Connection to OpenWebUI is lost immediately after initial login, causing models/chats to disappear and preventing prompt submission

[IrvinK02]

App Version (optional)

v4.15.5 (3)

What happened?

I installed OpenRelay for the first time and connected it to my self-hosted OpenWebUI instance.

The initial connection appears to succeed without issue. After entering my server URL and logging in:

• The app successfully connects to my OpenWebUI server.
• All of my available AI models populate correctly.
• My previous chat history is also retrieved and displayed.

However, immediately after this initial synchronization, the connection appears to stall.

Symptoms include:

• Attempting to send a prompt causes the message to disappear from the input box, but nothing is ever sent.
• No response is generated.
• Under Settings → Server, the server status remains stuck on “Checking…” indefinitely.
• The server information (IP address, port, account, etc.) is correct, but the connection never transitions to a healthy/connected state.

If I completely close and reopen the app:

• All models disappear.
• Previous chats disappear.
• The sidebar is essentially empty.
• The app is no longer connected to my OpenWebUI instance.

The only way to temporarily reconnect is to:

1. Log out.
2. Delete the server.
3. Add the server again.

Doing this repeats the exact same behavior every time:

• Initial connection succeeds.
• Models and chats load.
• Connection stalls.
• Prompt submission stops working.
• Restarting the app leaves it disconnected again.

This has been 100% reproducible on every attempt.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install OpenRelay.
2. Open the app for the first time.
3. Add an OpenWebUI server.
4. Log into the server.
5. Observe that models and previous chats load successfully.
6. Attempt to send any prompt.
7. Notice that the prompt disappears but nothing is sent.
8. Navigate to Settings → Server and observe the server status remains stuck on “Checking…”.
9. Close the app completely.
10. Reopen the app.
11. Observe that the models and chats are gone and the server is no longer connected.
12. Delete the server and add it again.
13. The exact same behavior repeats.

Expected Behavior

After successfully connecting to the OpenWebUI server, the connection should remain active.

I should be able to:

• Send prompts normally.
• Receive responses.
• Continue using the app without reconnecting.
• Reopen the app and remain connected.
• Retain access to my models and existing chat history without needing to delete and recreate the server.

Screenshots / Recording (optional)

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/e915ffae-a498-4c01-80c1-9999c47c489c

[IrvinK02]

I also forgot to add, the open webUI is fully accessible and working from a web browser, so it is reachable.

[Ichigo3766]

Thank you for this! I have made some changes and pushing out the update. Let me know if it fixes it once approved by apple and lands. 4.15.6

[IrvinK02]

So I just now received the update. Upon trying it out, it unfortunately has not resolved the issue. Its still behaving exactly like it was before. This time I also tried it out on my iPad, I also tested with using the api key but there was no difference. The issue is exactly as it was before the update. On my ipad, after a few minutes I do get a splashscreen stating "Server Unreachable Your server appears to be offline... Reconnecting" but it does no go any further. I have verified my server is on and reachable from multiple devices on the network.

[IrvinK02]

Ok the second I posted that, the splashscreen on my ipad has disappeared, but the issue still persists. Server tab still shows server is unreachable and it is still checking. Now as I am typing this, it has stopped checking and the gray dot is now red, it has stopped checking and it states there is a "Connection Issue".

[Ichigo3766]

Is your server accessible from the internet or is it local?

This is very odd as i have no other reports of the app disconnecting and neither have i experienced it myself even when i am on data and the connection is very slow.

If your server is public, would you be able to provide me the link + test account to it so i can test the connectivity live to debug as that would help me find the exact root cause.

[IrvinK02]

The server is strictly local, not exposed to the internet. I also made sure the devices are all on the same vlan as well but to no avail.

[Ichigo3766]

Ah! I think the issue may have been with the local network connection and the way app does health checks. I have made some changes for local network connectivity. Let me know how it goes in 4.15.7. I am pushing the release now and should be available in few hours to a day depending on apple.

[Ichigo3766]

@IrvinK02 any luck with the new update?

[IrvinK02]

Unfortunately not, after updating the behavior is identical to before. I noticed inside the "Manage servers" menu, it states that I am connected, but in the "Server configuration" tab, I still only see the "checking" until it eventually gives up. Otherwise, everything still is the same as before, loads everything initially, but instantly loses connection.

[Ichigo3766]

Ok so progress! So in the settings it does connect, meaning we have a connection. I might have to deploy a local instance and test it to see if it’s smth with local connections. Thanks for the patience!

[IrvinK02]

Of course, glad I can help! I'd definitely spin up a local instance so you can fully replicate it. I'm 99% sure its not any kind of network rule on my end blocking the app as I can access the webUI through safari on the same phone.

One important clarification, in the settings as of the newest update, im seeing conflicting statements. Ive attached screenshots of what I mean. On one page is shows connected, but the other it shows it is not connected until it gives up trying to connect, and the behavior of the app exhibits symptoms of the latter.

Another thing I dont know if is relevant but could be important is that I am not using webui's default port. But idk why that could be an issue since i provide the app my port, but maybe it could be something.

[Ichigo3766]

So i just deployed in on a macbook and connected to it using 192... ip and worked perfectly so im lost now haha. I really am out of ideas as of now from the app side. I have checked the entire network layer and dont see anything that would cause this issue. I am unable to reproduce it and neither see anyone else having any issues (i checked with multiple people)

[IrvinK02]

Hmm, I'll spin up a clean install of everything and see if anything changes. Could it be possible that a difference in operating systems could cause an issue? My server runs on Linux, not MacOS.