New to EE Broadband - Login and OTP issues

[grantp1]

I've just "transferred" from BT to EE for Broadband, etc.

Not the same problem that you have but similar.

Trying to set up the EE app on my mobile phone and to apply the change I have to provide a code delivered from EE via SMS. 

Setting up the same options on my PC the code arrived without problem if a little more slowly than some other sources.

No way I can get the code when trying to set up the app on Android.

The last 4 digits of the number to be used for the text, when setting up on the phone, are not the last 4 digits of the number to be used. But they are digits from the stored number, though not in the correct order.

It's almost like they a parsing the correct number string badly.

There does not seem to be an obvious way to correct the problem. I have so far tried changing to a different number, then back. Also clearing the cache for the app. 

Makes no difference. 

I suspect, since the phone can be used successfully when setting up the PC, that a code problem in the android app should be considered as a possibility.

I may try deleting and reinstalling the app.

I've just received a new router and all the other devices for the BB update so the potential for a lot of aggravation if certain things won't work as expected seems quite likely. I would really like a solution to this before embarking on what will probably be an irreversible BB hardware update to a new contract number with a nominally "new" provider.

[grantp1]

Replying to my previous post.

I installed the EE app on a Samsung tablet. WiFi only, no LTE.

It works well enough. If I make an account change that requires a confirmation code it delivers to SMS message to the same phone that seems unable to be used when trying to set up the same functionality for broadband controls.

The phone has 2 Sims. Both numbers work and receive messages via SMS when managing using my Windows PC via a browser or the tablet via the Android EE app.

Not my phone though. It still seems unable to work out the correct number to send a message to when using the app.

Strange. But not entirely unheard of in the world of coding.

[Peter_W]

Good afternoon @grantp1, thanks for taking the time to explain everything that's been happening here. 

I just want to be sure that I've got the right understanding of what's been happening here. 

Which service is it you're trying to receive one time PINs for, and am I correct in thinking it's only when doing this on your Android phone you're encountering this issue?

Also what model of phone are you using, and is the Android version fully up to date?
Peter

[Linzi_H]

Hi @grantp1 

It sounds like you're trying all of the right steps to get this working! 
When trying to get the OTP on your phone, have you tried only being connected to mobile data, rather than being connected to your WiFi? Sometimes this does the trick. 

Linzi 

[grantp2]

Hi @Linzi_H

grantp1 here - for some reason the community knows I exist but won't let me "login" as me today. Nor communicate with me using the email I registered with.

Anyway, the original problem seemed to be resolved earlier talking to tech support.

It seemed the Account details,, presumably transferred from BT data, held a long defunct number as the mobile contact. t might have been the one that was originally provided a couple of decades ago when I signed up for BT Broadband and it came with the option of a second number, operated over Broadband, that seemed to be the primary contact number for the account.

That service was long closed down and the number forgotten and made invisible for account maintenance purposes but not, perhaps, removed from the BT internal data that I could not see.

The 2 level Authorisation was using that number to send a text rather than the number I could see and maintain.

On Friday I could work around that by using the EE app on my (non-LTE) tablet or direct access from my Windows PC via the browser. 

So when I came to the task of activating the new router today I was not too worried ... until the 2 level authorisation process failed for all methods by trying to use the old hidden number rather then the one I had ensured was on the records.

Fortunately that was quickly resolved with a call to Tech Support and very helpful and effective responder who figured out a previously unseen problem and worked through a resolution in just a few minutes. 4 digit code received (via email and then proved to work via text as well) and all was well. My installation proceeded successfully and various devices are now connected to and using the new router. 

However, here we are just a few hours later and the EE app now just hangs on both the phone and the tablet. Whilst access seems to be working via the PC browser, I could not login in to the Community as grantp1 and nor would it play along with a password reset attempt. The Community says it is sending an email but nothing appears. It knows grantp1 exists but seems unable to use it and simply drops into "create a new user account" mode. So I did.

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Meanwhile, I can do some searching about how the Hub and the  Smart Hybrid Connect are supposed to work together.

I know what happens when the BB connection is lost. I tested it earlier.

What is supposed to happen when the BB service reconnects is something of a mystery at the moment.  Unless it is not Smart in that direction.  If so I think I know what needs to be done. But I guess I should look for an official description of what should happen and how long it should take.

Have fun,

Grant

[Peter_W]

Hi again @grantp2, thanks for the update with this, and I'm really glad to hear our team managed to get thing sorted out with the PINs that were being sent. 

