My observations using the awesome LC platform but getting this same error repeatedly-
When I don’t refresh my page for a while(around 30minutes), and then I click a like button on any post or someone’s reply, the operation doesn’t work, I scroll to the top of the page to find Authentication error.
Seems like a timeout error as when I reload the page, I can normally work in a certain time window without any disruption.
As @MegS has stated in her comment- https://www.localguidesconnect.com/t5/Feedback-and-Feature-Requests/Bug-report-in-connect-Authentication-failed-Authentication/m-p/281762/highlight/true#M13147 that “a login session will not continue indefinitely; if you start a post and take several hours to complete it, you will likely be logged out”. I found that I haven’t logged into my LC account from last more than a week. But if this error comes, I just need to reload page(losing my data if not autosaved) and can see myself logged in already, continuing my work. So it seems like a timeout session with only page and not user login timeout. @MegS Can you please reconsider looking into this issue or forwarding it to required design/implementation/testing team for a quick look.
How to reproduce this issue:
Login to your LC profile.
Open any page, for example, this very page.
Click “Add a comment” and start typing.
Wait for a while(like some 30min)
Click on the “Post” comment button
Find that comment is not posted.
Scroll the page to the top and find the same error of “Authentication mismatch”
Reload the page and observe that you are logged in already.
Don’t wait and post a comment, it will be posted.
OS version: Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.18363.592] Google Chrome: Version 79.0.3945.130 (Official Build) (64-bit) Browser user agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/79.0.3945.130 Safari/537.36
Please feel free to ask me any question in the comments section to help to debug this issue.
The How-to section is the best place to ask for help on bugs. Well done.
I think your analysis of the problem is spot on. I can add one more sure way to reproduce the very same error:
If you on Mobile switch to “Desktop site” to use an editing tool not available in mobile and then switch “Desktop site” off. Bingo you are kicked off.
I don’t know if this is a bug though. To me, it makes sense that user sessions have to end at some point. I almost never hit the time out and get this error message. Maybe the is because I always edit long texts in Google docs first and then paste them into the editor here on Connect. Quick, easy and clean. You may want to do the same.
What you are reporting is not a bug. That’s a feature intended to maintain security.
If you leave the site for more than a specified time, the message pops up. The purpose is that someone else should not hijack the session, while you are away from your device.
To me, it makes sense that user sessions have to end at some point.
Yes, user session should always end, but I felt that the time of the session is too less. Whenever we write a new post, there are a lot of things to edit to increase readability and reader’s overall experience and ease. With some graphics like photos or videos added, it takes time to write a post. And if the session ends, it’s irritating especially if last-minute brushing up of text is done and it gets lost because clicking on Post at (foobar) time but the last draft was saved at (foobar-60sec).
Maybe the is because I always edit long texts in Google docs first and then paste them into the editor here on Connect. Quick, easy and clean. You may want to do the same.
That’s a good workaround, even I have started writing the post in 1 tab and copy-pasting in another at last to post it, sometimes editing the post later after publishing it.
What kind of solution are you hoping for?
LC is not the only platform which provides user ability to post, there are many platforms especially the blogging platforms. I don’t know the technicality on how it’s implemented there but never faced similar issues in other platforms.
To be precise, I am expecting that if the session is ended then not to auto-reload the page and show error eventually losing out the draft created, but just show the error without losing typed content. I believe coming up with a workaround of writing first in Google docs also signifies that it’s a drawback of the platform in itself. What are your thoughts on this?
@C_T
Thank you for enlightening me about the security flaw it will be if the session timeout is not created. I am not the technical expert in this field, but if I am reloading the page, I can still work without logging in again. In that case, will it not be susceptible to hijack again? Can we brainstorm a different and better solution to this, as mentioned above- not to lose content on clicking the ‘Post’ button? Or as the draft is still being saved at some time intervals while writing the post from a long time, also explicitly trigger save draft event at backend just before Post button routine ← at the click of the post/publish. Please feel free to correct me if I am wrong in above
You are able to log in instantly because you have chosen to do so by not purging the cookies on exit.
Further, the website is also lenient to allow that hoping other security measures like lock screen password etc are in place. Nevertheless, you are forced to make a restart through the saved draft.
In reality, every website logs off a user after an extended period of inactivity and the ones handling sensitive data will force you to a fresh login.
In addition you will not timed out till you still active on a post, the timeout works only if you live your edit open, and inactive, for a long time, or if you switch from mobile to desktop, and vice versa.
Showing the error, without re-uploading the page, will give you the possibility of copying the contents, before to re-upload the page
Recently I face an issue regarding my post. When I written on my post it Autosaved the whole post. After sometime it automatically vanished when I published. Why not Local Guide Connect work on it. Google Docs from copy paste is not the proper solution as suggested by Google Moderator.
I hope Local Guide Connect work on it. Hope get a good idea from Local Guiders.
@muhammad_ilyas Just reaching to see if you managed to publish that post or it was gone? Can you try to look through your Drafts section to see if it is still there? Usually if it is not deleted, it should still be there.
Click on your profile picture on top right > then click on your name to get into your profile > You should see Posts, Comments, Solutions, Photos, Drafts, Bookmarks > Click on Drafts >
If it was successfully saved during editing without publishing, it should still be there. Have a look if not already.
@muhammad_ilyas If you don’t see it under Drafts, then it’s probably lost. Draft saves depend on network connectivity, and if during that time, network is not available, then it’s not likely to be able to be saved.
By the way, for questions and issues, do post them to “How-to” topic next time instead of Idea Exchange, which is more for submitting your specific idea to improve the platform.
К сожалению, ситуация с корректной работой черновика не уникальна, во многих других браузерных приложениях и комьюнити это открытый вопрос. По старинке пишу и редактирую объёмный текст в google keeps
On 19-02-2021, I plan to add some amazing story in Local Guide Connect. About 3 to 4 hours I work on it to explain the picture, to add pictures and reliable content. Whenever I write it autosaved all my content in my post. Later On, after 15 minutes when I again comeback to published my post, after clicking the post button I seen all my content is vanished it shows blank on the fields. I calm down and go to Draft tab to see maybe my post is save there. But there is no post that time. That time I fell how I work on to write my post and it vanished.
Why autosaved text area shows your data is saved ?
If it not shows my data then why Google Map put that text whenever we write post. ?
Yes, it is very disappointing to see such kind of error message that too after spending good amount of time drafting your post.
But nothing to worry here as this is one of the features of this platform.
The best way to retrieve your data is to go to “Draft” section where your post is auto saved. You may not have the real time data there but mostly 80 to 90 percent of your draft is saved. Take it from there on clicking “Load”. Thats it…you are all set to go.
