# Lost Heartbeat on System

**URL:** <https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869>\
**Category:** Blue Robotics Software\
**Created:** [December 14, 2017, 7:12pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869 "2017-12-14T19:12:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 13\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![canman172](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/canman172/32/1092_2.png) [@canman172](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/canman172)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 7:12pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/1 "2017-12-14T19:12:57Z")

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I am receiving an error code “MYGCS: 255, Heartbeat lost”  
This has happened a few times now.  
Can anybody tell me what this means and how to fix it?

Thanks

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**Author:** ![jwalser](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/jwalser/32/2234_2.png) [@jwalser](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/jwalser)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 8:03pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/2 "2017-12-14T20:03:17Z")

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Hello,

This means that the autopilot on the ROV has not received a HEARTBEAT message from QGC for 2.5seconds. QGC emits heartbeats at 1Hz.

If you see this message it indicates there was some transient failure in communication between the autopilot and QGC.

You should make sure that the tether conductors are well seated in the interface boards, and try a different power supply for the topside board.

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**Author:** ![canman172](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/canman172/32/1092_2.png) [@canman172](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/canman172)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 8:16pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/3 "2017-12-14T20:16:57Z")

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Thanks Jacob. I updated Pixhawk and it seems to have fixed the problem.

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**Author:** ![KaiH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c89c15/32.png) [@KaiH](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/KaiH)\
**Post date:** [January 28, 2021, 2:50pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/4 "2021-01-28T14:50:29Z")

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Hi Jacob, hi Blueys,

I have seen the same old error code **a lot** lately, and checking the topside connection and trying different power sources has not helped. Is there anything else I can try, before I open my ROV (which I have not done in years) to check in there? Or can I change the heartbeat check to be less sensitive? I do not notice any problems in the controlling of my ROV, it seems to reconnect seamlessly. However, it disarms automatically, which is annoying.

However, the good news is that the switch from MacOS 10 to 11 seems to be unproblematic, at least in the office. Any idea if GroundControl will run on a M1 MacBook as well?

Best greetings from home office in Northern Germany,  
stay healthy,  
Kai

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**Author:** ![williangalvani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/6f9a4e/32.png) [@williangalvani](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/williangalvani)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2021, 3:32pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/5 "2021-01-29T15:32:54Z")

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Hi @KaiH ,

If you are really seeing many “MYGCS: 255, Heartbeat lost” messages, I would guess there’s something wrong with your bandwidth.

What is your setup like? Which versions of QGC, ArduSub, and Companion? Any non-stock components?

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**Author:** ![KaiH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c89c15/32.png) [@KaiH](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/KaiH)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2021, 4:25pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/6 "2021-01-29T16:25:13Z")

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Hi Willian,

and thanks for the quick response. No non stock components, I am using (or rather non-using, as my ROV has not seen any work in more than a year) the same basic set-up I started with in December 2017. I faithfully upgraded the software, now it is QGC 4.0.5 with the fitting upgrades to ArduSub etc. (cannot check right now, as my son ist still homeschooling on the laptop). My computer is an older MacBook Pro running the current MacOS 11 Big Sur.

I hope the fix is in some (to me) obscure communication settings. Hardwarewise it could be the top-side companion, which is in a rather crude box, but I did check the flimsy wires. Maybe the usb to ethernet adapter? Or is it likely something could be wrong with the tether itself? Also, I noticed that the time lag seems to be getting worse, but still acceptable.

Cheers,  
Kai

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**Author:** ![williangalvani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/6f9a4e/32.png) [@williangalvani](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/williangalvani)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2021, 4:33pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/7 "2021-01-29T16:33:06Z")

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Well. If your video is smooth, that probably means that the bandwidth is fine.  
When you get back to your laptop, check what is in [http://192.168.2.2/mavproxy](http://192.168.2.2/mavproxy), as recently we had mavproxy consuming too much CPU and we dialed down the telemetry rates to take care of it.  
If you don’t have any unusal configuration, restoring the mavproxy settings in this page coud help.

> [@KaiH](#):
>
> Any idea if GroundControl will run on a M1 MacBook as well?

I missed this question. I heard **one** user report that it worked very well under Rosetta and had no compatibility issues. Hopefully we get some more reports soon.

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**Author:** ![KaiH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c89c15/32.png) [@KaiH](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/KaiH)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2021, 6:22pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/8 "2021-01-29T18:22:58Z")

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On it.  
Seems I wasn’t too faithfully updating:

Companion software is 0.0.18 - updating now - got 0.0.25  
ArduSub 3.5.4 - updating now (stable) - 4.0.2

The heartbeat lost messages stopped

Found the mavproxy page at [http://192.168.2.2:2770/mavproxy](http://192.168.2.2:2770/mavproxy) and restored the settings

Now I get „critical: Lost manual control“ every 30 seconds and the ROV disarms  
And the video is not smooth at all.

Do you think it’s the physical connection after all?

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**Author:** ![farhang](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/farhang/32/6998_2.png) [@farhang](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/farhang)\
**Post date:** [April 14, 2021, 12:48pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/9 "2021-04-14T12:48:28Z")

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Experienced the same. We had power issue.  
I hope Bluerobotics rethink the way they are powering the camera and all other boards.

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**Author:** ![Stevenlb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Stevenlb](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/Stevenlb)\
**Post date:** [November 4, 2022, 10:18am UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/10 "2022-11-04T10:18:46Z")

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Hi BR team,

One of my client is getting the same problem right now during a mission abroad. They checked the power supply, reset the mavproxy settings, all versions are up to date.  
They have a heavy BR2 with a 200m slim tether and a GETAC S410 surface computer.

I am out of ideas, can you help?

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**Author:** ![Boko](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/boko/32/7241_2.png) [@Boko](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/Boko)\
**Post date:** [November 4, 2022, 10:59am UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/11 "2022-11-04T10:59:42Z")

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Hi!  
Next tip, I would check bandwith from Raspberry to topside/laptop.  
This can be done from [http://192.168.2.2:2770/](http://192.168.2.2:2770/) in old companion system  
Bo

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**Author:** ![Charles](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/charles/32/7214_2.png) [@Charles](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/Charles)\
**Post date:** [November 4, 2022, 4:59pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/12 "2022-11-04T16:59:42Z")

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I would also try disconnecting the camera from the raspberry.  
And look at the voltage value measured by the pixhawk. Hw\_state I think. Is it 4.6v or a nice 5v?

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**Author:** ![EliotBR](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/eliotbr/32/6937_2.png) [@EliotBR](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/EliotBR)\
**Post date:** [November 7, 2022, 12:31pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/lost-heartbeat-on-system/1869/13 "2022-11-07T12:31:09Z")

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Hi @Stevenlb,

On top of @Boko and @Charles’ suggestions, some of our [troubleshooting steps](https://www.ardusub.com/reference/troubleshooting.html) may be helpful. If this is still an ongoing issue though it’s likely worth contacting our support email ([support@bluerobotics.com](mailto:support@bluerobotics.com)) to explain the issue and what’s been tried so far.
