Best Practices for Managing Device Health

See the following topics to learn more about best practices for managing device health.

• Device Health Management Workflow

• Return-Merchandise Authorization (RMA) Best Practices

• Health Reports

• Recommended Continued Monitoring

Notice

To learn more about the different types of health reports available in the Samsara dashboard, watch the Quick Tip: Device Health Reports video.

Device Health Management Workflow

Establishing a regular cadence of reviewing device health and taking the recommended actions helps to ensure you’re getting the data you need when you need it. To maintain optimal device health, Samsara recommends:

• Weekly: Review devices in the Needs Attention category (see the Gateway Health Report) and perform the recommended actions.

• Monthly: Review devices in the Monitor category to address issues proactively (ie - low battery).

When creating a device health management workflow, consider the following:

• Who should be in charge of opening tickets with Samsara Technical Support and coordinating hardware troubleshooting?

• Based on your administrator permission structure, who should be responsible for activating and configuring the device (rename, add tag, etc.)?

• Who is responsible for installing new devices and returning hardware back to Samsara?

Return-Merchandise Authorization (RMA) Best Practices

Consider the following best practices for RMAs and device returns:

• Identify an RMA point of contact (POC) within your organization. This can be one individual or a small team.

• The RMA POC is responsible for opening all hardware tickets with Support. Each ticket should include a local contact that can perform any necessary troubleshooting in the field.

• If a device RMA is required, the RMA POC should provide their email address as the shipping point of contact. If RMAs are supported by a small team, use the team email alias as the shipping point of contact for full team visibility.

After troubleshooting is complete and you’ve confirmed that you need a replacement device, please send the following information to the Samsara Technical Support team by opening a ticket via samsara.com/help.

• Subject:

  <Serial number> and <Name of the unit on your dashboard>

• Body:

  Hello, 
  
  Unit <name of unit> is not working as expected on my dashboard. 
  
  We have completed the following troubleshooting:
  <copy and paste the steps the mechanic has taken>
  
  The light on the gateway is <color>
  
  You can send any replacements to: 
  <preferred shipping address>

Support may ask you follow up questions to this ticket if they observe a different issue on their end. Read more about how to best work with Samsara Support. The general support process is as follows:

1. After receiving the support ticket, our Technical Support team will confirm the details shared, assist in the RMA process, and initiate the warranty return.

2. After the replacement device leaves the warehouse, the RMA POC will receive the package tracking number and confirmation of the device serial(s).

3. After the hardware serial is confirmed, the RMA POC is responsible for:

   • Activating the gateway

   • Configuring the gateway including renaming the gateway and adding any applicable tags.

   • Pairing the gateways to retain historical data following installation.

   • Sending the device return label to the local contact.

4. The local contact is responsible for returning the hardware back to Samsara using the provided return label.

Health Reports

Use the following health reports to monitor your devices and accessories:

• Gateway Health Report

• Camera Health Report

• Sensor Health Report

Recommended Continued Monitoring

Use alerts and scheduled reports to actively monitor device health. Additional reports, such as the Visual Review Report, can provide insight into camera visibility.

• Scheduled Reports enable you to configure a report to be sent to a group of internal or external recipients on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.

  For example, you can schedule Samsara to send the Gateway Health Report to a group on a regular basis.

• The Camera Specific Report provides you with a quick and easy way to visually inspect all of your installed cameras and identify any issues in road-facing or inward-facing camera visibility.

  Review this report daily or weekly to make sure cameras are facing the correct direction and are not being obstructed.

  You can enable the Inward Camera Obstruction safety alert for coaches who want to receive alerts when the view of the driver is obstructed. The Inward Camera Obstruction feature checks for violations just after a trip starts (not continuously). This feature is only available for CM32s.

• You can create and manage alerts to increase operational efficiency with complete visibility into fleet performance and driver behavior. The Alert Guide lists the alerts you can configure on your dashboard. The following are specifically related to device health:

  • Vehicle Unplugged: In the event that a vehicle gateway is unplugged from its vehicle, this alert will be triggered.

  • Device Battery Level: If the battery is low on the device the Admin will be notified.

  • Dash Cam Disconnected: In the event that the Dash Cam is disconnected an alert will trigger.

  • Connection: The Connection alert is triggered when the device is offline for either 15 mins or 60 mins based on your preference.