Slack calls are having ‘connectivity issues’

Slack has confirmed that “Slack Calls are experiencing some connectivity difficulties right now.” The company said it is working to resolve the issue “as quickly as possible.” The difficulties coincide with the push from tech companies to move workers to remote-only meetings and conference calls, amid the outbreak of COVID-19.

Slack did not comment on any correlation between the two, or identify what factors are behind the connectivity issues.

Hey @SlackHQ @SlackStatus there's definitely something up with calls. Everyone keeps getting randomly disconnected, but not all the way. Screen goes black and it just starts randomly playing connect and disconnect sounds.

— matt (@mattisadev) March 11, 2020

In a previous blog post outlining Slack’s response to COVID-19, it said “our system architecture is designed to automatically accommodate the surges of traffic throughout the day that this brings to our systems.” The company said its server capacity can handle the demands, as well as the various regions from which users may be logging in. Slack also outlined how the shift to remote may not add a crazy load to its systems.

“The demands on our infrastructure do not change when employees shift away from working together in the same office; there is no difference in load on our systems whether people are connecting from their office, a cellular network, or their homes.”

https://slackhq.com/business-continuity-plan-covid-19

It added that employees already use an average of nine hours per day, so the volume remains the same.

Update: Slack got back to TechCrunch to confirm it has resolved the issue, and users should “see normal functionality restored.”