Mesh Agent iOS App doesn’t connect

[bellum07]

Describe the bug
I’d like to test the new Mesh Agent iOS App.

In a first step manually - later with a MDM system (preferably BlackBerry UEM and perhaps Intune).
I’ve downloaded the app on the iPhone and scanned the QR code.
When I click connect nothing happens and the device isn’t visible in the MeshCentral Web-Console
The app shows:
Host: rs.intra.domain-1.com
Status: Disconnected

I can ping the MeshCentral Server from the iPhone and on the Windows Firewall I can see allowed connetctions to port 443 from the iPhone.
What am I doing wrong?
How to debug?

Server Software:
OS: Windows 2019 Server
Version: 1.1.56
Node: 22.16.0

Client Device:
Device: iPhone 11
OS: iOS 26.2.1
Network: Wi-Fi only
Mesh Agent Version: 1.0.2

Device: iPhone 7
OS: iOS 15.8.6
Network: Wi-Fi only
Mesh Agent Version: 1.0.2

Your sanitized config.json file
Please sanitize your configuration (remove private or irrelevant values) before posting, using the community tool at https://sanitizer.meshcentraltools.com/

{
  "$schema": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Ylianst/MeshCentral/master/meshcentral-config-schema.json",
  "__comment1__": "This is a simple configuration file, all values and sections that start with underscore (_) are ignored. Edit a section and remove the _ in front of the name. Refer to the user's guide for details.",
  "__comment2__": "See node_modules/meshcentral/sample-config-advanced.json for a more advanced example.",
  "settings": {
    "cert": "rs.intra.domain-1.com",
    "_WANonly": true,
    "_LANonly": true,
    "_sessionKey": "MyReallySecretPassword1",
    "_port": 443,
    "_aliasPort": 443,
    "_redirPort": 80,
    "_redirAliasPort": 80
  },
  "domains": {
    "": {
      "_title": "MyServer",
      "_title2": "Servername",
      "_minify": true,
      "_newAccounts": true,
      "_userNameIsEmail": true
    }
  },
  "_letsencrypt": {
    "__comment__": "Requires NodeJS 8.x or better, Go to https://domain-2.com/ first before trying Let's Encrypt.",
    "email": "myemail@domain-3.com",
    "names": "REDACTED",
    "skipChallengeVerification": true,
    "production": false
  }
}

[si458]

@The-Dev-Ryan any ideas?

[The-Dev-Ryan]

@bellum07 - Hey is there any chance of a Video of the issue, Is it getting stuck trying to connect ? or just not doing anything ?

[bellum07]

I’ve troubleshooted this further and it turned out that the iOS devices didn’t like the default MeshCentral server certificate because it’s an self-generated untrusted one. After I put the root certificate of the MeshCentral server on the iPhone I can now connect to the server and see the device in the MeshCentral console.

But currently I only managed to see the iOS Desktop on the iPhone 7 with iOS 15.8.6 but not with iOS 26.2.(1) devices (iPhone 11 an iPhone 16 Pro).

The app tells me: “Live Broadcast to Mesh Agent Screen Share has stopped due to: Connection to MeshCentral lost”
I get this message when I click on “Start Broadcast” on the iOS Screen Broadcast screen.

In the server log I see:

AGENT: New agent at 10.70.1.70:62692
AGENT: Verified agent connection to HUf3QvTZF27Pv63iMABW19ZAVItB3vIZko6CMrPSspyoQWliab3ixklcEdP4FYyH (10.70.1.70:62692).
RELAY: Relay holding: xiqx3jqvzf (10.70.1.104) Authenticated
RELAY: Relay disconnect: xiqx3jqvzf (10.70.1.104)

Are there any known issues with iOS 26.2?

[bellum07]

Also can't get it working on an iPhone XS with iOS 18.7.4 ...

[The-Dev-Ryan]

Thanks for the information — I’m going to need a bit more info about your MeshCentral setup to understand what’s going on.

