Account optional again?


Hi,

Is there any plan to make the account optional again? It’s getting to an annoying point having to login or change the account email address each time a player drops out of the network.

I have a Bluesound system as well (different location) and although this also suffers from occasional network issues with the wirelessly connected players, it’s very straightforward to get it solved.

It’s getting to a point I will drop the Sonos setup in favor of Bluesound which works without any registration whatsoever and has far less network issues. Sonos, you’re become Bose, great marketing but poor customer experience. Sorry I have to say that.

Hope you will get that snappy experience of pre 8 software version back anytime soon.

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33 replies

There is no need to reset and add a player back to the system when it "drops off the network". If this is happening frequently, you have some networking problems. Consider a network refresh followed by reserving IP addresses in your router setup.

And PS - These network problems will cause the same issues with any multi-room system, Bluesound, Denon, etc. If the network is not fixed, eventually you will run out of competitors for your "or the bunny gets it" threats.
Hi,

Thanks for replying but I wait for the official reply.

I consider myself quite knowledable in network setups and agreed the network should be stable for any multi room system, but Sonos makes has made it very complicated to reset things. Especially when the system is used by about 10 people and part of our business depends on reliable operation and quick fixes in case of an issue. The account and password is in the way so the question is it considered to remove it again? There is no purpose for it, at least not for me the user.
Again, there is absolutely no reason you should be "resetting things". You should only be adding a Sonos device once. If you are having to add and re-add devices on a regular basis, you have a network problem. I have 9 total Sonos devices going back 10 years and have never had to re-add them to the system. Not once.

As to the last question, Sonos has stated that the authentication process is here to stay. It is not optional and not going away.
Hi,

Thanks for replying but I wait for the official reply.


Sonos does read the user community forums, but you're likely to get a faster reply if you PM one of them directly, email, or call tech support.


I consider myself quite knowledable in network setups and agreed the network should be stable for any multi room system, but Sonos makes has made it very complicated to reset things.


If by 'reset' you mean 'factory reset', then as jgatie said, it's unnecessary. His advice was solid, and Sonos staff will tell you the same thing. You may also want to create a diagnostic and provide that to Sonos (in this thread or elsewhere) which will give greater info on possible reasons for the issue.

https://support.sonos.com/s/article/141?language=en_US


Especially when the system is used by about 10 people and part of our business depends on reliable operation and quick fixes in case of an issue. The account and password is in the way so the question is it considered to remove it again? There is no purpose for it, at least not for me the user.


Your question presumes that the account and password are necessary to resolve network issues. It isn't.
Yes, hardly ever necessary to do a factory reset. A simple off/on/reboot will solve most things especially if the sonos speakers IP address is reserved by the user in the local routers DHCP Reservation Table (which I strongly recommend). Hopefully the new update to 9.2 out today will be good for most problems too.
Thank you all for replying. Still waiting for the official reply.

The point is we use the system with 10 employees and we need music on the spot as part of our service to our customers. The issues are mostly caused by overcrowded WiFi broadcasting and interference. When a speaker drops out and disappears from the app we need it back online asap. It’s a long story but with 10 people involved with all different levels of technical knowledge a system that requires a password to start a function called “add player” all kind of things can happen. Especially if power cycling does not bring the player back. And yes, all players have reserved ip addresses.

So if the account is there to stay (but again, still waiting for the formal reply), this system is too complicated for use in our situation. Especially since I found and experienced systems available that are easier to set-up and troubleshoot.
I'm not sure what you wish Sonos to do. The authentication is necessary for security issues now that Sonos' API is open to the world.
Hi jgatie, I would wish for Sonos to push the account requirement back to the place where actually services require it. I’m also a Bluesound user and there is NO account or registration. The only check the players do is checking for software updates. And Bluesound also is an open API supporting a wide variety of services. I don’t see how that is different for Sonos.
Userlevel 7
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I'm pretty sure that once you've authenticated with Sonos, you could take your Sonos system offline (read: disconnected from the internet) and it should still work just fine with a local music library from a PC/MAC or NAS. I've used my Sonos system to play music from my NAS when my internet connection has been down due to maintenance/service issues, so I know this is possible.
Userlevel 7
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Hi Joehoe, I'm happy to provide an official reply for you, and the forum regulars suggested, we don't have any plans to revert the changes to the account requirement. We're constantly working to add new features and improve the Sonos experience, and it's just good practice to have a security step in place when it comes to making changes at the system level. We've just added the ability to add a max volume and turn off the wireless on players, two settings that are behind the login credentials for more obvious reasons.

As more settings get added, the need for security will continue to stay on our minds. Since you have so many different people using the system, if security isn't high on your concerns, you could set up a new account for your players, and put the login credentials on the bottom of the player, or write it down somewhere, so that everyone knows it. Not something we'd recommend, but perhaps it's the best way to go for you.

If players are dropping, we'd love to help you get the system up and running to the point where that doesn't happen, and from a personal note, the Add a Player option doesn't do much troubleshooting wise that a reboot doesn't do. For that matter, it'd be great to just get to the heart of the issue, instead of having to deal with a dropping room.

If your wireless setup is terrible, and can't be improved, you may even consider wiring a Sonos device or two into the network. There's a lot we can help sort out before that though, so if you have a chance, I'd recommend that you give us a call on our support line to take a look at why speakers are dropping off.
Userlevel 5
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Adding to MikeV's response - I recently powered down my complete network and Sonos kit, disconnected the Internet connection and powered everything up again. All came up ok and Sonos worked fine playing from my NAS without any access to the Internet
Hi MikeV, Ryan S,

Thank you very much for the official reply. Very much appreciated.

I think we (the 10 users) and Sonos have a different view on what needs security and what not. In our opinion there’s no need to secure any settings or access to any Sonos player from people being on the LAN the Sonos player are on. That network itself is secured offcours. Any security measure just adds a layer or complication and does not serve any purpose. Maybe you can give me a scenario in which this security measure is helpful. We cannot think of one. BTW, we have the system in use since 2014. What has changed since then concerning security risks for basic home/work audio operation?

I understand Sonos is considering to put more settings behind the password such as the recent new settings you mentioned. That means that we can count on more complication in future which we don’t feel very comfortable with.

Putting the password on the players is an option for now but some of the players (of which one with the most drops) hangs high on the wall so it’s not very easy to read anything on the device. Although I realise factory resetting a player also needs pressing buttons on the device itself.

With respect to hardwiring the players. That could be helpful since we cannot switch off any of the WiFi radios in our neighbors businesses and household. But in the past that only worked when the WiFi was turned off for that player via the command line controls (for which you say there is a password protected setting now). With more than one player hardwired Sonos brings down quite a lot of LAN’s with broadcast storms and loops after a day or two with the WiFi radios left on. That has been my own experience.

Maybe it would be a great idea to also introduce an on/off toggle for Sonosnet (behind the password offcourse!). Most current networks are more stable without it and let all players connect to the router directly via wire or WiFi accesspoint. And it frees one valuable WiFi channel in the air.

Wrapping it up we feel unhappy with Sonos at the moment and this answer does not make it go away. Tomorrow we have our monthly meeting and we will decide what to do.

Thanks again for commenting the official reply which is very insightful. Have a great day!
Userlevel 7
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A frequent request has been to protect system settings from being adjusted by anyone on the network, including friends who might have access to your WiFi or even other family members (like children). Some businesses have even asked for this, to prevent employees from changing things when the boss isn't around. For example, setting a low volume limit, so neighbors don't get annoyed by loud music... among other things.
Userlevel 2
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Hi Joehoe, I'm happy to provide an official reply for you, and the forum regulars suggested, we don't have any plans to revert the changes to the account requirement. We're constantly working to add new features and improve the Sonos experience, and it's just good practice to have a security step in place when it comes to making changes at the system level. We've just added the ability to add a max volume and turn off the wireless on players, two settings that are behind the login credentials for more obvious reasons.

Permit me to be stupid and ask what those obvious reasons are? I saw this thing about the max volume, so I was curious and went to Room Settings to try it. My jaw dropped when I saw that I was supposed to give my Sonos account. What the ****? It is not Sonos's business what settings I make. But, sure, if I you don't want me to use new features, well, why bother to put them out? I value my privacy. I would never log in when there is no good reason to.
Userlevel 7
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It's called security. Since everyone prefers to have friends and neighbors on the same WiFi network as their computer(s), NAS, and Sonos speaker(s), rather than a separate guest network, Sonos figured they'd add a little security and prevent access to some of Sonos' settings without having logged into your Sonos account. Considering many have asked for some kind of security to be applied to their Sonos systems to prevent settings from being changed by others, Sonos likely felt that they were doing some good here.
I am about to pose a question based on common sense and not wild paranoid conjecture:

What good would a maximum volume setting be if anybody using the system could just go into settings and override it?

Answer: No good at all. That's why they require authentication. No tracking data, no privacy issues, they merely want you to be able to set your brat's speakers on a low level, and they don't want the brats to be able to reset it to "let's wake up the whole house" level without authentication.
In our opinion there’s no need to secure any settings or access to any Sonos player from people being on the LAN the Sonos player are on
https://en.community.sonos.com/controllers-software-228995/must-have-password-protection-to-our-business-sonos-setup-6807551
https://en.community.sonos.com/controllers-software-228995/password-to-avoid-guests-changing-music-36704/index7.html
https://en.community.sonos.com/controllers-software-228995/password-protect-sonos-6763985
etc etc

You cannot please all the people all of the time.
Userlevel 2
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It's called security. Since everyone prefers to have friends and neighbors on the same WiFi network as their computer(s), NAS, and Sonos speaker(s), rather than a separate guest network, Sonos figured they'd add a little security and prevent access to some of Sonos' settings without having logged into your Sonos account. Considering many have asked for some kind of security to be applied to their Sonos systems to prevent settings from being changed by others, Sonos likely felt that they were doing some good here.

Was that supposed to be an answer to my question? It that case it falls flat. The question was not why I have to specify username and and a password to access some settings, but why I for "obvious reasons" must use an account that is registered with Sonos. That could be be a local username/password. Or, for that matter, I could use the fingerprint reader on my telephone to authenticate.

And the "obvious reason" why this would be better is that I would be able to access the settings also if my Sonos would for some reason be disconnected from the Internet.

Also, I may make my own decision about security. I live alone, I rarely have guests at home, and I don't have much secrets on my Sonos system, so I don't feel it very compelling to protect my settings. Also, to reach the settings, an intruder would first have to authenticate on my phone or tablet, so there is also a gate. I can see the point of having the option to specify a means of authentication, but I less point in making it mandatory. And whatever the "obvioius" reason why it has to be a Sonos account, no, security is not the obvious reason. So my question is still unanswered.
Userlevel 2
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Answer: No good at all. That's why they require authentication. No tracking data, no privacy issues,

No privcay issues? When it is a account on their servers? If all they cared about was my own security, they would have done it differently.

And, obviously, a max volume setting can still be useful for me without password protection. I could use so that I (or an occasional quest) would accidently turn up the volume so that it disturbs the neighbours.

No privcay issues? When it is a account on their servers? If all they cared about was my own security, they would have done it differently.

And, obviously, a max volume setting can still be useful for me without password protection. I could use so that I (or an occasional quest) would accidently turn up the volume so that it disturbs the neighbours.


Differently how? With a PIN? What makes you think they can't link a PIN to your account? I've got some news for you, they already have your account info and every unit you own is linked to it, so they can track everything you do. Why would authentication of a max volume setting be more invasive than that?

And a no password max volume setting may be useful to you, but it is useless for the vast majority of people who asked for it. Sonos isn't going to customize software for the paranoid.
Userlevel 2
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OK, so let me put it this way: why should have I to press 25-30 letters on a touch keyboard with my fat fingers, when a single press on the fingerprint sensor could do?

No, there is something hiding here which Sonos has yet to explain (and of course never will).

No, there is something hiding here which Sonos has yet to explain (and of course never will).
And the CIA shot JFK, and the US faked the moon landings, etc
Userlevel 7
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No, there is something hiding here which Sonos has yet to explain (and of course never will).
And the CIA shot JFK, and the US faked the moon landings, etc


It's actually unbelievable isn't it John? These are blinking speakers for crying out loud!

Sommarskog, seriously. If you find yourself posting on an internet forum that a company that makes speakers are involved in covert operations to spy on, or other, their customers you really have got to the point where you need a stern word with yourself. For crying out loud get on with your life!
Userlevel 2
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What is unbelievable? That I ask what the "obvious reason" would be? (And I still have not gotten answer.) Had Sonos only cared about my security, they would have provided a better and simpler solution (and made it optional).
Userlevel 4
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I only had to login once after the update to get to those settings, now I can get to them without entering credentials. It is not that bad.