How to Fix Autopause Issues

Autopause for cycling uses your GPS to detect movement and automatically pause the recording when you are stopped. Autopause for running uses your phone's accelerometer to automatically pause the recording when you are stopped (Enable split announcements to hear audio announcements for pause and resume events). Once movement is again detected, autopause will turn off, and the recording will resume.

If your autopause is not automatically pausing: 

Check the Strava app's record settings to make sure the autopause feature is enabled. Since autopause relies on the accuracy of your GPS to determine if you are stopped or moving, check our GPS troubleshooting resources for Android and iPhone. If there is an issue with the accuracy of your phone's GPS, then the autopause feature won't be able to detect if you are stopped and won't automatically pause. Also, note that your recording will be resumed if you are walking around or moving indoors where the GPS signal is obscured. You can use the manual pause feature to prevent any miscalculations. 

Example of GPS issues when indoors with an obscured signal preventing autopause from pausing the recording:

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If your autopause is not automatically resuming: 

  • If recording a walk or hike, we recommend disabling autopause. The slower speeds often cause the app to pause frequently and have trouble resuming which will result in recording issues. With autopause disabled, Strava will calculate moving and stopped time during the upload process instead of during the activity. 
  • Autopause may not resume automatically if you remain stopped for a long time. Some phones will shut off the GPS signal to conserve battery if it is not being used for some time. Opening the Strava app to view the record screen will reactive GPS tracking and ensure the recording is resumed when you begin moving.
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90 comments
  • Hi Strava:

    Since upgrading to premium I have beeen having auto-pause issues.  I'm using an iphone 5 with strava release 4.5.2.   I went into settings to shutoff the auto pause function, but, it is not available.    I read what I can find about GPS signals and cameras interfering and so forth,  but, the explanations are not adequate.  I don't use my camera.  Often I use use the app along with my Garmin (on my bike),  which does not seem to have the same issues Strava does. 

    Rod

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  • @Brian: It sounds like you're recording a Ride, but have the activity type set to Run. So the app is using the run auto-pause detection settings which won't work during a ride and will cause constant pausing and resuming. When auto-pause is turned on, you'll have to make sure you have selected the correct activity type before you begin your activity.

    @Patrick: It sounds like the app isn't receiving any good GPS or location data from your phone. So the app tries to start, but after 10 seconds doesn't receive any location updates, so thinks you're stopped. I recommend turning the phone completely off then on and flipping the location services off then on.

    @Rodney: The auto-pause setting is still available but it's moved and is now found by clicking on the three switches from the pre-record screen. 

     

    A reminder that if you're stopped and the app is auto-paused, and you use the phone for any other functions (not just the camera but also to make a call, check Safari or another browser, use other apps, text, etc.) the phone's OS may close Strava or terminate it's connection to location services while paused. So, if you're stopped for an extended period and use any of those functions, it's best to return to the app before resuming riding or running.

    If you're having problems after turning your phone off then on and flipping location services off then on or if you're having problems and the auto-pause is turned off, please submit a support ticket so we can investigate further. We don't have any known issues regarding recording and have been able to get our athletes recording without problems when we troubleshoot each case individually. 

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  • After updating to iOS 9 I'm now experiencing this issue. Was previously very reliable when using auto-pause, even when using the Camera app. iOS 9 appears to have changed this.

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  • @Justin - give some routine GPS troubleshooting a try. Sometimes the iOS update can muddle the GPS signal which affects the auto-pause feature. 

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  • One commenter said this..."I went for a drive last night and it worked fine until the screen went off." Strava has stopped recording mid-ride on me both times (2 out of 2 rides) since I upgraded to IOS 9. It only happens when I come to a stop, but not every stop. But the two times it happened, it happened when I turned my screen off and I took my phone inside a store. So it may have something to do with turning off the screen or going inside a building. I'll have to experiment. Using Strava v4.5.2.

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  • Hello

    I am having problems with the "Auto-pause" feature as well.

    I am using an iPhone 4 (so no issues with ios9) [using ios 7.1.2] and using the App in Ride mode.

    The last 2 rides have activated auto-pause once on each ride, but it has not discontinued auto-pause when I started riding again.  Yesterday approx 40 minutes into the ride and today about 40mins also.