Can you share some info about your installation?
• Are you accessing MeshCentral directly over 443, or through a reverse proxy (NGINX, Cloudflare, etc.)?
• What DNS name are the iPhones connecting to, and is the SSL certificate fully trusted on the device?
• When you tap Connect, do you see any activity in the MeshCentral server logs?
• Is there any firewall, VPN, or unusual network routing between the phone and the server?

For reference, this has been tested on multiple devices (iPhone XR, 8, 8 Plus, 11, 13, 14, 15 Pro Max) across a range of iOS versions, including the latest, and connects as expected — so I want to rule out anything environment-specific in your setup.

I don’t think we can say yet whether it’s an installation issue or a bug without seeing logs from your side. Once we have a bit more detail, it should be easier to narrow down.

[bellum07]

Can you share some info about your installation?

Sure

• Are you accessing MeshCentral directly over 443, or through a reverse proxy (NGINX, Cloudflare, etc.)?

iPhone and MeshCentral are in the same subnet and access is direct - there are no other components between like reverse proxy.

• What DNS name are the iPhones connecting to, and is the SSL certificate fully trusted on the device?

I think so - I can access the MeshCentral web console without any SSL warnings.

• Is there any firewall, VPN, or unusual network routing between the phone and the server?

No

• When you tap Connect, do you see any activity in the MeshCentral server logs?

In the server log I see:

AGENT: New agent at 10.70.1.70:62692
AGENT: Verified agent connection to HUf3QvTZF27Pv63iMABW19ZAVItB3vIZko6CMrPSspyoQWliab3ixklcEdP4FYyH (10.70.1.70:62692).
RELAY: Relay holding: xiqx3jqvzf (10.70.1.104) Authenticated
RELAY: Relay disconnect: xiqx3jqvzf (10.70.1.104)

If you need additional log data, please tell which and how to collect.

[bellum07]

O.K. I think I found a way to create a full server log.
Could you please provide an email address so I can share it with you?

[The-Dev-Ryan]

@bellum07 - it's ryan@thedevryan.com - Will get back to you once I have looked at it.

[tschettervictor]

I'm having similar issues. My server is fully reachable from the LAN and WAN, but also the Mesh Agent will not connect.

IOS 26.3
iPhone 13

Nothing even shows in the logs like it's trying to connect...

I will add that I'm using a reverse proxy that handles all the cert stuff for me. All other agents works just fine, internally and externally.

Also it is not asking for local network permissions when trying to connect via wifi.

Even my reverse proxy (caddy) is not showing any incoming requests from the device.

[tschettervictor]

I'm having similar issues. My server is fully reachable from the LAN and WAN, but also the Mesh Agent will not connect.

IOS 26.3
iPhone 13

Nothing even shows in the logs like it's trying to connect...

I will add that I'm using a reverse proxy that handles all the cert stuff for me. All other agents works just fine, internally and externally.

Also it is not asking for local network permissions when trying to connect via wifi.

Even my reverse proxy (caddy) is not showing any incoming requests from the device.

EDIT: It was because my MDM was blocking VPN creation. After turning that off it now works.

However, is it necessary to do this through the VPN? This would not really work for our setup as we use B2B force pushed IPsec vpn.

Thoughts?

[si458]

@tschettervictor ill have to get @The-Dev-Ryan to fully explain it all
but from my understanding speaking to him,
basically apple requires the VPN access to allow for the always on connection to meshcentral in the background
and this cant be done by like notifications like android does
so i think you would have to disable the autoconnect on start etc options
sadly i dont have an iphone or mac mini anymore to test with 👎

[The-Dev-Ryan]

I'm working on an update at the moment that will hopefully resolve some of these issues, with the choice of using the VPN or not but without it will significantly reduce background connectivity to your server.

[bellum07]

Does this update also address my issue (on a completely unmanaged device)?