MT5 can stop reporting for several reasons: VPS restart, broker disconnect, chart closed, EA removed, network failure or a frozen terminal. If the account has open positions, stale data can hide real risk.
What is a heartbeat?
A heartbeat is the last time the terminal or reporter sent a valid update. If the expected interval is one minute and the last update was eight minutes ago, the account should be marked stale.
Common causes
- VPS restart or Windows update.
- Broker server disconnect.
- MT5 terminal freeze.
- Reporter EA removed from the chart.
- Network or firewall issue.
Alert before trust is lost
A stale alert is not the same as a drawdown alert. It says the monitor no longer trusts the data. That deserves attention because the account may still be trading while the dashboard is blind.
Response workflow
When a stale alert fires, check VPS access, broker connection, terminal status and the chart running the reporter. If the account is near a risk limit, treat the stale event as urgent.
xTriel marks stale MT5 accounts and sends risk alerts when telemetry stops arriving.