Step-by-Step Guide on Setting Up a POS System.

POS hardware is designed to be relatively easy to set up, and the key to a successful set up is mostly dependent on the POS software you use and how it interacts with the POS till, receipt printer or cash drawer and other peripherals you're using. 

In this guide, we want to help you understand the communication within your whole POS system set up, look at all the connection types that are available to you, and how POS software is the integral part in a successful POS system set up. 

POS Software & The Cloud

What is POS Software?

This is the actual program you use to track sales, manage inventory, and take payments. 

• How you access it: Depending on your system, this software might be an app you downloaded from the Google Play Store / Apple App Store onto a tablet, or it might just be a website you open up in a web browser (like Chrome or Safari) on a computer terminal.

• The Cloud: Think of the cloud as a massive, secure digital filing cabinet located on the internet. Because your software lives in the cloud, every time you make a sale, it immediately updates your inventory and reports across all your store locations in real time.

• Why is it crucial? Because different software platforms are built on specific operating systems (like iOS, Android, or Windows) and use different communication protocols, a barcode scanner, card reader, or receipt printer that works flawlessly with one app might be completely incompatible with another.
• Before purchasing any hardware, you must check your software's hardware compatibility list; the software determines whether your printer needs to connect locally via a USB driver or over the network using a specific IP address layout. Choosing your software first prevents the costly mistake of buying expensive equipment that your system simply doesn't know how to talk to.
  

If you haven't yet decided what POS software you're wanting to use, or would like some suggestions, we partner with many providers that you could choose from, depending on your needs. View our POS software partners. 

The Router

Ubiquiti UMR Router

Your router is essential when it comes to directing messages back and forth between devices. When your POS software needs to save a transaction to the cloud, or send a "print" command to your receipt printer, the router makes sure that data gets to the exact right place without getting lost. 

The POS Terminal & Scanner

Sunmi D3 Pro POS terminal with a customer-facing display (CFD). 

Your POS terminal (the screen you look at) is where the action happens. Accessories like a Barcode Scanner have to talk directly to this screen.

• How they talk: Scanners usually plug directly into the terminal using a standard USB cable, or they connect wirelessly via Bluetooth. When you scan something, the barcode scanner instantly types the item's barcode number into your POS software just like a super-fast keyboard.

• A POS terminal will be running the POS software (via a browser or an app that you have to download), sending commands to your receipt printer. As soon as you finalise a transaction and select "Print a receipt", if your customer requests it, by selecting this option, you force the POS software to send a signal to your receipt printer to print a receipt. If the customer pays by cash, you would select the option and the receipt printer would trigger the cash drawer to open too. 

The Receipt Printer

Star Micronics receipt printer (mC-Print3) example - Connecting via USB cable. 

Once a sale is finalised, your POS software tells the router, "Hey, we need a receipt." The router sends that message over to the Receipt Printer.

• How it talks: Printers can connect to your router using an Ethernet cable (network cable) or Wi-Fi so it can receive print jobs from your POS software when you use it on your POS terminal. Alternatively, some printers plug directly into the terminal screen via USB or Bluetooth. 

• If it's via Wi-Fi or Ethernet, your printer will receive an IP address that identifies it in the network, allowing your router to transfer the POS software message to the printer. (Like a house needs an address and house number to receive mail). 
• With USB printers, the message isn't travelling through to the router. It instead is being transferred through the operating system (e.g. Windows, Android etc). - the operating system uses what's known as a Printer Driver and the driver takes the instructions and changes them into commands and they get sent via the USB cable through pulses of electricity instead. 
• Bluetooth also connects directly to your POS till and doesn't use a router. 
• The limitation of USB and Bluetooth is that they have to be connected to a POS terminal, so the receipt printer can only print from the commands of the POS terminal it's connected to. 

The Cash Drawer

Star Micronics CB-2002 Cash Drawer

Your cash drawer usually doesn't talk to the router or the computer screen directly. It actually takes its orders from the receipt printer!

• How it talks: The drawer is plugged into the back of the receipt printer using a specialised cable (often called an RJ-11 or RJ-12 cable, which looks a lot like an old-school telephone wire).