    The phone is in my camel pack with the screen off and until now I have never had a problem.

    In summary, it is like the auto-pause is not resuming normal timing when movement starts again.

    Any theories?

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  • @Elle, thanks, totally worked for me. 🏁 Total derp moment as I forgot to go through those steps after my update. 

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  • I'm having a similar issue, where my rides were incompletely recorded due to persistent auto-pause. There's nothing I've been doing differently. My GPS worked (it homed in on my location), it had started recording (I always watch for a few seconds and a few meters to make sure that it works), and I just turned off the screen. It's only been happening since the app changed to the current format, never happened before. Mine is Srava 4.5.2, running on Android. Of course it could be a GPS problem, but I can't tell how good my GPS signal is (at the start of my ride) on the new app. Considering my location and that it normally works fine on my phone, I doubt it's purely because of the GPS.

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  • I have been using strava for a few years now, never had any issues until the last two rides. Neither of them was recorded, because Strava felt like pausing it. My routine hasnt changed, start Strava, put the Phone into the saddle bag, do my helmet, glasses, and all, and off I go. What has changed since the last update? I use a Samsung S6, android 5.1.1.

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  • I have been using strava for a few years now, never had any issues until the last two rides. Neither of them was recorded, because Strava felt like pausing it. My routine hasnt changed, start Strava, put the Phone into the saddle bag, do my helmet, glasses, and all, and off I go. What has changed since the last update? I use a Samsung S6, android 5.1.1.

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  • auto pause failed again is this an attempt to get people to upgrade ?

    iPhone 5s never had trouble before

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  • Hi... I am an iPhone user... ever since I upgraded to a 6... my auto pause does not work at all... i have to manually do it.. and I am a premium user... I live in Venice, CA, so the GPS thing is not an issue... such a drag as we have a lot of stop lights!!

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  • Auto-pause was working great until they offered me a free trial to premium,doesnt work at all now. Looking for a new app to measure my rides.

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  • Same as many above. i am a cyclist and my setting is for cycling.  I have an LG3 and I don't take any pictures or use other apps when I am riding. My strava turns off after 10 sec. and never resumes. It happened today, again. I turned off autopause for the rest of my ride. This was never a problem before the update. 

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  • has been stable for some time on iPhone, and the last few rides have been effected by auto-pause not detecting the restart and not accepting a manual restart so I have lost data. i have just upgrade to v4.9.2 so we'll see if that is any better.  As a premium subscriber to Strava this is a deal-breaker for me.  Why should I pay money to lose data?

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  • worked beautifully for years and has now annoyingly developed this auto pause issue, 2 rides no data.

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  • I've had two instances now running 4.9.1 on a Samsung Galaxy Note 5 where the app has auto-paused after 10 seconds while I'm getting ready to roll.  At the end of the ride I find that it never resumed.  I'm riding the same commute route that I have for over two years and I have never had a problem previously.  

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  • I've found fairly consistently that if my phone has both cell and wifi connected that when I transition outdoors even when I wait and get a good signal that gps will not lock in correctly resulting in auto pause issues when leaving home.  My method is to get out of my home wifi range (the very end of my driveway) then turn cell off/on (airplane mode off/on).  Then I never have auto pause issues. 

    If I leave a building where I never had wifi this is not needed, even if I didn't have a decent gps signal indoors before.

    If I am outdoor in well both connected wifi and cell/gps range and I don't cycle cell connection I will have gps issues.

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  • Updated to 4.10.0 last night and same thing happened on this mornings ride.  Auto-paused after 10 seconds and won't resume when underway.

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  • I've never had autopause issues on my android app but since the new year in 2016, I've been receiving straightline data. My recording has gone onto autopause and I've lost part of my routes, mileage and data. I've lost a total of 40+km of data just this weekend alone. Frustrating!

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  • Hi,

    I too had auto pause error today and luckily i have also recorded in mapmyride.

    Please fix this

    regards

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  • Having the same auto-pause after 10 seconds issue described by others on my last two rides. iPhone 5s, iOS 9.2.

