Quick Guide to Recover a Glitchy or Unstable Meeting
A quick guide for facilitators to fix meetings when multiple participants experience choppy audio, video glitches, or weak connections. For support with a single participant's connection, see Supporting a participant with a weak connection in HeyPeers meetings.
This one‑page guide gives you simple, non‑technical steps to try when a meeting becomes choppy, glitchy, or participants report weak connections. These actions are safe for all meeting configurations, including when the Waiting Room is enabled.
1. Pause and acknowledge the issue
A brief pause helps lower anxiety and gives you space to take control.
You can say something like: “It sounds like some of us are having trouble with audio or video. Let’s take a moment to get the room stable.”
You can say something like: “It sounds like some of us are having trouble with audio or video. Let’s take a moment to get the room stable.”
2. Ask everyone to turn off video
Turning off video reduces the load on the meeting and often clears up audio. Turn your own video off as well.
You can say something like: “Let’s all turn off our video for a moment so the audio can stabilize.”
You can say something like: “Let’s all turn off our video for a moment so the audio can stabilize.”
3. Ask everyone to leave and rejoin together
If the room is still unstable, a group leave/rejoin is the safest and most effective reset. You stay in the meeting.
You can say something like: “Let’s all leave and rejoin in the next minute so the room can reset. I’ll be right here when you come back.”
⚠️To help improve connection stability, remind participants not to use in-app browsers when they rejoin. Encourage them to use Chrome or Safari for the best experience.
You can say something like: “Let’s all leave and rejoin in the next minute so the room can reset. I’ll be right here when you come back.”
⚠️To help improve connection stability, remind participants not to use in-app browsers when they rejoin. Encourage them to use Chrome or Safari for the best experience.
For more information, see also:
Note for HeyPeers meetings only:
If you are the group leader and are having technical problems, it is safe for you to leave the meeting when the Waiting Room is enabled. Other participants will remain in the meeting without disruption.
Note for Zoom meetings:
If you are the host and leave the meeting, the meeting will continue without interruption only if an alternative host or co-host has been assigned. Otherwise, the meeting may end or host controls may be passed to another participant, which can disrupt the meeting.
If you are the group leader and are having technical problems, it is safe for you to leave the meeting when the Waiting Room is enabled. Other participants will remain in the meeting without disruption.
Note for Zoom meetings:
If you are the host and leave the meeting, the meeting will continue without interruption only if an alternative host or co-host has been assigned. Otherwise, the meeting may end or host controls may be passed to another participant, which can disrupt the meeting.
4. Support individuals still having trouble
After the reset, some participants may still struggle. Offer simple adjustments:
- Keep video off for the rest of the meeting
- Switch between Wi‑Fi and cellular if on a phone or tablet
- Leave and rejoin again if audio continues to cut out
For more information, see also
5. Re‑center the group and continue
Once the room stabilizes, gently bring everyone back together.
You can say something like: “Thanks for your patience while we got the room settled. Let’s pick up where we left off.”
You can say something like: “Thanks for your patience while we got the room settled. Let’s pick up where we left off.”
These steps give you a clear, reliable way to regain control when meeting quality degrades. Here's what they accomplish:
- Turning off video reduces strain on the meeting
- A group leave/rejoin resets unstable connections
- Audio‑only mode helps participants on mobile or weak networks
- Network switching can improve individual stability