Forum Discussion

Ruser4's avatar
Ruser4
Reel Rookie
3 years ago

Use Roku mobile when away from network

Someone asked this question 2 years ago and to my surprise it is still not resolved or addressed. 

To roku developers please make this change.

I have a parent with dementia and a roku4k. I NEED to be able to login to the mobile roku app from ANYWHERE to help him when he can't make it work.  Roku will kot allow use of the mobile app unless you are on the network. Making it simply an extra remote at home. It means it's useless.

No one ever considers dementia or alzheimer's and it is affects a huge percentage of the world. 

Please make a feature with a code for permission that allows someone to access a roku from anywhere not just on the network. 

Please consider this overlooked mass population. Apple doesn't care, be the first that does. 

mobile app

3 Replies

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  • atc98092's avatar
    atc98092
    Community Streaming Expert
    3 years ago

    What you are asking for simply isn't possible without modification to the Internet firewall wherever the Roku device is installed. To access the Roku device, you have to be able to connect to it. That simply isn't possible from outside the firewall on the general Internet. Yes, there are ways to configure the firewall to allow access to an internal device from outside the network, but a private care facility is not going to permit you to penetrate their firewall to access something local. That would be a huge security risk for the facility.

    And even if your parent is in a private home, such access would require configuration that is beyond the vast majority of users. 

    The only way such control would be possible would be for the Roku to be connected directly to a server located elsewhere (such as a Roku public server), and have some sort of remote functionality that you could access from elsewhere. Is it possible? Yes, it could be done. But the cost would be enormous for Roku to provide such a system, and many people would not be happy with Roku having such control over their hardware. While I completely understand your desire to help your parent out, it's simply not going to happen with this sort of consumer electronic device. 

    There are ways to connect two networks across the Internet which makes them seem to be a single network (usually entails setting up a Virtual Private network - VPN), but as I mentioned no commercial entity (private care facility, etc.) is going to allow you to do that. And that would also make your home network visible to the other network. And that's a huge security hole for you as well.

    • Ruser4's avatar
      Ruser4
      Reel Rookie
      3 years ago

      I understand your not with roku which is why I asked the developers to work on it. 

      My father is in a private residence and if a VPN is the way to go I can do that however it is a security issue as I am already aware of.

      To say it simply cannot be done does not seem reasonable.  If I can change/modify and operate such things like door locks and thermostats when I am not on their network than what I am asking can be done, it just hasnt been. Which is why I am asking them to work on a resolution. 

      Thank you for your response but i am looking for roku to respond about future improvements. 

      • atc98092's avatar
        atc98092
        Community Streaming Expert
        3 years ago

        The items you mentioned (door locks, thermostats, doorbells)  all work the way I suggested. They require a central monitoring system/network that has the connectivity required to link a device to an app. That is not something easy or inexpensive to implement. Ensuring the communication is secure is even more work and cost. 

        That said, Roku has now branched into home monitoring and smart devices. It's possible that in the future they could provide a method to link a Roku player/TV to the home monitoring system. Since they are moving in that direction, it's certainly possible they could add it. 

        The problem with controlling a Roku player/TV is that there's no way for the person using the app to see what's happening on the screen. I'm not trying to discourage you, but advising some of the potential issues with controlling a Roku remotely. It would be extremely difficult to feed the screen image back to the app screen, especially leaving any room to both see the screen and the controls. You would have to rely on talking with a person that can see the screen, and depending on that person it might be difficult to work it out. I know how hard it would be to do it with my Mom, who is 88 and not tech-capable at all. Which is actually a bit surprising since she was a computer operator for Ma Bell back in the '60s-70s when they first installed IBM mainframes. 

        Let's get RokuDanny-R linked in to provide a conduit to the Roku main office and see if he can find out if this might be something that is being considered. It is a valuable idea to put forward. But I will warn you that Roku seldom/never comments on future developments, so while we can get our ideas and opinions to the company, just don't be surprised that you don't hear anything back.