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  • Auto pause worked fine on my Android phone until end of last year. System would go into auto pause while in motion and then go normal again, no loss of data. Starting on January 1st system would auto pause then lock out causing almost total data loss. 14 miles on 1 ride 9 miles on another. I have since turned auto pause off, Thanks Strava, great feature! Android OS is latest update and Strava cache is cleared

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  • I having issue on the auto-pause. my ride record have been lost count about 200km. the strava auto pause after 1km-1.5km, until I done my ride. its have pause and never resume back the record.

    Having this issue since this week. did total of 3 ride with not proper recording. Please settle this issue. I'm very dissappointed about this.

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  • It is a long time for I have disabled auto pause feature. This function has no utility as when downloaded to your web account, a new calculation is done and pause time is subtracted for speed calculation.

    Xavier

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  • I have disabled autopause but Strava is still only showing moving time. (If I figure it right)

    I use a Garmin 920. When I check time and distance after a run the unit and Garmin connect shows the same values but Strava shows almost always a bit shorter time, and sometimes distance.

    I realise a lot of people love the "moving time" function but I don't. Guess I'm a bit old school but I think all the time between pressing the start and the stop button counts.

    So, do I have to log my runs as races, whitch seems to make the application count correctly, or is there any other way?

    Henning

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  • Are the Strava folks even reading and tracking this thread? Some official advise would be nice.

    Switching the autopause on/off is not the issue anymore. Doesn't matter if the autopause is on or off.

    The app whether on Android or IOS is simply not recording as intended, as evidenced by the people who posted here. Get the bugs fixed or at least tell us you're working on it!

    Or is Strava going to tell us that the Free version will only record xx miles/km and then go into autopause where we will have to keep checking and toggling while cycling to record, and that we will all have to upgrade to a premium version for it to record properly? #justsaying

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  • This forum is actually intended to discuss auto-pause functionality only. If you're having problems while recording with auto-pause turned off, then please submit a support ticket so we can properly troubleshoot your case. We likely need more information about your exact activity and the recording experience than makes sense to request and provide here to allow us to troubleshoot those sorts of issues.

    Troubleshooting issues on this forum, with the wide variety of reports including different use cases, devices and activity types will be nearly impossible. As we have stated previously, one very important thing to note, auto-pause issues are nearly ALWAYS GPS or OS issues. The auto-pause function will not work properly if Strava is not receiving good GPS and location data from your phone. We do not have any known issues with auto-pause at this time. 

    One of the most common reports in this forum goes something like "the app records for 10 seconds then auto-pauses and never resumes". This is because, for cycling, the app does in fact auto-pause after 10 seconds of no reported movement as indicated by the GPS. However, this IS NOT caused by the auto-pause specifically. IT IS caused by the fact that the phone and its GPS and location services are not providing any accurate GPS data to the app so Strava thinks you're stopped. If the location data provided by the phone showed movement, the app would resume recording normally.

    The other common report is that the app auto-pauses at some point during an activity and never resumes. This can be caused by a variety of different issues. If you are stopped and use the phone for other functions, specifically iPhones using a camera or Safari, then in some cases the OS can actually stop sending location updates to the app at all which prevents the app from being able to resume properly. On both Android and iOS, if you enter a building while stopped, and the app auto-pauses, the GPS might lose a solid connection with satellites, and when you return to ride, the phone never really achieves a solid GPS lock. In these cases the app does receive some GPS data from the phone, but the accuracy of the data may be of too poor quality to be used by the app.

    Regardless, all of these different situations are best handled independently, by our support staff, in a support ticket. We're definitely happy to investigate. For almost every athlete that has ever submitted a support ticket we have been able to identify the issue, and prevent future recording problems. We don't have any known issues with the app recording activities, or with how auto-pause functions.

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  • Autopause turned OFF and I still get aborted runs and bike ride after 10 min or so. Always after 10 minutes no matter what course or location. Please advise since i've tried everything you suggested in the gps/autopause articles. Samsung S6 latest version strava app.

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  • Chris, were you able to get auto-pause working again, without truncating your recordings?

    For others with auto-pause issues, please reach out to our support team directly for troubleshooting and to report issues. Our team will be sure to get back to you promptly. Click "Submit a Request" below.

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