Troubleshooting steps for when reservations booked on a connected Online Travel Agent (OTA) or distribution channel are not appearing in RMS.
Why Reservations Are Not Arriving from a Channel
When a guest books on a connected channel, the reservation is sent to RMS and mapped to the correct Category and Rate Type using the Channel Connection configuration.
A reservation fails to appear in RMS because the reservation was rejected, not because it was lost. This happens when the channel sends a room type or rate code that is not mapped in RMS, when the Category the channel booked is inactive or not available to RMS Online, when the connection itself has stopped authenticating, or when the channel is running behind during a high-volume period. RMS records the rejection and the reason, so the failure is traceable in every case.
Work through the four steps below in order, from the most common cause to the least. You will need access to Setup > Online Bookings > Channel Management in RMS and sign-in details for the channel's own extranet portal, because the mapping has to be compared across both.
Important! Reservations that have failed to deliver should be manually created in RMS as soon as possible to prevent overbookings. Investigate and resolve the underlying cause after the reservation has been secured.
Please Note! RMS is highly configurable. Some Terminology, User Access & Permissions, Images, Labels, and Functions used in these articles may differ from your setup. CLICK HERE to find out more.
Step 1 - Check the Message Centre for Critical Alerts
RMS displays critical alerts in the Message Centre when an online reservation fails to deliver.
- Check the Message Centre - the envelope icon will flash red if there are unread critical alerts.
- Look for alerts related to the missing reservation.
- The alert will include the Online Confirmation Number and the Failure Reason.
- Acknowledge the alert after the issue has been investigated and the reservation has been manually created.
Please Note! Critical alert emails are also sent to the 'Confirmation email 1' address nominated in Setup > Online Bookings > Online Options > Notifications.
Step 2 - Identify the Failure Reason
The most common failure reasons and their solutions:
| Failure Reason | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| RoomTypeId or RoomTypeCode Not Supplied | The channel sent a room type that is not mapped in RMS | Check the Channel Management mapping and add the missing room/rate combination. See Failure Reason: RoomTypeId or RoomTypeCode Not Supplied |
| Agent ID: [number] is not setup for Client ID: [number] | The channel's online agent is not set up against your RMS account, so bookings from that channel cannot be delivered | Contact RMS Support to have the channel's online agent set up against your account |
| The property cancelled RMSOnline on [date] and can no longer receive bookings. | The property's RMS Online service has been cancelled, so no channel bookings are accepted | Contact RMS Support to confirm the status of your RMS Online service |
The Failure Reason in the failure email is the underlying error text from RMS, so the wording can vary and reasons other than those listed above are possible. To compare what the channel sent against your mapping, see Identify Channel Mapping Issues.
Please Note! A failed booking is not retried indefinitely. For new bookings from a connected channel, an unmapped room type, an agent that is not set up, and a cancelled RMS Online service stop on the first attempt with no retry at all. Other failures are retried about once a minute for up to ten attempts, so delivery stops within minutes. Correcting the cause afterwards will not bring the reservation through, so create it manually in RMS.
Step 3 - Review the Channel Management Mapping
- Go to Setup > Online Bookings > Channel Management.
- Select the affected channel connection and select Edit.
- Review the Room/Rate Mapping section.
- Compare the mapped room and rate codes with those listed in the channel's extranet portal.
- Add or correct any missing or mismatched mappings.
Tip! Use the Channel Category Comparison Report to quickly identify unmapped or incorrectly mapped combinations across all channels.
Prevent Future Mapping Failures
Consider setting up a Fallback Category and Rate Type Mapping as a safety net for future mapping issues.
When a fallback is configured, reservations with unmapped room or rate codes will still be created in RMS under the fallback Category and Rate Type, rather than failing to deliver.
Step 4 - Check the Channel Log
- In the channel connection settings, navigate to the Channel Log.
- Look for entries related to the missing reservation's date and confirmation number.
- The log will show whether RMS received the reservation data and why it failed to process.
HTNG Connections (Sabre SynXis, SiteMinder)
For channels using HTNG connections, such as Sabre SynXis HTNG and SiteMinder HTNG, additional factors may prevent reservations from arriving:
- The 2-way PMS interface must be enabled by RMS Support.
- Connection credentials may have expired or changed on the channel side.
- The channel may have a processing delay during high-volume periods.
If HTNG reservations are not arriving and no critical alerts are displayed, contact RMS Support to verify the connection status.
Modifications and Cancellations Not Arriving
Some channels support real-time modification and cancellation syncing, while others do not. If a reservation was modified or cancelled on the channel but the change is not reflected in RMS:
- Check the Channel Log for modification messages.
- Verify the channel supports 2-way modification sync (refer to the individual channel connection guide in the Help Centre).
- If the channel does not support modification sync, updates must be applied manually in RMS.
When Troubleshooting Does Not Resolve the Problem
Contact RMS Support with the following details:
- The channel name and Online Confirmation Number.
- The Failure Reason from the Message Centre (if available).
- Screenshots of the Channel Log.
- Whether the reservation is a new booking, modification, or cancellation.
Previous article: Channel Manager Troubleshooting Guide
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