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Fenix 8 not connecting to GPS

trailexplorer
2 months ago

Hi all,

I have a Fenix 8 AMOLED 47mm running running 12.35. I started a trail run activity but the GPS bar would not move past the initial small red bar that initially appears (i.e. no progress). I left the watch outside for a few minutes and it still did not progress. I then restarted the watch, and synced the watch with Garmin Connect app and the GPS bar still does not progress.

I have a clear view of the sky with intermittent light cloud cover. I last started a trail run activity from the same location 2 days ago and had no problems. It has always only taken a few seconds for GPS to be found.

I have now left my watch outside for 30 minutes and the GPS bar has not progressed.

Interestingly enough my watch was not affected by the recent blue triangle and restarting issue.

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.

  • 0 2 months ago in reply to Garmin-Cody

    The ephemeris state is current and GPS version is 2.11. I then deleted the .BIN file. The ephemeris state is still current. I have just tried to get GPS locking on the "Trail Run" sport with clear view of sky. GPS lock was achieved but still took longer than prior to the initial problem. I used a PC running Windows 11 to do the steps you outlined.

  • 0 2 months ago

    GPS lock takes a good while for me. I have deleted CPE and will try again tomorrow

  • +1 2 months ago in reply to Adrian s

    Update February 6, 2025:

    We do apologize for any inconvenience out temporary outage caused. If you are still experiencing concerns connecting to satellites, please try the troubleshooting in this FAQ: [Why Is My Garmin Device Not Acquiring GPS Satellites?|https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=6IbaJEHc1i9gydzQomXzyA]

    If your watch is still not connecting, try these steps:

    For Windows:

    1. Connect Garmin Device to a Windows computer.
    2. Open File Explorer.
    3. Open the Drive for the connected Garmin.
    4. Open the Primary Folder, if listed.
    5. Open the Garmin Folder.
    6. Delete all contents of the RemoteSW folder.
    7. Disconnect the Garmin device from the computer.
    8. Power the Garmin device off and back on.
    9. Sync with Garmin Express or the Garmin Connect app.
    10. Select an outdoor GPS activity such as a Walk or a Run.
    11. Allow up to 5 minutes for the GPS to acquire a signal and lock.
    12. If your watch does not connect to GPS:
      1. Save the activity after 5 minutes.
      2. Sync it to your account.
      3. Mark the date and time of the activity.
      4. Supply the date and time of the activity in your response.

    For Mac:

    NOTE: If you have Garmin Express installed on your computer, the program must be closed before proceeded with the following steps. OpenMTP is a third party tool which Garmin does not license or host.

    1. Download and install
    2. [OpenMTP|https://openmtp.ganeshrvel.com/] to your computer.
    3. Open the OpenMTP program.
    4. If prompted, select Allow from the discovery pop up notification.
    5. Once the watch is found, locate the Garmin folder in the OpenMTP program.  If you do not see the folder, try selecting the refresh option in the program.
    6. Within the Garmin folder locate the RemoteSW folder.
    7. Delete all contents of the RemoteSW folder.
    8. Disconnect the watch from the computer.
    9. Power the Garmin device off and back on.
    10. Sync with Garmin Express or the Garmin Connect app.
      • If using Garmin Express, you must quit the OpenMTP program first and then open Garmin Express as only one program can read the watch at a time.
    11. Select an outdoor activity, such as a Walk or a Run.
    12. Start the activity timer.
    13. Allow up to 5 minutes for the GPS to acquire a signal and lock.
    14. If your watch doe not connect to GPS:
      1. Save the activity after 5 minutes.
      2. Sync it to your account.
      3. Mark the date and time of the activity.
      4. Supply the date and time of the activity in your response.

    If there is no change, please reach out to Garmin Product Support. 

  • 0 2 months ago

    Selbiges schon an anderer Stelle berichtet.

    Vorgestern Abend genau dieses Problem, Neustart und Softreset brachten keine Besserung. Gestern vormittag die Uhr dann komplett gelöscht und alles neu installiert, danach geht es wieder aber das ist natürlich keine Lösung, da das Problem wahrscheinlich irgendwann wieder auftritt.

    Das aktuelle OS 12.35 ist nun schon seit einigen Wochen auf der Uhr und bisher hatte ich keine Probleme, dieses kam dann vor zwei Tagen aus höherem Himmel und ich dachte schon an einen Defekt der Hardware weil nicht der übliche Mittel half.

  • 0 2 months ago in reply to hml60
    hml60 said:
    it's been working since then but of course that's not a solution as the problem will probably come back at some point.

    If you have been able to restore GPS connection in the last day or 2, and have since had this issue reoccur, please reach out to Garmin Product Support. Our engineers would love to investigate why this happened. 

  • 0 2 months ago in reply to Garmin-Laurie

    Ich hatte bereits Kontakt mit dem Support aufgenommen, die übliche Vorgehensweise wurde vorgeschlagen, Neustart und Softreset, dies hilft aber offensichtlich nicht bei diesem Problem.

    Ich hatte auch zurückgeschrieben, dass im Moment die einzige Lösung für mich darin bestand, die Uhr komplett zurück zu setzen und alles neu zu installieren.

    Ergänzung: Nach dem ich auf das Problem vor zwei Tagen gestoßen bin und keine Lösung gefunden habe, habe ich die Gegenprobe mit dem GPS meines Smartphones und der Apple Watch meiner Frau gemacht, beide hatten keine Probleme, also ist es in der Tat wohl ein GARMIN Problem. Es aber seltsam das dieser Fehler anscheinend bei den betroffenen fast Zeitgleich auftrat.

  • 0 2 months ago

    I have same issue with my fenix 8  Gps bar doesn’t go green. Started playing up this week. It does however record the route strangely. Used to go green within seconds. 

  • 0 2 months ago

    I have same issue with my fenix 8 which started this week.
     GPS bar doesn’t go green. Used to only take a few seconds. It does however record the route strangely. Another annoying issue. 

  • 0 2 months ago in reply to Garmin-Cody

    I have a Garmin Fenix 7 watch and I've been having the same problem since February 4th. The watch just stopped connecting to GPS. I've tried everything - resetting the clock, doing a cold start, leaving it outside in one spot for 30 minutes, but the GPS signal still doesn't show up. The search bar is almost full of red, so I know the GPS is working.

    There are no BIN files in the RemoteSW folder. How to solve the problem? Is Garmin planning to release patches to fix it?

  • 0 2 months ago in reply to Garmin-Laurie

    I have a Garmin Fenix 7 watch and I've been having the same problem since February 4th. The watch just stopped connecting to GPS. I've tried everything - resetting the clock, doing a cold start, leaving it outside in one spot for 30 minutes, but the GPS signal still doesn't show up. The search bar is almost full of red, so I know the GPS is working.There are no BIN files in the RemoteSW folder. How to solve the problem? Is Garmin planning to release patches to fix it?