Explanation and Apology for Data Acquisition Issues in Some Apps

Hello,

We regret to inform you that certain apps (weather, stocks, cryptocurrency, etc.) on Mini Dock have been experiencing issues such as “Resource Retrieval Timed” and “public resource check failed” during network diagnosis, rendering them temporarily unusable. We deeply apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. The problem has been urgently fixed by our engineers. Restarting the App will restore normal data acquisition.

Problem Description:

  • Issue Manifestation: Upon accessing certain apps, users encountered a pop-up displaying “Resource Retrieval Timed,” followed by a network diagnosis prompt of “public resource check failed.”
  • Affected Time: The problem occurred between 3:00 PM and 9:30 PM (UTC-4).
  • Cause Analysis: A sudden surge in interface concurrency at 3:00 PM (UTC-4) overwhelmed a critical service, leading to service disruption.

Measures Taken to Address the Issue:

  1. Enhanced Load Capacity: The system’s load capacity has been bolstered to manage unexpected spikes in requests effectively.
  2. Service Optimization: Related services have been optimized to enhance stability and response times.
  3. Monitoring and Alarm Systems: Monitoring and alarm mechanisms have been implemented to swiftly identify and address similar issues in the future.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused and express our gratitude for your understanding and support. Rest assured, we are committed to continually improving our services to offer you a seamless user experience.

Warm regards,
Vobot Team

2 Likes

Thank you to the Vobot Team for your quick response and efficient solutions! It’s impressive how swiftly you restored the app’s functionality. Everything is working smoothly now.

2 Likes

Nice work everyone! Thanks for the quick fix!

1 Like

Just curious, what resource is the Vobot checking? Does it rely on a server/host to work properly? I thought a device like this can work quite independently as long as there is an Internet connection.

Thanks!

Hello,

What needs to be explained to you is:

  1. The docking part behind the Mini Dock can work normally without an Internet connection. It does not rely on the network to perform its basic functions.

  2. Regarding the Mini Dock App, it does require an Internet connection to function properly. It needs to obtain data from servers, some of which are Vobot’s and others are third-party servers. The normal acquisition of data requires a normal Internet connection and the server is running.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact us.

Thank you for your prompt answer. But my question is why does Vobot (at least for some apps) require Internet connection for a specific resource? For example for the stock/cryptocurrency apps, they both failed at the same time. I suppose they connect to different providers for the required data. That makes me wonder if they’re actually connecting to some centralized host (under myvobot.com?) to get the data. If that’s true, then it could easily be a single point of failure. The worse case is when some day this host is down/offline, our Vobot will be useless.

Hello,

Thank you for your attention to Vobot’s data acquisition mechanism. We take your concerns very seriously and hope to provide you with detailed answers.

Some apps on Mini Dock do get data from our servers.

Instructions on data acquisition: Why do we get data from our servers?

  1. Access to some data involves limited or non-free API calls, and the access secret key cannot be built into the device firmware. We cannot allow the device to directly access the data source, but need to be transferred and cached through the server;

  2. Access to some data sources requires special protocols, which is difficult to implement in the MICROPHTYON code on the device, so it needs to be transferred through the server.

  3. For diversified data sources: Our apps (such as stock and cryptocurrency apps) connect to multiple different data providers to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data.

  4. Centralization and decentralization mechanism: But we are reducing our dependence on a single server. Our architecture is designed to avoid single points of failure and ensure the continuous availability of services. If a service is unavailable (not maintained by us), we can quickly replace the new data source to ensure stable data.

If you have any questions about the product, please feel free to contact us.

1 Like

I could understand your concerns and I think it makes some sense. But it’s still unfortunate if our Vobot will stop working if some external servers are down.

But one thing I wish to suggest is that is it possible to update the system so that in case such network resources are not available, the App Auto-Switch feature continue to work? Now it seems to freeze on a warning screen. It would be much better if it continues to switch to another app and next time the failed app comes back, it can retry the network resource again.

Hello,

What I need to explain to you is that if you add an App to the automatic switching list, if only the current App has a problem, you can continue to switch to the next App, and when you switch to the App again, the resources will be reacquired.

If there is no automatic switching, it may be the following:

  1. The App is not added to the automatic switching list (Setting >>> Miscellaneous >>> App Aito-Awitch > Application List)

  2. Mini Dock system-level error, such as: network error (not a certain resource acquisition failure), system error

  3. Mini Dock is in sleep mode

If your device does not actively switch Apps, please feedback the screen warning to us, and we will analyze and deal with the problem you encountered.

If you have any questions about the use of the product, please feel free to contact us.