Experiencing multiple disconnects and/or dropped chats in the Operator Console

Activa Live Chat Support » Operator Console » Troubleshooting

Article ID: 28 | Last Modified: 05/08/2008

If you are experiencing multiple disconnections while chatting to visitors, or experiencing continued disconnects while signed into the Operator Console altogether, we have found this is due to a low quality local network connection or a faulty Internet connection through heavy packet loss.

Remember: Use of the Operator Console requires a broadband Internet connection.

While the exact cause of such problems could only be known by examining your local network and Internet connection, they are most likely caused by heavy local network usage by other bandwidth consuming applications or Websites on the network or the problem computer, or simply a poor connection to the Internet.

When this occurs, the operator will see this message in the Operator Console:

Connection Problem Detected
It appears that you are having difficulty staying connected to the Activa Live Chat servers. This is caused by congestion on your local network or heavy packet loss on your Internet connection. As a result, Activa Live Chat cannot operate correctly. If these connection problems are temporary, re-launching the Operator Console may resolve the issue.

The Operator will then have a choice to continue trying to connect, or simply re-launching the Operator Console.

During periods of heavy packet loss, the remote calls (chatting back and forth, getting visitor information, etc.) that Activa Live Chat makes to the server become backlogged (this is when you will notice disconnecting).

Because the network is not quite completely down, as packets (and therefore messages) begin to slip through to and from the Operator Console, it may appear to be fully recovered (albeit temporarily). This is often not the case because you will still be experiencing packet loss.

As temporary reconnections allow, the backlog of messages will attempt to get through. But once again, the poor connection will not be able to accommodate them and you experience what appears to be more disconnects.

Once your network fully recovers, the backlog of requests from the Operator Console will begin to flood through which then may cause more network congestion.

Solution

The solution to this issue is to fix any of the root Internet connection problems causing these issues.

Remember, Activa Live Chat requires a quality, uninterrupted Internet connection. Please make sure your connection can provide a sound environment within which the Operator Console can function properly. You should check your network quality and the quality of your Internet connection (down times, packet loss, etc.)

You may also want to be aware of other applications that may hog or consume your connection and shared bandwidth and that could negatively affect the constant connection needed by the Operator Console. Such applications may be in use on the same computer where you're using the Operator Console, on the same network, or behind the same Internet Connection.