Using xMatix on mobile

The xMatix mobile app puts your apps, lists and records on your phone or tablet, with the same account you use on the web. This page takes you from installing the app to your first day of work. You sign in, pick your organization and app, let the first download finish, and learn how to see whether your changes have reached the server. Once you are in, How the mobile app is organized explains the screens, and Working offline covers sync in depth.

Overview

There is one xMatix app for every organization. It shows the name xMatix on your device. Your organization's logo, colours, apps and offline data come from your account after you sign in. What you can see and do is decided by the same security as on the web, so the app never gives you more or less access than the browser.

The app works with or without a connection. While you are online, screens read live data from the server. When the connection drops, the app falls back to the data it has kept on the device, and saves you make are queued and sent when you are back online. The concepts behind this are explained in Offline mobile.

When to use it

Use the mobile app for work you do away from a desk, such as visits, orders, check-ins, photos, approvals and quick lookups. Use the web for setup and administration, which the mobile app does not offer.

Prerequisites

An xMatix account that already signs in on the web. See Signing in to xMatix.
Installation instructions from your organization. Your administrator tells you whether your organization uses the mobile app and how to install it.
An iPhone or iPad on iOS 16.4 or later, or an Android phone or tablet.
An internet connection for the first sign-in and the first download.

Procedure

Step 1 — Install the app

Follow the installation link or app-catalog instructions your organization gives you. Check that the app is called xMatix before you install it. When you open it, you see a sign-in screen that says Sign in to access your workspace. If your organization has not sent instructions, ask your administrator. Don't search for a similar-looking app.

The app asks for access to the camera, location and microphone when a feature first needs them. Location in the background is used only while you are checked in for the day, for organizations that track field routes.

Password (the default): enter your Email and Password, then tap Sign In.
One-time code: enter your Email or mobile number and tap Send code. Type the code you receive, or tap Resend code or Change email if it doesn't arrive. A one-time code works only for accounts that do not have a password. If your account has one, the app tells you This account signs in with a password. Use the Password tab.

More sign-in options opens your organization's hosted sign-in page in the browser. Use it when your organization signs you in through single sign-on. The app also opens that page by itself when your account needs a sign-in step the app can't show.

Below the sign-in buttons, Environment shows Production and Sandbox. Leave it on Production unless your administrator has asked you to practise in a sandbox.

The app remembers the last email you used and fills it in next time. If an administrator has set a temporary password for you, you see Choose a new password straight after sign-in. Enter a New password, enter it again in Confirm password, and tap Set password to continue.

Step 3 — Choose your organization and app

After sign-in, the app shows Preparing workspace while it loads your account. Then:

If your account belongs to more than one organization, Choose a workspace lists them. Tap the one you want to work in. With only one organization, this step is skipped.
If more than one mobile app has been set up for you, Choose an app lists them. Tap the one you need. With only one, this step is skipped.
If your organization requires an attendance check-in, Check in to start your day appears before the app opens. See Attendance for what the check-in needs.

If you see No workspaces found for this account., your account is not yet linked to an organization. Tap Retry, and if the message stays, contact your administrator.

Step 4 — Let the first download finish

If your app keeps data on the device for offline work, a full-screen Preparing for first use cover appears. It says that the app is downloading your data so it can work offline. A progress bar and a list of what is being downloaded show how far it has got. Keep the app open and connected until the cover closes by itself.

What you might see instead:

Waiting for a connection: you are offline. Connect, or tap Continue offline to use the app without the download for now.
Some data could not be downloaded: tap Retry, or Continue anyway to start working with what has arrived.
Skip: asks Skip preparation?. Tap Keep preparing to stay, or Skip to start now.

Skipping only lasts until the app is next started. The cover comes back on the next launch until the download completes.

After that, the first sync of each day may show a shorter Syncing your data cover. It appears only when the sync takes more than a moment, and you can always tap Skip.

Step 5 — Find your way around

The tabs along the bottom come from the app your organization configured. Tap the grid icon in the header to open the Apps drawer, which lists every app you can use, with Pinned and All apps. At the bottom of the drawer are your profile and Preferences. How the mobile app is organized walks through each part.

Step 6 — Check your sync status

Open Apps → Preferences → Sync status. The Sync Status screen shows:

Changes: All changes synced, or how many changes are waiting and how many need attention. Tap the row to open Pending changes.
Offline data: one row for each kind of data kept on the device, with its last sync time (for example Synced 5m ago) and how many records are on the device.
Sync now in the header sends your changes and downloads updates.

When you are offline, a line above the bottom tabs reads Offline · changes sync when you're back, or tells you how many changes are waiting. Tap it to open Sync status. Saves made offline confirm with Saved offline — will sync when online.

On Pending changes, items that need your attention have three buttons:

Fix opens the form so you can correct the change.
Retry sends it again. For a change that clashes with an edit someone made on the server, this button is Keep mine.
Discard deletes your change after you confirm Discard change?

Retry all resends everything in the Needs attention section. Working offline explains each status and what to do about it.

Step 7 — Switch or sign out

Open Apps, tap your name at the bottom of the drawer to open Profile, and then:

Switch Organization takes you back to the workspace list.
Switch App opens Choose an app (shown only when you have more than one).
Sign Out signs you out.

