depends on how your license was activated. Check the Activation row on Instance › License:

• Online · activated over the internet; Blink View uses 6-digit codes
• Offline · activated with a license file; Blink View uses direct links

Activating or renewing the license online later switches the server to 6-digit codes. See Check and renew your license.

On a server activated online, creating a code needs the same outbound access as online activation: the server must reach build.blink.izt.app on 443/TCP (see Activate your license). When it cannot, the panel says Blink View service unreachable and offers Use a direct link instead. The direct link works the same way as on an offline server. It is offered for about 10 minutes after the failure; after that, Use a direct link instead answers A direct link is only offered while the Blink View service is unreachable, and you create a code again.

The phone shows a certificate warning

Whether the customer types a code or scans a QR code, the phone always ends up on a page at your Blink address. If that address does not have a publicly trusted certificate, the phone’s browser shows a warning such as “Your connection is not private”. The Blink View panel warns you about this when it shows the QR code:

The phone may show a certificate warning: this server’s certificate is not publicly trusted. Set up Let’s Encrypt under Console › Instance › Certificates.

Phones never trust Blink’s built-in certificate. Give your Blink address a certificate from Let’s Encrypt, or upload one from a public certificate authority. A certificate from your own company CA does not help, because customers’ phones do not trust it. See Fix a browser certificate warning and HTTPS certificates.

The phone usually uses mobile data or a guest network, so your Blink address must also be reachable from the internet over HTTPS, not only from your office network.

The camera does not start

Camera access is off

If the customer refused the camera, or their browser blocks it, the phone shows Camera access is off with steps for their browser, and Try again and Reload page buttons. The steps are:

• Safari on iPhone or iPad: tap the “aA” button at the edge of the address bar. Tap Website Settings, then set Camera to Allow. Reload the page.
• Other browsers on iPhone or iPad: open the Settings app and find the browser in the list of apps. Turn on Camera. Come back and reload the page.
• Firefox on Android: tap the lock icon next to the address. Set Camera to Allowed. Reload the page.
• Chrome and other browsers on Android: tap the icon to the left of the address. Tap Permissions, then turn on Camera. Reload the page. If Camera stays off, allow it for the browser in the phone’s Settings › Apps.

Other messages on the phone

Message	What to do
Your camera is busy	Another app is using the camera. Close other apps that use the camera, then tap Try again.
No camera found	The device has no camera the page can use. Use another phone.
This browser can’t share your camera	Open the link in Safari on an iPhone or iPad, or in Chrome on Android.
Can’t reach the server	The phone cannot reach your Blink address. Check the phone’s connection, then tap Try again.
This page is out of date	Tap Reload.

The phone waits and nothing happens

After the customer enters the code, the phone shows Waiting for your technician until a technician accepts it. The camera stays off until then.

• A prompt such as iPhone, Safari wants to share its camera appears in the viewer for technicians in the session who have the Blink View permission. Click Accept. A dot on the Blink View button also shows that a phone is waiting.
• Someone must answer within 2 minutes. After that the phone shows No answer from your technician, and you need a new code.
• If a technician clicked Deny, the phone shows Your technician declined. Create a new code if it was a mistake.
• Only one phone camera can be live in a session at a time. If one already is, Blink says A phone camera is already live in this session. End it first.

Send QR to computer is missing or fails

Send QR to computer shows the QR code in a window on the customer’s computer, so they can scan it with their phone.

• It is only offered in Support sessions. In Access sessions, give the customer the code or QR code yourself.
• It needs a current support tool. If the button is missing in a Support session, or Blink says The customer’s Blink cannot show a QR code, the customer runs an older support tool: create a new Support code and have them download the tool again.
• Confirm the machine’s identity first. means you have not confirmed the computer yet. Click Confirm and take control on the Is this your customer’s computer? card first.
• The customer’s computer is not connected means the support tool is not connected right now. Wait for it to reconnect.
• The QR code could not be sent to the customer’s computer. or The QR code could not be shown: try again, or read the code or QR code out to the customer instead.

If the customer closes the window, you see The customer closed the QR code window. Click Send QR to computer again to show it again.

The picture freezes or says Paused

• The customer switched apps or locked the phone. The phone’s camera stops while the page is not on screen, and you see a still picture. Ask the customer to go back to the browser page. The phone suggests Keep your screen on while you share. on phones where it cannot keep the screen on by itself.
• Reconnecting… on the camera tile means the connection to the phone dropped for a moment. Blink reconnects by itself. If the phone loses its connection for too long, the camera ends: the phone shows Camera sharing ended with The connection was lost for too long., and you see Blink View ended: the phone lost its connection. Create a new code.
• For a slow or blurry picture, ask the customer to move to a better Wi-Fi or mobile signal.

When to contact IZT

Contact IZT if Blink View keeps failing after these checks. Send:

• the session code or session id and the time,
• the phone model and browser,
• the message the phone or the viewer showed. If the phone shows Something went wrong, include the Reference number shown under it.

See Collect logs for IZT support.