Setup

Initial Configuration¶

The first time you open LoopFollow, a short onboarding guide walks you through the essentials. It takes about five minutes, and anything you choose can be changed later in Settings. If you are already familiar with LoopFollow — for example when setting up a second phone — tap Skip at the top of any step to jump straight to the app.

The Onboarding Guide¶

The guide steps through:

1. Welcome — a short introduction with a Get Started button.
2. Overview — "Here's what we'll do": connect your data, units & metrics, recommended alarms, and finish up.
3. Choose a data source — LoopFollow needs a glucose source. Pick one (you can change or add more later):
   • Nightscout
   • Dexcom Share
   • Copy from another phone — scan a QR code exported from a phone that is already set up
4. Connect — enter credentials for the source you picked:
   • Nightscout: enter or paste your Site URL. For the access token, choose I have a token (paste a token, or a URL that already includes one) or Create one for me, which uses your Nightscout API secret once to create a read-only token. The API secret only authorizes that request and is never stored.
   • Dexcom Share: enter your Username and Password, and choose US or Outside US.
5. Units & metrics — choose your glucose unit and how statistics are measured and displayed. See Units and Metrics.
6. Alarm basics — set when your day and night begin, and how alarm sound behaves (for example, overriding the system volume so alarms are heard when the phone is silenced or in a Focus mode).
7. Recommended alarms — a set of useful alarms is offered with sensible defaults and a single control each: Low glucose, Urgent low, High glucose, Fast drop, and Missed readings. When following Nightscout, alarms that rely on loop/uploader data are also offered: Not looping, Looping phone battery, IOB, COB, Sensor change, Pump change, and Pump insulin. Alarm types you already have are not offered again.
8. Tabs — arrange which features sit in the tab bar. You can always reach everything through the Menu.
9. Notifications — LoopFollow explains why it needs notifications for alarms, then asks iOS for permission. Choose Enable Notifications or Not now.
10. Privacy — optionally share anonymous diagnostics to help improve LoopFollow. Choose Yes, send anonymous stats or No thanks; you can change this any time in Settings → General → Diagnostics. See Telemetry for exactly what is and isn't shared.
11. You're all set — a summary with a Finish button, plus a few features worth exploring next.

Deferred Permissions¶

LoopFollow asks for each system permission only when it is first needed:

• Notifications — requested when you set up alarms in the guide, or the first time you add an alarm.
• Camera — requested when you need to scan a QR code, for example to import a configuration from a different phone or set up Loop remote control
• Calendar — requested from the Calendar settings screen when you enable calendar updates for CarPlay.
• Bluetooth — requested only when you choose a Bluetooth Background Refresh mode (an expired Dexcom sensor or a RileyLink device).

Setup Your Data Source¶

If you skip the guide, or finish it without adding a source, you land on the home screen below. Tap the Setup Nightscout button or Setup Dexcom Share button to enter your credentials for your preferred service.

For more information about how to configure your data source, refer to these sections:

• Setup Nightscout
• Setup Dexcom

Once a Data Source is entered, you have access to a variety of LoopFollow features.

The default settings are a fine place to start. As you learn to use LoopFollow, you can explore the adjustable Settings and Features.

Home¶

The home screen provides a dashboard of important information.

• Supports Glucose display when Dexcom is available but Nightscout is not
• Supports Information Display from Loop and Trio when Nightscout Site is provided
  • Loop & Trio: common features like status, basal, bolus, carbs and eventual glucose forecast
  • Loop: Loop specific features like Profile Name, remote control
  • Trio: Trio specific features like Autosens, TDD, remote control

Once you’ve configured your settings, your Home screen will look as beautiful as the example below!

Toolbar¶

The toolbar (tab bar) at the bottom of the Home and Menu screens is configurable using Settings: Tabs. Four icons are displayed at a time — choose from the options below. The features that can be selected are:

Menu Screen¶

The following graphic shows the menu screen. The menu can always be reached using the right button of the toolbar on the Home and Menu screens.

• The features on this screen are described on the LoopFollowDocs Features page
• Settings, Logging and Build Information are covered below
• Support & Community are discussed on the LoopFollowDocs home page

The Menu has a search field. Type to filter the menu's own rows (Settings, the tab features, View Log / Share Logs, and the support links) as well as the rows inside the Settings screen (General, Graph, Units and Metrics, Alarms, …). Selecting a Settings result opens that screen directly. An empty search shows the normal menu; a query with no matches shows a No Results state.

Settings Screen¶

The Settings Screen is accessed by tapping on the Menu icon and selecting the Settings row.

• The Information Display and Remote rows are only available with Nightscout Credentials.

LoopFollow Data Source¶

Make sure you have access to the internet when filling out credentials.

You provide LoopFollow with information about the person you are following. At least one of these must be entered:

• Nightscout URL
• Dexcom Share credentials

Setup Nightscout¶

The graphic below shows the display when you tap on the Nightscout row. For more information about tokens, keep reading the details below the graphic.