• When the POS software tells the printer to print a receipt, the printer simultaneously sends a tiny electrical pulse down that telephone wire. That pulse triggers a latch, and pop!—your cash drawer opens.

• Most receipt printers have a DK (cash drawer port). If you're using a receipt printer in the kitchen and are going to use a buzzer for receiving orders, you would plug the buzzer into the DK port on the receipt printer. 

How do I set up POS hardware? 

Connect Your POS Terminal to the Internet

Your POS terminal (whether it is an iPad, an Android tablet, or a touchscreen monitor) needs an internet connection to talk to the cloud. You have three options:

• Wi-Fi: Connect the terminal to your store's wireless network through the device's settings menu, as you would  a normal phone or PC. 

• Ethernet (Wired): Plug an Ethernet cable directly from the terminal (or its charging dock) into your router or a network access point.

• 5G/Cellular: If your terminal has a built-in SIM card, it can connect directly to the internet using cellular data networks.

Connect Your Barcode Scanner

Your scanner sends barcode data directly to the terminal screen. It doesn't need the internet.

• Via USB: Plug the scanner’s USB cable directly into an open USB port on your POS terminal.

• Via Bluetooth: Turn on the scanner and pair it wirelessly to your terminal through the tablet or computer's Bluetooth settings.

Connect Your Receipt Printer

Your receipt printer can receive print jobs either from the network or directly from the terminal. Look at the back of your printer to see which ports it has:

• The Direct Route (USB or Bluetooth): If your printer uses USB or Bluetooth, connect it directly to your POS terminal. The terminal's operating system will send print commands straight down the wire or through the airwaves for Bluetooth. 

• The Network Route (Wi-Fi or Ethernet): If your printer uses Wi-Fi or an Ethernet cable, it connects directly to your router. The router will then pass print commands from your POS software over to the printer.

Connect Your Cash Drawer

Many people assume the cash drawer plugs into the computer terminal or the router, but it actually gets its commands straight from the printer, as mentioned earlier. 

• How to connect it: Locate the RJ-11 or RJ-12 port on the back of your receipt printer (it looks exactly like an old-school telephone jack and is often labeled "DK" for Drawer Kick).

• Plug the cable from your cash drawer directly into this port on the printer. When a sale is finalised, the printer will send a quick electrical pulse down the wire to pop the drawer open.

Card Payments & Kitchens

The Card Reader / Payment Terminal 

A POS terminal can't take card payments by itself. It needs to talk to a card reader (the device where customers tap, insert, or swipe their cards).

• Smart/Cloud Readers: Connect directly to the Router via Wi-Fi or Ethernet. The POS software talks to the router, and the router talks to the payment terminal.

  • Countertop/Traditional Readers: Plug directly into the POS terminal via a USB cable or connect via Bluetooth.

  • Legacy Readers: Use an older type of serial cable (often called an RS-232 or COM cable) to plug directly into a desktop POS station.

Kitchen / Order Printers (For Restaurants)

In a restaurant, when a server enters an order at the front counter, a ticket needs to print in the kitchen or at the bar.

• How it connects: Because these printers are usually far away from the front counter, they cannot use USB or Bluetooth (the cables aren't long enough and Bluetooth signals can't pass through thick kitchen walls).

• Instead, kitchen printers must connect to the network via Ethernet or Wi-Fi so they can receive order tickets routed through the main store router. Ethernet is best as the Wi-Fi signal is often not the strongest in an industrial kitchen. Use an access point if the router is not near the kitchen (If you have a strong enough signal). 

• If you're using a dedicated kitchen printer, they usually include a buzzer sound when an order comes through. If using a receipt printer with thicker paper, you could purchase a buzzer that would connect to the DK port. 

Our Recommendations: 

We hope by now you should understand how each component of your POS set up interacts. We haven't covered all available devices like kitchen display systems and other POS hardware, but you should now realise that the set up of these devices is dependent on the type of connection and crucially, your POS software. 

If you need help with hardware selection or any POS software recommendations, just give us a call or email - it's what we specialise in, and would love to help, even if you need just one printer or something else. 

View all POS hardware here. 

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