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Four ideas are all you need to understand NowOS. Take five minutes here: the rest of the documentation builds on this page.

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The backoffice and the register

NowOS comes as two complementary tools:
  • The backoffice is a web app, available from any browser. It’s where the owner or manager configures the business: the menu or catalog, taxes, staff, devices. It’s also where you track your sales and reports.
  • The register is the NowOS app on iPad. It’s your staff’s tool during service: taking orders, collecting payments, closing the day.
The rule is simple: you configure in the backoffice, you sell on the register. Changes made in the backoffice (a new dish, a new price) are then picked up by your registers — see Taking orders and The backoffice.

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The main register and secondary devices

Among your iPads, one plays a special role: the main register. It is the source of truth for your store.
  • Every other iPad is a secondary device. They take orders and collect payments normally, but every operation goes through the main register, over the store’s Wi-Fi.
  • The main register works without internet: as long as it is on and your devices are on the same Wi-Fi network, you can sell normally, even during an internet outage. Your data flows up to the backoffice as soon as the connection returns.
The main register must stay on, plugged in, and with the NowOS app open in the foreground throughout service. If it becomes unreachable, the other devices enter degraded mode and cannot record new operations until it is restored.
An internet outage, on the other hand, is harmless: service continues normally on the local network. Only the link to the main register matters during service.
To learn more: The main register, Connectivity and Pairing a device.

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The business day

Your sales are grouped by business day: the envelope that runs from start of day to close of day.
1

Start of day

On the first payment of the day, the register asks you to open the day by confirming the opening float — the cash in the drawer at the start.
2

During service

Sales are recorded as they happen. Any cash movement outside a sale (change, an emergency purchase, a pay-out) is declared with a mandatory reason.
3

Close of day

At the end of the day, you count the drawer as a blind count: the register only shows you the expected amount after you’ve counted. The day is then sealed and its summary (the Z ticket) prints.
Forgot to close? The forgotten day is sealed automatically at the next opening, with the drawer marked “not counted”.
To learn more: Start of day, Close of day and Reports.

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From order to sale

Four words come up everywhere in NowOS. Here is how they chain together:
  1. The order is the working container: you add items and change quantities for as long as it stays open.
  2. Every order contains one or more checks. The check is what the customer pays. In retail mode there is always exactly one; in restaurant mode you can split the check (a table of four can pay across four separate checks).
  3. Each check receives one or more payments — cash or card. Payments can add up (for example half cash, half card).
  4. When a check is fully paid, it becomes a sale: a final, tamper-proof record, with its receipt.
A sale is never edited: this is a legal requirement. To correct a sale that has already been paid, use the refund. To remove an item or abandon an order that is still open, use voiding.
Card payment works with your usual card terminal, not connected to NowOS: you charge on the terminal, then type the amount into the register. See Payments.

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What’s next

The exact flow of an order depends on your location’s mode. Read Restaurant mode and retail mode, then dive in with the quickstart.