First, pin down what exactly is missing
"No notifications" can mean different things: no pop-up, no sound, the unread counter does not grow, or messages only show up after you open the tab. These are four different causes, so check them one by one.
Send yourself a test message from your phone or ask a friend to write to you. That tells apart a notification problem from messages not arriving at all.
Check the settings of the messenger itself
Web messengers show notifications only after you allowed them for the site and turned them on in the chat settings.
- Telegram Web: Settings → Notifications and Sounds, turn on message notifications.
- WhatsApp Web: Settings → Notifications, turn on sounds and notifications.
- MAX: check the notification switches in the account settings and in the chat itself.
If the permission for notifications was declined, the site cannot show them until you allow it again. In Centrio the permissions are requested inside the tab, as in a regular browser.
Check muting: the chat, the tab and Do Not Disturb
Three places where notifications are most often switched off without you noticing:
- the chat is muted in the messenger (a crossed-out bell next to the name);
- the tab is muted in Centrio: right-click the messenger in the sidebar and check the sound item, or the speaker icon in the top bar;
- Do Not Disturb is on, in Centrio or in the system.
In Centrio open Settings → Notifications: it shows whether notifications, Centrio pop-ups and sound are turned on.
Check Windows, macOS or Linux
Even when the app showed a notification, the system may hide it.
- Windows: Settings → System → Notifications: make sure notifications are on and allowed for Centrio. Turn off Focus Assist (Do Not Disturb) or check its rules. Battery saver can also suppress background activity.
- macOS: System Settings → Notifications → Centrio, and the Focus mode.
- Linux: check that the desktop notification service is running and Do Not Disturb is off.
What gets in the way inside Centrio
- The app is closed. If closing the window minimizes Centrio to the tray, notifications keep arriving. If you quit the app completely, they will not. The close behavior is set in Settings → General.
- A sleeping tab. In the tab manager (Ctrl+J) you can put a tab to sleep to free memory. A sleeping tab does not receive messages until you wake it.
- An old version. Notifications were rebuilt in version 3.1.0: if yours is older, update from the download page or restart Centrio so an already downloaded update is applied.
When notifications arrive but look odd
- Duplicates. One message from a messenger can produce several notifications. In Centrio 3.0 and later one message gives one pop-up.
- A click opens the wrong chat. Update Centrio: since 3.1.0 a click opens exactly the chat the message came from.
- You want to answer without opening the app. The notification pop-up has a "Reply…" field for Telegram, WhatsApp and MAX, described in a separate article.
What to collect if nothing helped
Write down the operating system, the Centrio version (bottom right of the status bar), the messenger and the exact symptom: no pop-up, no sound, or no message at all. If a regular browser on the same computer does not show notifications either, the cause is most likely in the system settings. If the browser works and Centrio does not, write to support from the app (the support icon in the sidebar) and attach a screenshot of the notification settings.
Frequently asked questions
Why is there a pop-up but no sound?
Check the sound switch in Settings → Notifications, the tab mute in the sidebar and the system volume. Sound and the pop-up are controlled by different settings.
Do notifications arrive when Centrio is minimized to the tray?
Yes, as long as the app is running. Closing the window with the cross minimizes Centrio to the tray by default instead of quitting; this is configurable.
Does my phone need to stay on for notifications to arrive?
That depends on the messenger and how it signs in on a computer. Check how linked devices work in the messenger itself. Centrio shows the notifications that the web version sends.