If changes are still waiting to upload when you tap Sign Out, the app warns you with Uploads still waiting. Tap Stay signed in, connect, and wait for All changes synced. If you choose Sign out anyway, the changes stay on this device. They upload the next time you sign in on it with the same account, organization and app, and they don't reach the server before then.

Business rules

Online first. While connected, screens read from the server. The copy on the device is used when you are offline, unless your administrator has configured the app to prefer the device copy.
Only some data is kept offline. The administrator chooses which kinds of record are downloaded. Reference data is kept in full. Transactions are kept for a recent window. A kind of record with too many rows for the device is marked Online only.
Not everything can be saved offline. A record type your administrator has not allowed offline shows You're offline. This record can only be saved with a connection. Server actions show This action requires a connection. Menu items that need a connection carry a cloud icon or say Not available offline.
Clashing edits merge field by field. If someone changed a different field on the server, your change is applied on top without asking. Only when the same field was changed on both sides does the item show as Conflict.
Low storage. When the device runs short of space, downloads stop but your changes still upload, and Sync now becomes Sync changes.
Your queue belongs to you. Queued changes are kept per account, organization and app on that device. Signing out does not delete them.

Example

Ravi Menon, a field sales representative, gets a message from the administrator with a link to install the app. Ravi installs xMatix, opens it, and on the Password tab enters the work email and the password used on the web. The account belongs to one organization and has one mobile app, so both pickers are skipped. Ravi's profile requires attendance, so Check in to start your day appears, and Ravi checks in.

Preparing for first use downloads customers, items and the last few months of orders, then closes. Later, in an area with no signal, Ravi records an order. The app confirms Saved offline — will sync when online, and the line above the tabs reads Offline · 1 change waiting. Back in coverage, Ravi opens Sync status, taps Sync now, and sees All changes synced.

Training

Practice exercise

In a sandbox organization, ask your administrator for a mobile app setup and a test account. Then:

Sign in with Environment set to Sandbox.
Let Preparing for first use finish.
Turn on flight mode, edit a record you are allowed to change offline, and save.
Open Sync status, then turn flight mode off and tap Sync now.

Expected result: after step 3 the offline line shows one change waiting. After step 4, Changes reads All changes synced, and the edit is visible on the web.

Quick reference

Install only from the instructions your organization gives you.
Sign in with Password. One-time code is for accounts without a password.
Leave Environment on Production for real work.
Let Preparing for first use finish while connected.
Apps → Preferences → Sync status shows waiting changes and last sync times.
Pending changes: Fix, Retry or Keep mine, and Discard.
Apps → your name → Profile to switch organization, switch app or sign out.
Wait for All changes synced before you sign out.

Permissions

The app uses your web account and security profile. You see the same apps, records and fields, and get the same +, Edit, Delete and action buttons, as you would on the web.

Which mobile app you get, and whether you must check in, comes from your security profile. An administrator assigns profiles to a mobile app configuration on its Profiles tab. A user with no assigned configuration can still sign in and use their apps, but without that configuration's branding, offline data or check-in gate. Details are in The xMatix mobile app.

Configuration

Administrators set up everything the app shows in web Setup. No new app installation is needed.

Setup → Design Studio → Apps → Mobile Apps holds the mobile app configurations: branding, Offline & Sync, check-in, location tracking and the profiles that receive each one. See Configuring the mobile app.
User accounts and temporary passwords are managed on the web. See Invite a user.
Changes that fail to sync for good can be reviewed centrally. See Monitoring sync failures.

Common problems

First try the same email and password on the web. If that fails too, it is an account question for your administrator. If you see No account found for this email., check the address you typed. Incorrect email or password. means the password is wrong. Reset it from the web sign-in page, because the app has no forgot-password link. If the code you entered is refused, request a new one and use the latest.

The first download keeps failing

Some data could not be downloaded usually means a weak connection. Move to a better connection and tap Retry. If the same item keeps failing, open Sync status, tap the failed row to read the error, and send it to your administrator. Diagnostics in Preferences has Share diagnostics for this.

A record I can open on the web is missing on mobile

You can only see it offline if that kind of record is part of your app's offline data and recent enough to be kept. Connect and look again. If it is still missing, your administrator can check the app's offline setup.

My changes are not going out

Open the app in the foreground with a working connection and tap Sync now. If Changes shows items needing attention, open Pending changes and use Fix, Retry or Discard. More causes are in Troubleshooting the mobile app.

Common questions

From the link or app catalog your organization gives you. The app is called xMatix, and there is one app for every organization. Your organization's look and data appear after you sign in. If you have no instructions, your organization may not have rolled out mobile access to you yet. Your administrator can confirm this and set it up for you.

Can I use the app without a connection?

Yes, for the data and record types your administrator has made available offline. You need a connection for the first sign-in and the first download. After that you can open records kept on the device and save changes where offline saving is allowed. Your changes wait in a queue and upload when you reconnect. Server actions, and anything marked Not available offline, need a connection.

What happens to my changes if I sign out?

They are not deleted. Changes that haven't uploaded stay on the device for your account, organization and app. They upload the next time you sign in there, and before then they don't reach the server. The app warns you with Uploads still waiting if you try to sign out with changes pending. It is safest to wait for All changes synced first.

Will I see the same data as on the web?

Your access is the same, because it is one account with one set of permissions. What is stored on the device is a configured part of that data: reference data plus recent transactions. An older record may need a connection to open even though you have access to it.