Engineers App
Install & Login
Three things to get right at install: the app, the credentials, the permissions. Miss any one and pages won't land.
1. Install the app#
The Engineers app is distributed as a signed APK during the closed beta. Get the latest build from your admin or from the internal release tracker. Sideload it on Android (Settings → Apps → permission to install unknown apps for your file manager) or push via your MDM.
Play Store release
2. The engineer needs an account#
Engineer accounts are created from the dashboard. An admin opens Engineers → Add Engineer, fills in name + email, sets the tier, and either provides a password or lets the system auto-generate + email one.
Engineers ≠ Auther / dashboard users
engineers table). They're distinct from the Auther accounts that admins use to log into the web dashboard. Same project, different sign-in.3. First-time login#
- Open the app — you'll land on the login screen.
- Enter the email + password your admin set up.
- The app fetches an engineer JWT (30-day expiry) and stores it locally.
- On the very first launch you'll see two permission prompts. Grant both — see below.
4. Grant permissions#
The app needs three things from Android. Two are prompted at launch; the third is sometimes hidden inside Battery settings.
| Permission | Why | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Post notifications | Display the incident page banner | Required |
| Display over other apps / Full-screen intent | Take over the lock screen on a page | Required on Android 14+ |
| Unrestricted battery usage | Prevent OEM killers (Xiaomi/Oppo/Realme) from suspending the FCM listener | Strongly recommended |
5. Verify FCM is registered#
On successful login the app fetches a Firebase Cloud Messaging token and POSTs it to /api/v1/mobile/engineers/:id/device. This is how the backend addresses the engineer when paging.
You can verify from the backend by checking the engineer_devices table — there should be a row with your engineer_id and a current fcm_token. If there isn't, the device-register call failed; check the app logs for the [fcm] register failed line.
6. Test it#
The fastest way to confirm everything is wired correctly is to have an admin fire a manual page from the dashboard:
- Dashboard → On-Call → find the engineer.
- Click the phone icon next to their name.
- Pick severity, optional message, click Send page.
- Your phone should light up within ~5 seconds — full-screen incident page, alarm, ACK button.
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