Seeing new devices appear under the Unmanaged or Anonymous profiles in your parent app / dashboard that you thought you'd already assigned and set up? We'll break down why that's happening and how to resolve it below.
Reason 1: The device is connected via both the Bark Kids app and the Bark Home.
Here's what to do if this applies to your kid's device:
- Open up your parent app / dashboard.
- Tap on your kid's avatar at the top.
- Tap on the Devices tab at the top.
- Verify that all copies of the device are present on that page.
Missing a copy of the device?
Look for it under the Unmanaged profile, then assign it to your kid. If you don't see it under Unmanaged, use this guide to find it. - Turn off the Randomized MAC setting on your kid's device, if applicable.
- If you like, you can merge the duplicate devices into one device for easier management down the line.
Reason 2: The device is connected via both Wi-Fi and ethernet.
You might see two devices for your kid's computer or gaming console on your dashboard because Bark recognizes wireless (Wi-Fi) and wired (ethernet) connections as slightly different, even though they belong to the same computer or gaming console.
If your kid's computer or gaming console connects to your home network using both a cable and Wi-Fi, follow these steps to merge those duplicate devices on your dashboard:
- Open up your parent app / dashboard.
- Tap on your kid's avatar at the top.
- Tap on the Devices tab at the top.
- Verify that all copies of the device are present on that page.
Missing a copy of the device?
Look for it under the Unmanaged profile, then assign it to your kid. If you don't see it under Unmanaged, use this guide to find it. - (Windows computers only) Turn off the Randomized MAC setting on your kid's PC, if present.
- If you like, you can merge the duplicate devices into one device for easier management down the line.
Reason 3: Device is using a private address or a randomized MAC address.
Is your Bark dashboard showing new "Unknown Devices" periodically? This is likely due to a setting on newer devices (like iOS 14+, Android 10+, and Windows 10+). These devices will generate these unknown entries in Bark until you adjust the setting on your kid's device(s).
Learn about this setting and take care of it below:
