When you first scan a QR code or load a map directly in a web browser, the map is stored in your browser's local storage — not in the installed app. The browser and the installed TERRAiNAV app maintain completely separate storage areas, so maps loaded in one will not appear in the other.

To keep your maps available in the installed app:

1. Open TERRAiNAV from your home screen icon (not from the browser)
2. Tap Load new… → Load from QR code to scan the map QR code, or Load map… to load a file directly
3. The map will now appear in My Maps Library every time you open the installed app

If you have already loaded maps in the browser and want to transfer them, use Export → Export map ZIP from within the browser version, then Load map… in the installed app to import the ZIP file.

TERRAiNAV needs location permission to show your GPS position. If the blue dot is missing, work through the following:

On iPhone: Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services → TERRAiNAV and set to While Using the App. Make sure Location Services is enabled at the top of that screen.

On Android: Go to Settings → Apps → TERRAiNAV → Permissions → Location → set to Allow only while using the app, and make sure Use precise location is turned ON. Without precise location, only a coarse network position is available which may not update as you move.

If location permission is already granted but the dot still does not appear: tap the GPS button (crosshair icon, bottom right) to start location tracking. The app requests GPS on demand rather than continuously, to preserve battery.

If you are indoors: GPS accuracy may be reduced or unavailable. Move outdoors and wait 15–30 seconds for the GPS chip to acquire a satellite fix. A pulsing accuracy ring around the dot indicates the fix is still improving.

Blank tile squares mean the basemap tiles for that area were not saved during your last online session. TERRAiNAV automatically caches OpenStreetMap tiles for your loaded track area when you are online, but only within the bounds of the track.

To ensure complete offline coverage:

1. Load your map or GPX track while connected to the internet
2. Wait for the notification confirming tiles have been saved (e.g. "Saving 312 tiles (z12–z16) in background")
3. Once saved, export a ZIP from Export → Export map ZIP as a backup
4. When offline, reload the map from My Maps Library — the saved tiles will load automatically

If tiles are still missing after following these steps: the area you are viewing may be outside the bounds of your saved track. Tiles are only cached within the track bounding box, not for the entire basemap.

This is a known limitation of the browser-based (PWA) version of TERRAiNAV. Web apps are suspended by the operating system when the screen locks or the app moves to the background, which interrupts GPS recording.

Workarounds for the PWA version:

• Keep the screen on during recording — TERRAiNAV requests a wake lock when recording starts, which prevents automatic screen timeout on most devices while the app is in the foreground
• If you must use another app briefly, return to TERRAiNAV as quickly as possible — a short gap in the track may result but recording will resume
• Avoid locking the screen manually during a recording session

For reliable background recording, use the native app:

The TERRAiNAV native app (available on the App Store and Google Play) continues recording GPS tracks when the screen is off or when switching to other apps. Background location permission is required — when prompted, select Allow all the time (Android) or Always (iOS) to enable this.

If you already have a partial track from a session where the screen locked, the points recorded before suspension are preserved and can be exported from Tracks in the side panel.

On Android, when TERRAiNAV presents the file picker to load a map or GPX file, the system may request camera permission alongside storage access. This is a known behaviour of the Android file picker on some devices and versions — the permission request comes from the Android operating system, not from TERRAiNAV itself.

You can safely decline the camera permission and the file picker will still work normally for selecting map files. TERRAiNAV only uses the camera for scanning QR codes via the Load new… → Load from QR code option. If you never use QR code loading, camera permission is not required at all.

If the file picker fails to open after declining, try going to Settings → Apps → TERRAiNAV → Permissions and granting Files and Media access directly.

Yes — offline use is a core feature of TERRAiNAV. Once a map has been loaded and its tiles saved, the app operates fully without any network connection.

What works offline:

• Displaying your loaded GeoPDF or GPX track map
• Live GPS position overlay and tracking
• Dropping and managing waypoints
• Recording GPS tracks
• Exporting GPX files

What requires a connection:

• Loading new maps or GPX files from a URL or QR code
• Displaying basemap tiles for areas outside your saved track bounds
• Switching to OpenTopoMap or Thunderforest basemaps (these cannot be cached)

To prepare for offline use, load your map and navigate around the full track area while connected so that all required tiles are cached. The app will confirm when tiles have been saved with a brief notification. For added security, export a ZIP backup of your map before heading into the field — this can be reloaded even after clearing the app's storage.

GPS accuracy varies depending on your environment, device and how long the GPS chip has been active. A few things that help:

Wait for a good fix before starting. After tapping the record button, give the GPS 20–30 seconds to settle before you start moving. The accuracy ring around the blue dot will shrink as the fix improves — a ring of 5–10 metres is a good starting point for track recording.

Stay outdoors where possible. Tree cover, tall buildings and being near cliff faces all reduce GPS signal quality and can cause the track to drift or jump. This is a hardware limitation and affects all GPS devices, not just TERRAiNAV.

The track is recorded as-is — no smoothing is applied. This is intentional, as smoothing algorithms can cut corners on tight trails or technical terrain. If you need a smoother track for sharing or analysis, the exported GPX file can be post-processed in tools such as GPSBabel, Garmin BaseCamp or any GIS application.

Duplicate points at the same location can appear if you stop moving for a period. TERRAiNAV filters out positions within 1 metre of the last recorded point, but brief GPS drift while stationary may still produce a small cluster of points. These do not affect distance calculations meaningfully and can be removed in post-processing if needed.