When adding the Nightscout information to monitor, you can copy your Nightscout URL (including the token) from the Admin Tools in Nightscout. When pasted into LoopFollow URL row, the app will automatically extract and fill in both the URL and token.

If your Nightscout site is protected, which is recommended, you need to create a readable token to use with LoopFollow. When you enter your credentials, LoopFollow tries to reach the site and then provides the status.

For a full summary of version requirements for Loop and Trio remote control, see Version Compatibility.

WebSocket¶

Below the URL and Token rows, the Nightscout setup screen has an Enable WebSocket toggle. When enabled, LoopFollow opens a live connection to your Nightscout server while the app is in the foreground, so new readings, treatments, and device status arrive within seconds of being posted to Nightscout — close to real-time. The status row underneath the toggle shows whether the connection is Connecting…, Connected, Disconnected, or in Error.

When LoopFollow moves to the background, the WebSocket disconnects and the app falls back to its normal scheduled polling so the persistent connection doesn't drain the battery. The connection is re-established automatically when you return to the app. If the connection drops while you are still in the foreground, normal polling resumes immediately as a safety net.

Setup Dexcom¶

The graphic below shows the display when you tap on the Dexcom row.

The Dexcom Share credentials are optional, but can be useful when the Nightscout URL is unavailable.

Display Settings¶

There are a number of display options the user can configure to customize the appearance of the plots, tables and navigation tabs. These are summarized in the table below along with quick links to a more detailed description.

• The Information Display row is only displayed with Nightscout Credentials.

App Settings¶

There are a number of application settings the user can configure. These are summarized in the table below along with quick links to a more detailed description.

• The Remote row is only displayed with Nightscout Credentials.

Other Settings¶

There are a few more sections on the Settings screen. These are summarized in the table below along with quick links to a more detailed description.

Settings Details¶

General¶

These settings are accessed through the General row in the Settings screen.

Graph¶

These settings are accessed through the Graph row in the Settings screen.

Information Display¶

These items can be chosen for display on the Home screen. A Nightscout Site is required and must be accessible or the table is blank.

A lower case loop is used to denote a closed-loop cycle for both Trio and Loop.

Color Thresholds¶

Rows that show a single number can optionally turn yellow or red when their value crosses a threshold you set. This is a purely visual cue — it never triggers an alarm. Values that are in range stay green.

To set them up, open a row's detail from the Information Display screen, turn on Coloring, and set the Yellow at and Red at thresholds. Each supported row starts with sensible defaults you can adjust.

The "concerning" direction is fixed per row: battery and reservoir rows color when the value is low, while insulin/carb load and the age rows color when the value is high. LoopFollow keeps the Red threshold on the correct side of Yellow for that direction.

Rows that support color thresholds:

Units and Metrics¶

These settings are accessed through the Units and Metrics row in the Settings screen. They control how glucose is displayed throughout the app, the range used for Time in Range, and how long-term glycemic and variability metrics are reported.

Glucose¶

Selects the unit used everywhere in LoopFollow for glucose values, target ranges and graphs.

The same reading is shown in either unit — switching the unit does not change any underlying data.

Range¶

Selects the Low and High thresholds that define your target interval. The percentage of readings within this interval is shown on the Home screen.

When Custom is selected, two extra rows appear — Low and High — entered in the glucose unit you chose above. These same Low and High values also drive the Low and High BG lines drawn on the main graph.

Glycemic Metrics¶

A long-term estimate of average glycemia, computed from the average glucose for the displayed period.

Either metric can be reported in:

• % — for example 7.0 %
• mmol/mol — for example 53 mmol/mol

Example values for three different average glucose levels:

Variability¶

Selects how variability of glucose is reported.

CV is reported as a percentage and is independent of the glucose unit.

Tabs¶

The user can modify which icons are displayed in the tab bar at the bottom of the screen.

In the Settings screen, select Tabs. Drag any of the options up or down to your preferred configuration.

Background Refresh¶

There are several options for keeping LoopFollow up to date. If you rely on LoopFollow Alarms or Live Activity, you must configure a Background Refresh setting.

For more information, see Background Refresh.

Import/Export¶

When setting up LoopFollow for another caregiver that will use some or all of the same configuration settings, you can export or scan a QR code to transfer settings between phones.

• Nightscout Site and token
• Dexcom Share
• Remote Configuration
• APNS credentials (APNS Key ID and Key)
• Alarms

Export Settings¶

To export settings, select one of the options for

• Export Nightscout Settings
• Export Dexcom Share Settings
• Export Remote Settings
• Export APNS Settings
• Export Alarm Settings

Export Nightscout Settings, Export Dexcom Share Settings, Export Remote Settings and Export APNS Settings will show a QR code directly that you can scan with the receiving phone.

Export APNS Settings requires a valid APNS Key ID and APNS Key to be configured first. It transfers only the APNS credentials, so a caregiver setting up a second device can reuse the same key without re-entering it. Importing APNS settings overwrites the existing APNS Key ID and APNS Key on the receiving phone.

Export Alarm Settings will let you select up to 5 alarms at a time to export. If you re-enter the export screen after a successful export, it will mark the exported alarms so that you can export more alarms if needed

Import Settings¶

On the phone that will receive the settings from the QR code, choose the option: "Scan QR Code to Import Settings"

The first time you import settings with LoopFollow, you will be required to give permission to use the camera. Once permission is granted, hold the importing phone to view the QR code presented by the exporting phone.

When the QR code is accepted, you will see a screen indicating what type of settings is being imported. You will be warned that if you accept the import, your current settings will be overwritten.

Note the QR code for alarms may be slow to import. Just move the phone closer and further away until the code is accepted.

APN¶

You must create and enter Apple Push Notification (APN) credentials if you want to make use of several features offered by LoopFollow. If you choose not to use these features, no credentials are required.

Features which need APN:

• Live Activity
• Remote Control

Details about creating APN credentials are found in the Remote Control Overview

Live Activity¶

The Live Activity feature for LoopFollow has the following requirements or it will not update reliably and should not be used.

• APN Credentials must be entered
• Background Refresh must be enabled
  • Typically caregivers use Silent Tunes to keep the app alive in the background
  • If background refresh is not working, the app notifies the user and they should assume Live Activity is also not refreshing
• Live Activity must be enabled

Live Activity Options¶

The Live Activity screen allows the following selections:

• Enable Live Activity (slider)
• Restart Live Activity (manual button if needed)
• Grid Slots for Live Activity
  • There are 4 slots available, plus 1 additional slot for the small widget (CarPlay / Watch Smart Stack)
  • The options are the same as are found in the Information Display
  • Each option can only appear in one slot at a time
  • The default slots are: IOB (top left), COB (bottom left), Projected BG (top right), Empty (bottom right)

While an override or temp target is active, the Live Activity shows a row below the grid with its name or target value. When 2 hours or less remain, a live countdown is shown next to it; longer or indefinite overrides show just the name. The same row appears in the expanded Dynamic Island. Because of this row, the Override option is not offered for the 4 grid slots; it is still available for the small widget slot.

The following options are available for each grid slot:

Remote¶

Detailed instructions for configuring a phone for remote control are found on the Remote Control Overview page.

If you are configuring a second device and already have one device configured for remote control, be sure to review:

• Export Remote Settings with QR Code
• Import from QR Code

Alarms¶

The Alarms settings allow you to control the behavior of all active alarms. Individual alarms are selected and configured with the Alarms Feature.

• One nice feature you may want to enable is the Volume Buttons Snooze Alarms option.

Calendar¶

The calendar entry used to update on the watch in real time, but with iOS 18, the update rate has been throttled. It is still useful for Carplay.

Contact¶

The Contact image trick added with v2.2.8 currently works to provide real-time updates on an Apple Watch.

For more detailed instructions, see Real-Time Watch Updates using Contact

Advanced Settings¶

A number of different options can be adjusted in this screen.

Update Delay Explained¶

The Update Delay is how many seconds LoopFollow waits, after a new reading is expected (about every 5 minutes), before it fetches it from your data source. LoopFollow is a follower, so a reading must first reach your source (Nightscout / Dexcom Share) before it can be pulled — this short buffer gives the value time to land before LoopFollow polls. The default is 10 seconds, and the range is 1–30 seconds.

• Lowering it does not reliably make updates faster. If LoopFollow polls before the new value has arrived, it just re-reads the previous value and retries a few seconds later, which mainly adds extra polls (battery and network) without helping.
• When Nightscout is your source with WebSocket enabled and the app in the foreground, new values are pushed to LoopFollow as soon as they arrive, so this delay is not applied. It only affects background polling.

Debug Log Level¶

The debug log option is enabled by default so that detailed information is available if you need to ask for help. The setting is found in the Advanced section and can be turned off if the logs seem too verbose.

Logging¶

View Log¶

LoopFollow logs activity to a file that can be viewed within the app, and can be shared if needed. Example ways to share are email, a Notes file or Facebook messenger. The log can be filtered and searched. This will aid in troubleshooting and diagnostics.

When you select View Log, you see the entire log but can also filter for particular types of activities.

If you want to modify whether Debug Log Level is enabled, go to Settings, Advanced. But please read Debug Log Level before disabling this option.

Share Logs¶

When you choose Share Logs, LoopFollow first asks you to describe the problem — what time it happened, what you did, and what you expected to happen that didn't. A short description makes it much easier for someone to help.

After you tap Share, the description is saved to a small notice file (with the current date, app version, and build identifier) and the iOS share sheet opens with that file together with today's and yesterday's log files. You can then send everything to the device or app of your choice. Leaving the description empty is allowed; the notice file simply records that no description was provided.

The log files are named LoopFollow YYYY-MM-DD.

Build Information¶

This section reports the Version you are using, indicates the Latest Version. In addition, it reports when this app will expire, when it was built and provides details of the branch name and commit identifier.