Transactions made while store is offline

Byte Technology stores must be able to successfully connect to the server and payment processor in order to collect payment for transactions. Offline Mode enables Byte stores to process transactions even when a connection to the server or payment processor is not possible. If connectivity is lost for a period of time, Byte stores are still able to operate in what we call Offline Mode.

What is Offline Mode?

Offline Mode is when a Byte store is still able to process transactions, but is not able to connect to the server or payment processor. A Byte store can operate for up to 96 hours in Offline Mode. Upon regaining connectivity, the Byte store will connect with the server and process all transactions made during that period. If the Byte store remains without connectivity beyond 96 hours, the door will no longer allow users to transact. 

How does Offline Mode impact transactions?

When in Offline Mode, there is no impact to transactions. The one material difference is that Byte stores are unable to run the usual $1.00 preauthorization to confirm the customer's credit or debit card is active.

The store's tablet will record all relevant transaction data during offline mode, including the price shown to customers at the time the transaction was made, and it will remember the email associated with the credit card that was used. 

How do I know when a store is in Offline Mode?

There are three ways to know a store is in Offline Mode:

  1. The tablet menu will display a thin yellow or red border, as seen in the example below:
ScSh_1588_2019-07-31_16-54-30.png

There are two (2) border colors to show for different stages of "Offline Mode". 

Red Border shows the unit is in "Offline Mode" 

Yellow Border shows the unit is in "Offline Mode" and has pending, encrypted transactions waiting to be processed. 

Once all pending transactions have been successfully sent to the payment processor and processed, the yellow border will be removed from the tablet screen. 

  1. The Byte store in the Byte Dashboard shows "Offline" or "Multiple Issues" as the status and no heartbeats within the last 10 minutes:
    Offline_Status.png
  2. The Status page shows the most recent heartbeat
No_recent_HBs.png

Heartbeats that occurred during offline mode are stored in the tablet and then updated once the Byte store is back online. 

Learn about how to troubleshoot a Byte store that is offline.

How did we do?

Ethernet setup and networking requirements

How do I get a store back online?

Contact