Using CommCare exclusively offline?

[Ben Arevalo]

Hello all,

We are looking to deploy a CommCare app that's essentially just a reference tool. We do not need to sync any user input to the server--the app guides the user through some prompts, asks a few questions, and outputs the needed info. For sustainability (and simplicity) in the developing region we will be deploying, it would be ideal if the app was able to run exclusively offline (that is, with no data connection). Is this possible? We do not need the 'incomplete' or 'saved' form records at all, and for our purpose, they serve as a bit of a distraction. Also, we are only able to log on as 'demo' in the absence of a data connection. It seems that sustained off-line use would cause warnings to perpetually pop-up due to the number of unsynced forms...

Any insight would be most appreciated. Thank you so much,

Ben

[Clayton Sims]

Hi Ben,

Are you referring to CommCare for Nokia and Java Phones, or CommCare for Android? 

Both CommCare Android and CommCare for Java Phones can function offline for indefinite periods of time. CommCare for Java Phones will allow you to go one step further and disable user credentials entirely and throw away (rather than submit to a server) the result of your phone submissions. On CommCare for Android Phones we unfortunately don't support those specific behaviors. The phone will work offline indefinitely, but users will still need to log in.

On CommCare android, Saved and Incomplete form management can be disabled regardless of any offline features.

-Clayton

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[Yann]

Good morning Ben and Clayton,

I was thinking to use the CommCare Android version but I have the same problem as Ben. In the region I would like to use it there is no connectivity at all, not even normal signal. Did you come across any solution to your problem?

[Clayton Sims]

Yann,

CommCare Android is still designed to function with occasional-but-intermittent access.

You can install a CommCare app without access to network, but in order to login to use the app you'll either need to

1) Use the Demo Mode to log in and use the app

2) Use an Android Backup/Restore image to provision your phones offline using an image you've already restored a user into

3) Host a local CommCare API compatible server which restores users to the device.

If you want to recover data from the devices offline you can either use an SD Card or WIFI Direct aggregation to transmit data from the offline devices to another device. Instructions to do so can be found on the CommCare HQ Help Site.

-Clayton

[Yann]

Clayton, 

Thank you for your reply. So far I am trying to see how can I overpass the login barrier. 

Can you confirm if I understand completely:

1) Using the demo mode, the work done by the CHWs won't be save, right?

2) If I have 10 CHWs, I would need to log on each account and make a Android backup with each configuration and then restore each phone with its own backup.

Using that solution means that each phone as to be restore with a new image, i.e. if I am not providing phones, the CHW are using their own phone, I would erase their copy.

3) I am not sure what that solution means. Does it mean having a small server in the community where each CHW could go to log in before starting their work? And in case of losing the logging they would have to go back to that server to log in again?

Does the API solution start with the Standard model plan?

Yann

[Clayton Sims]

Responses are inline below. Sorry about any confusion on the process.

On Mon, Jan 5, 2015 at 12:12 PM, Yann <coordina...@globalbrigades.org> wrote:

1) Using the demo mode, the work done by the CHWs won't be save, right?

The forms themselves will make it to the server, but demo users can't restore cases or other persistent data, and HQ treats demo user submissions in a special manner that will make exports and reports function oddly. We don't really treat demo user submissions the same and don't advise using them in ongoing workflows

2) If I have 10 CHWs, I would need to log on each account and make a Android backup with each configuration and then restore each phone with its own backup.

Using that solution means that each phone as to be restore with a new image, i.e. if I am not providing phones, the CHW are using their own phone, I would erase their copy.

You can make the backup/restore specific to CommCare itself, but it requires a fair amount of technical knowledge and compatible devices (backup/restore is not supported until Android 4.0) You could need to make a backup per account, or alternatively restore all of the accounts onto a phone, and backup that copy which has all users installed. 

Any time you restored you would blow away all CommCare data installed on the device.

 

3) I am not sure what that solution means. Does it mean having a small server in the community where each CHW could go to log in before starting their work? And in case of losing the logging they would have to go back to that server to log in again?

Does the API solution start with the Standard model plan?

That is accurate. This wouldn't be included in any of our service models, since you'd be setting up and running the server on your end. The HQ server code is open source, so we wouldn't charge for access to it, but we can't really offer support for your server installation.

-Clayton

[Yann]

Ok thank you very much, that is clarifying a what I needed to know.