Notifications Guide

Configure and manage desktop and mobile notifications.

Quick Setup

Enable notifications in 3 steps: Grant browser permission → Subscribe to topics → Configure preferences.

Notification Types

Notifer supports multiple notification channels:

• Desktop Notifications - Browser push notifications (Chrome, Firefox, Safari)
• Mobile Push - Native iOS and Android notifications
• In-App Notifications - Notification center for system events

Desktop Notifications

Enabling Desktop Notifications

First Time Setup:

1. Navigate to any topic
2. Click "Subscribe" button
3. Browser prompts: "Allow notifications?"
4. Click "Allow"
5. Test notification appears

Alternative - Via Settings:

1. Go to Settings → Notifications
2. Click "Enable Desktop Notifications"
3. Grant browser permission
4. Configure preferences

Browser Compatibility

Browser	Desktop	Mobile	Notes
Chrome	✅	✅	Full support
Firefox	✅	✅	Full support
Safari	✅	⚠️	Limited on iOS
Edge	✅	✅	Chromium-based
Brave	✅	✅	Privacy mode may block

Notification Behavior

When notifications appear:

• App closed - System notification (always)
• App in background - System notification (default)
• App active - In-app notification (optional)

Configure in Settings:

• ✅ Show when active - Notify even when app is open
• ❌ Quiet when active - Only in-app banner

Notification Settings

Global Settings (all topics):

1. Go to Settings → Notifications
2. Configure:
   • Enable/Disable - Master switch
   • Sound - Play notification sound
   • Show preview - Display message content
   • Badge count - Show unread count on icon

Per-Topic Settings (override global):

1. Go to topic in "Subscribed" tab
2. Click bell icon or notification settings
3. Configure:
   • Priority threshold - Only priority N or higher
   • Tag filter - Only specific tags
   • Sound override - Different sound per topic
   • Quiet hours - Don't notify during specific times

Priority-Based Notifications

Control which messages trigger notifications:

Priority	Level	Default Behavior
1 (P1)	Critical	Persistent + sound + vibration
2 (P2)	High	Notify + sound
3 (P3)	Default	Standard notification
4 (P4)	Low	Silent (optional)
5 (P5)	Info	No notification (silent)

Set Priority Threshold:

# Subscribe to topic with P2+ only
- Go to topic subscription settings
- Set "Priority threshold" to P2
- Save settings

# Now only P1 and P2 messages will notify

Example Use Cases:

• Personal reminders - Threshold: P3 (P1-P3 messages)
• CI/CD alerts - Threshold: P2 (failures only)
• Server monitoring - Threshold: P1 (critical only)

Learn more

For detailed priority level definitions, see Priority Levels.

Tag-Based Filtering

Subscribe to specific message types:

Example:

# Topic: "deployments"
# Messages have tags: production, staging, dev

# Your filter: "production" only
# Result: Only production deployment notifications

Configure Tag Filter:

1. Go to topic subscription settings
2. Enable "Tag filter"
3. Enter tags (comma-separated): production,critical
4. Select filter mode:
   • Any - Message has any of these tags
   • All - Message has all these tags
5. Save settings

Notification Sound

Global Sound:

• Default system sound
• Or select from Notifer sounds
• Upload custom sound (ESSENTIALS plan)

Per-Topic Sound:

1. Go to topic notification settings
2. Enable "Custom sound"
3. Select sound from dropdown
4. Test sound with preview button

Available Sounds:

• 🔔 Default
• 🎵 Chime
• 📢 Alert
• 🚨 Emergency
• 🎺 Fanfare
• 🔕 Silent

Quiet Hours

Don't receive notifications during specific times:

Configure:

1. Go to Settings → Notifications
2. Enable "Quiet hours"
3. Set time range: 22:00 - 08:00
4. Select days: Weekdays or All days
5. Exceptions - Always notify for P1 (critical)

Per-Topic Override:

• Allow specific topics to bypass quiet hours
• Useful for critical alerts that need immediate attention

Mobile Push Notifications

Setting Up Mobile App

1. Install Notifer App

   • iOS: Download from App Store
   • Android: Download from Google Play

2. Grant Notification Permission

   • App prompts on first launch
   • Or enable in device Settings

3. Sign In

   • Use same account as web

4. Subscribe to Topics

   • All subscriptions sync across devices

See Mobile App Guide for detailed setup.

