Overview of this Release

Release 26.03.001 of the CareAR app for iOS and Android keeps an Assist session running after its host leaves. A host can turn on a new session setting so that the session hands over to another signed-in participant instead of ending, and anyone who left a session that is still running can get back into it from the Home screen with one tap.

This release is for Assist hosts, the collaborators and guests who join their sessions, and the administrators who enable the option for a tenant.

New Features

Keep Sessions Going

What It Does

Assist sessions that you host can now continue after you leave. With Preserve session upon host exit turned on, leaving a session no longer ends it: the app hands the host role to the participant best placed to take it, and everyone else stays connected. The new host gets the host controls right away, and a running recording, transcription or live captions carry on under the new host.

Why This Matters

Until now, a session ended for everyone the moment the host hung up or lost the app. A technician who still needed guidance had to be invited again, and a recording stopped with the host. Hosts can now step out of a long session, hand it to a colleague, and come back later if they need to.

How to Use

Open the menu and tap Settings, then Session settings.
Turn on Preserve session upon host exit and tap Save.
Start your Assist session as usual. The setting is read when the session starts, so turn it on before you start.
When you want to leave while others are still connected, tap the end-call button and choose Leave. Choose End for all to end the session for everyone, as before.

Key Capabilities

Automatic hand-over. The app chooses the most capable participant who is still connected and signed in to your organization and makes them the host. The new host sees You are now the host of this session. Everyone else sees the name of the new host.
Nothing stops. A cloud recording, a transcription, live captions, the flashlight and any pending streaming request follow the new host. If the host who left was also the collaborator, the new host takes over that role as well.
Your choice when you leave. Hosts who leave a preserved session see Leave and End for all, so a session never continues by accident.
Per user, per device. The setting is remembered on your device and cleared when you sign out. It does not change a session that is already running.

Note: The setting appears only after the option has been enabled for your tenant. Guests cannot become hosts: when the host leaves and only guests remain, the session ends for everyone as before. When both app and web participants are eligible, either can become the new host, and the session continues under whoever takes the role. Every participant needs this version of the app or the current web app; a participant on an older app version still ends the session when the host leaves.

Rejoin an Active Session

What It Does

When you leave a session that is still running, the Home screen shows a banner that reads You have an active session. Tap REJOIN to return to the session, or close the banner if you are done with it. The banner disappears on its own as soon as the session ends.

Why This Matters

A host who handed a session over, or a participant who lost the connection or closed the app, no longer needs a new invitation or session code to get back in. The banner also makes it clear that a session is still running in your name.

How to Use

Open the CareAR app and sign in. The banner sits at the top of the Home screen whenever a session you took part in is still running.
Tap REJOIN to return to the session.
Tap the close icon to hide the banner for that session on this device. It stays hidden until you sign out or until another session is dismissed.

Rejoin banner

Note: The banner is shown to signed-in users only, and only for sessions in your own organization. It is not shown while another of your devices is still in the session. It does not depend on the Preserve session upon host exit setting.