Previously, geofences were created in the Geofence section. Now, geofences are created in a blueprint. To assign a geofence to a device, converge the device to that blueprint. Learn more about creating a blueprint.
Use a device’s location — generated by GPS — to trigger an alert when the device enters or leaves a defined area. Geofences can offer protection against theft, loss, and unauthorized use.
We recommend using devices with location services enabled and with either cellular or internet connectivity for optimal performance. The lock and beep actions will still trigger without an internet connection as long as the device is able to obtain location data through GPS or other sources. However, in certain cases where location data cannot be obtained, the geofence may not trigger as expected. Additionally, the device’s state will not be reflected on the console until it reconnects to the internet.
If you assigned a geofence to a device using the legacy Geofence feature, we recommend removing that one before applying the new geofence feature to avoid unexpected behavior.
Requirements:
- Devices will need to be on Esper Agent 9.0+ to use the new geofence feature
In this article:
Creating a Geofence
In a blueprint, go to the Geofence section and select the Geofence tab. Then, click on Add Geofence.
Add a name and description and click Next.
In the Boundary Settings, you’ll create the border for your geofence. Create a location, circular, or polygon boundary fence.
Search for a location
When you search for a location, a geofence is automatically created with a one kilometer radius around the location. Use this option to quickly set a boundary.
Circular
Use circular when you know the radius of the boundary you want to set. After choosing Circular, a circle will appear on the map. Pull the points of the circle to encompass the boundary, or drag the circle to choose the area’s boundary.
Choose from kilometers or miles. The radius can be as small as one mile or as large as 621 miles.
Polygon
Use polygon when you want a specific, non-circular boundary. You can create fences around cities and even buildings. Starting with a single point, click on the map to drop points on the map and close the boundary by connecting the last point to the first point.
Coordinates are collected in the boundary details box. Click on the trashcan to remove a point, or the Clear All option to start over again.
Defining the Action
Define what happens when the device leaves the boundary.
Lock devices
The device locks when leaving the boundary. Locking behavior is determined by the device manufacturer. Test out a single device’s lock behavior before applying it to your fleet.
Beep devices
The device makes a beeping noise when leaving the boundary.
Previewing and Saving
Once you’re done, preview and save the geofence.
Save, publish, and converge the blueprint to apply the geofence to your devices.
Managing a Geofence
To manage a geofence, go to the blueprint’s Geofence section, and click on the fence.
Applying the geofence to devices
To apply the geofence, save and publish the blueprint and converge it to a device.
Removing the geofence from devices
To remove a geofence from a device, converge the device to a different blueprint.
Removing the geofence from a blueprint
A geofence can only be removed if the blueprint is no longer converged with any devices. Once the devices are no longer converged, edit the blueprint, and go to the blueprint’s Geofence section and click on the ellipsis. Then select Remove.
Viewing the fence
To view a fence go to the new Geofence section in the console, or to the geofence section in the blueprint. You’ll see the fence information and device count.
Click on Device List View to see the devices applied to the fence.
You
If a device is set to lock and outside the fence, its display will show that it is outside of the geofence. Other functionality will be disabled.
Use geofence to manage the physical location of devices.
FAQs
What happens if I bring a device back into the geofence after it has left?
The device will no longer beep or lock once it returns to the fence.
My device’s Geofence Status is Unknown. What does that mean?
This status appears when you first converge the device to the Geofence. It can take 5 - 10 minutes to update its status. Check back later to see its updated status.
I noticed my device continues to show its outside of fence behavior even after it has returned to the fence.
This typically happens when operating in a small geofence boundary where even minor variations can cause false positives for GPS accuracy. GPS systems typically have an error margin of 5 - 50 meters, and signal strength, environment, hardware, and many other factors can trigger false positives.