Routines don't work or when they do, they fire off very late

[PaulQ]

Anyone having problems with routines not executing properly on the Home Hub. When mine do, they are anywhere from a 5-10 minutes late to many hours late. For example, my 8am routine went off at almost 1pm yesterday.

I contacted Google and they escalated the case to the next level. They are supposed to call me back. Nothing yet.

Have any of you had this problem? Solution?

Thanks!

 

[Rukbat]

They first have to be able to reproduce the problem at will. (If you figure out how, call them and let them know.) Once they do that, fixing tit should take a few minutes. But finding a way to do it could take months.

 

[PaulQ]

They first have to be able to reproduce the problem at will. (If you figure out how, call them and let them know.) Once they do that, fixing tit should take a few minutes. But finding a way to do it could take months.

I reproduced the fact they didn't work multiple times while talking to them during which we reset the hub, tried erasing routines, recreating them, etc. I reproduced them going off late one time while talking them (14 minutes late). There was no reason they weren't working. I wasn't doing anything other than creating routines, several of which were done following their instructions (identical to how I had done them).

But, you're right, now THEY have to reproduce it on their end. My hopes are not up.

One little issue that made me wonder about the support I was receiving - I told the agent I was having trouble with the Hub and I had a Pixel 3 right at the start. In the midst of the conversation, she asked if it was a Google Home. I said no, it's a Home Hub and a Pixel 3. Later she asked me what phone I was using. I said, again, a Pixel 3. Not very reassuring. She did tell me how to reset a Hub though.

 

[Rukbat]

Not "reproduce it" . Reproduce it [at will]. IOW, do this today then do that, then do the other - and it happens. Every time.

At that point they do a debug dump and see what went wrong, that normally doesn't. (Standard debugging 101.)

 

[PaulQ]

I'm screwed. One of the main reasons I bought it was for morning routines using a time.

I had the same problem with my Insignia clock. Forums basically said it was a Best Buy issue since it's not Google. Then they started working again after an update. Then they stopped again. Something is whacky with routines. Although the Insignia didn't run the routine 7 hours later and at random. It just didn't run them.

I guess I'll just test it every so often for a "lucky fix."

 

[GeneralHerzog]

All of my routines have been setup via the home app and they work as expected.
Have you tried setting them up via the app instead of via voice command on the hub?

 

[PaulQ]

All of my routines have been setup via the home app and they work as expected.
Have you tried setting them up via the app instead of via voice command on the hub?

Yes, via the Home app. I didn't even know you could set them up using voice command on the hub. That seems like it would be a tedious process.

Yesterday, Google contacted me stating they are investigating similar reports and working on a stable fix. They have given me a unique code to provide feedback when it happens and they plan to call me tomorrow or the next day. I have no idea what we are going to talk about. Maybe they have some insider codes or button presses or beta firmware they want me to try.

I sent feedback this morning when the hub started my 9:00 am routine approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes late. That's 3 times in a row it was roughly 2 hours late. Glad it has settled into some consistency, that might help.

Hmmm... Maybe I should just set my hub routines to fire two hours before my desired time...



GeneralHerzog - Just out of curiosity - where in the country/world are you?

 

[GeneralHerzog]

Vancouver.

Where does the Hub come into play? Is the Hub your only Google speaker so far?

 

[PaulQ]

Vancouver.

Maybe it's a U.S. thing. Who knows.

Where does the Hub come into play? Is the Hub your only Google speaker so far?

Oh no... no no no. I bought a Home within days of it coming out. Over the next month or so, I added. And... added.

I have:

3 standard Google Homes
1 Home Mini
1 Lenovo smart display (10")
1 Home hub
1 JBL Link 20

I also have one Insignia "smart clock" that I replaced with the Home Hub.

I have set up a Smart Home where you can basically speak from anywhere in the house to operate lights throughout the house. A bunch of other smart devices, almost all accessible via Google Assistant.

That just reminded me. I do have one routine that works but it's designed to work on voice command, not schedule. It's for my Roomba.

 

[PaulQ]

This was just posted in a Google forum that I brought this issue up in. It's from a Google team member:

Hey everyone,

I know many of you have been dealing with a very frustrating issue where routines are delayed, and that this can have a big impact when you are depending on routines in your daily lives. I know for me, not having my routines go off in the mornings can throw off my entire day and make it a bit more difficult that it should be!

While some of you have reported this issue in the past, we’re now seeing that more of you have been experiencing delayed routines recently, which is something that we take very seriously. We’re working closely with our engineers to see why these delays have worsened and how we can quickly get everything back to normal and running smoothly again. At the moment, it looks like the popularity of routines has impacted our systems in ways that we did not originally anticipate. Unfortunately it’s not an easy fix and while we’re working on some improvements right now, it will take us some time longer to develop a permanent resolution.

In the meantime, I would recommend using alarms or media alarms instead of routines for any critical time-sensitive alerts (e.g. waking up in the morning). Thanks for bearing with us - I’ll be back with another update in a couple of weeks.

Best,
Rachel​