Mobile Notification Settings

Global Settings (mobile app):

• Settings → Notifications
• Enable/Disable push
• Sound, vibration, badge
• Notification preview

Per-Topic Settings:

1. Open topic in app
2. Tap notification settings icon
3. Configure:
   • Priority threshold
   • Tag filter
   • Sound (override)
   • Vibration pattern
   • LED color (Android)

Mobile Notification Behavior

App States:

• Closed - Push notification → tap opens app
• Background - Push notification + optional background sync
• Foreground - In-app notification + WebSocket real-time

Deep Linking:

• Tap notification → Opens specific topic
• Shows message that triggered notification
• Mark as read automatically

Learn more

For the full mobile app setup and configuration guide, see Mobile App Guide.

iOS-Specific

Critical Alerts (P1):

• Bypass Do Not Disturb
• Bypass silent mode
• Requires iOS permission

Notification Grouping:

• Messages grouped by topic
• Thread ID: topic name

Badge Count:

• Shows unread message count
• Cleared when topic opened

Android-Specific

Notification Channels:

• Separate channel per topic
• Per-channel settings in Android Settings
• Sound, vibration, importance level

Notification Priority:

Notifer Priority	Android Importance
1	Urgent (heads-up)
2	High (sound)
3	Default
4-5	Low (silent)

Battery Optimization:

• Disable battery optimization for Notifer app
• Ensures reliable notifications
• Settings → Apps → Notifer → Battery

In-App Notifications (Notification Center)

Besides message notifications, Notifer has an in-app notification center that informs you about important system events related to your subscriptions and account.

Accessing Notification Center

Click the bell icon (🔔) in the bottom-right corner of the web app to:

• View recent notifications in a dropdown
• Click "View all notifications" to open the full notification center
• Filter between All and Unread notifications
• Mark notifications as read or delete them

Notification Types

Type	Icon	When You Receive It
Topic Deleted	🗑️	A topic you're subscribed to was deleted by its owner
Topic Made Private	🔒	A public topic you're subscribed to became private
Topic Made Public	🔓	A private topic you have access to became public
Access Granted	✅	You were granted access to a private topic
Access Revoked	❌	Your access to a private topic was revoked
Subscription Removed	⚠️	You were unsubscribed from a topic
Team Invite	👥	You were invited to join a team
Team Role Changed	👥	Your role in a team was changed
Team Removed	❌	You were removed from a team
System	⚡	General system announcements

Who Receives These Notifications?

Topic Notifications:

• Topic Deleted → All subscribers (except the owner who deleted it)
• Topic Made Private → All subscribers who will lose access
• Topic Made Public → All users with existing access
• Access Granted/Revoked → The specific user whose access changed
• Subscription Removed → The user who was unsubscribed

Team Notifications:

• Team Invite → The invited user
• Team Role Changed → The user whose role changed
• Team Removed → The user who was removed

Managing Notifications

Mark as Read:

• Click on a notification to mark it as read
• Or use "Mark all as read" button

Delete Notifications:

• Hover over a notification and click the delete button
• Deleted notifications cannot be recovered

Notification Retention:

• Notifications are kept for 30 days
• After 30 days, they are automatically deleted
• You can manually delete notifications anytime

Notification Center Features

The full notification center (opened via "View all") provides:

• Infinite scroll - Load more notifications as you scroll
• Filter tabs - Switch between All and Unread
• Full message display - See complete notification text
• Bulk actions - Mark all as read
• Timestamps - See when each notification was sent

Troubleshooting

Desktop Notifications Not Working

Problem: No notifications appear

Solution:

1. Check browser permission
   • Chrome: Settings → Privacy → Notifications
   • Ensure app.notifer.io is allowed
2. Check system settings
   • Windows: Settings → System → Notifications
   • macOS: System Preferences → Notifications
   • Enable for Chrome/Firefox
3. Test notification
   • Settings → Notifications → "Send Test"
   • Should see notification immediately
4. Check topic subscription
   • Verify you're subscribed
   • Check priority threshold settings

Mobile Push Not Received

Problem: Mobile app doesn't show notifications

Solution:

1. Check app permission
   • iOS: Settings → Notifer → Notifications → Allow
   • Android: Settings → Apps → Notifer → Notifications → Enabled
2. Check battery optimization
   • Android: Disable for Notifer app
3. Verify subscription
   • Open app → Check subscribed topics
   • Push token should be registered
4. Test notification
   • Publish test message with P1 or P2 priority
   • Should arrive within seconds

Next Steps

• Topic Settings - Configure per-topic notifications
• Mobile App - Install and setup mobile app
• User Settings - Global notification preferences