It seems very odd that you would suddenly be unable to log back into your account, including the Community, from certain devices though. 

Could you please describe to me what exactly happens when you try to log in to the Community, along with the apps on the phone and tablet?

If you get any error messages it would be great to get details of these too. 

With the Smart Hybrid Connect, when this switches to the 4G backup the signal bars on this device will glow white, and your main broadband Hub will switch to Purple. 
When the broadband connection resumes, things should just automatically switch back to this connection, and the 4G will switch off of its own accord.

Peter

[grantp2]

@Peter_W 

Thanks for the extensive reply Peter.

I decided to leave the App testing overnight just to see if there might be something going through an extended data transfer or other update process in the systems. Several posts yesterday seemingly describing app problems, along with what I was experiencing, suggested waiting a while might be useful.

More later.

As for the SHC, it took several minutes to react to BB disconnection and I then took some time to find a good location for the unit. The optimal convenient location had only a 1 bar signal. 

When I reconnected BB nothing seemed to happen for about 10 minutes. Perhaps longer as I spent some time  seeking a description of what to expect somewhere in the documentation. 

In the end I just switched the SHC off. 

To be realistic, around here a loss of BB connectivity is a rare event. Especially anything lasting more than a few seconds. So as things stand and in the hope that things continue to be consistent, I'm not that concerned about the timings. Rather I have more of a need to know what to expect in preparation for the time when my wife demands to know exactly what is going on when a failure does occur at some point.

Thanks again!

[Peter_W]

Cheers @grantp2, I've checked around the guidance we have available on the Smart Hybrid connect, and it advises this will usually take 2 - 3 minutes to switch over to 4G backup when an issue is detected.

Once this is resolved, it highlights that it takes a bit more time to check and optimise the broadband connection, then will hand this back over once we're confident things are back up and running as they should be. 

Please keep us posted on how you get on with your app too. 

Peter

[grantp2]

Hi @Peter_W 

Thanks for the responses and your interest.

On the SHC, I timed the response to an "outage" on the hub and it was 3 minutes. That seems reasonable to ensure that the outage is likely serious enough to need intervention and not just a quick glitch.

However, I had to move the SHC nearer to the hub to make the switch over happen. It original location  - good for signal strength  - does work but seemed to be a bit remote until I undertook a re-registration  through WPS - though nothing was indicating a problem.

Once the BB was reconnected to the hub (with the SHC located very close to it but only the small bar for 4G connection strength to the outside world) it was 30 minutes before is switched back. I think it was exactly 30 minutes to the second which, to me, suggests that is a programmed wait time. (Light BB usage at the time - one wonders whether there may be variability of 4G usage based on connectivity strength and data load.)

As for the App...

On my phone I got passed the spinning wheel of death after another re-install but I think I was somehow redirected to the website via a browser.

On my tablet, after a deleted and re-install or two, I was let loose with the full experience including the suggestion that to link the Hub required going through the full setup sequence again. That included the suggestion that one could copy settings from the old hub. So I thought I would try that.

It worked but also changed the name of the network to the old name, something I had not considered. No big deal for most devices already linked but there may be some that will be confused - the network-attached printer, for example, seemed to demand attention having been powered down at the time.

Anyway, I stopped the process to investigate that and when I later restarted the app on the Tablet  - it went through the first few screens, past the security code and then hung as before. I'll try another uninstall and re-install to see what happens.

The phone is still apparently connected to the equivalent website pages via Browser interactions.

One plus is that the Smart Wifi Plus extender is working very well and providing a wired connection for my NAS along with a web access point that seems rapid and solid - something that was never easy to achieve with my previous Wi-Fi extender using the same cable!

The subject matter here seems to have drifted some way from the original topic. Should it perhaps be moved to a separate thread?

Grant

[Peter_W]

No problem at all @grantp2, I've split this into a new thread now and titled it around the main two issues you've experienced with the OTPs and logging in generally. 

This way if anyone has experienced similar they can possibly jump in and add some input too.

The inconsistency of things is what seems particularly odd here, and without access to your access to your account directly it's tough to make a call on what could exactly because things. 

I'd definitely recommend getting back in touch with our technical team so they can check over all these details for you, and if needs be raise it for further investigation. 

You can find all the details you need right here:

Contact Us To Request Technical Support for Broadband and Landline | EE

Peter