Adding counter PCs on the shop network

With MediPOS Offline, each extra billing counter is a Windows PC that connects to the main PC over your shop network (LAN). The data stays on the main PC; a counter PC only shows it and prints its own receipts. Each counter PC takes one of the PCs your plan allows, the same as the main PC. This guide is for the owner setting up a second or third counter: installing it in counter mode, finding and pairing it with the main PC, the firewall and private network settings, and what happens when the main PC is switched off.

Before you start

• The main PC is installed and working, with Counter PCs on the shop network will connect to this PC ticked. If it was not ticked, open Set up this PC from the Start menu on the main PC, choose Main PC of the pharmacy (MediPOS Offline) again with the box ticked, and choose Yes when Windows asks. Your data stays as it is.
• Both PCs are connected to the same router or switch, by cable or Wi-Fi.
• Your plan has a PC free for the counter. Each PC counts, the main PC included: a plan with 3 PCs is the main PC and two counters. You can see how many are in use under Account → Plan & billing → Usage. MediPOS opens port 8321 in Windows Firewall on the main PC: for any PC when Windows calls the shop network Private (or an office domain), and for PCs on the same router when it calls it Public, which Windows 11 does with every new network. From MediPOS 1.0.16 the main PC sets this up again each time it starts, so you do not need to change anything in Windows.

With MediPOS 1.0.15 or older on the main PC, counters reach it only on a Private network: update the main PC, or set its network to Private. On Windows 11, open Settings → Network & internet → Ethernet (or Wi-Fi and then your network) and set Network profile type to Private network. On Windows 10 it is Settings → Network & Internet → Status → Properties → Private.

MediPOS setup

How to install a counter PC

On the main PC, get a pairing code first:

1. Open Settings → Counter PCs in MediPOS (in the Windows app, or the browser on the main PC).
2. Under Add a counter PC on the shop network, click Pair a counter PC.
3. MediPOS shows a 6-digit pairing code, for example 482913. The same section always shows This PC's address on the shop network, for example 192.168.1.10; if it says the PC is not on a network, connect it to the router first. The code works for one counter PC and for 10 minutes; click New code for the next counter. If that counter's setup stopped half-way, for example because No was clicked when Windows asked for permission, the same counter can use the same code again until it runs out.

On the counter PC:

1. Run the same MediPOS installer and choose Yes when Windows asks for permission. It asks nothing else: click Install, then Finish with Open MediPOS ticked.
2. MediPOS opens on How will this PC use MediPOS? Choose Counter PC (MediPOS Offline).
3. It looks for the main PC on your shop network by itself, for a few seconds. Your pharmacy's main PC appears under Main PC on this network, for example Al-Noor Pharmacy, MAIN-PC · 192.168.1.10. If there is only one, it is chosen already; otherwise click Join next to yours.
4. Type the Pairing code from the main PC.
5. Click Connect this PC to the main PC, and choose Yes when Windows asks for permission.
6. MediPOS pairs the counter: MediPOS online records its machine ID and it takes one of your plan's PCs. The main PC needs internet for that minute; a phone hotspot is enough. Then it shows the sign-in screen, with Server: 192.168.1.10 at the bottom.
7. Each cashier signs in with their own account, with or without internet. Nobody has to sign in as the owner on the counter first. The owner adds staff under Administration → Team.

MediPOS setup

If the pairing code is wrong, MediPOS says "That code is not right. Type the 6 digits shown on the main PC." After 5 wrong tries, or after 10 minutes, the code stops working: make a new one on the main PC. When every PC of your plan is in use, pairing says so, for example "Your plan allows 2 installed PCs. Upgrade the plan to add more." Remove a PC you no longer use, or upgrade under Account → Plan & billing.

You can also leave the code empty. Then the owner signs in first on the counter, which adds it the same way. If a cashier signs in on a counter that is not added yet, MediPOS says "This counter PC is not added to your pharmacy yet."

If the counter does not find the main PC

The counter looks for MediPOS on every address of its own network. When nothing appears under Main PC on this network, check the list under Before you start, then click Search again. You can also type the address yourself in Main PC address: Settings → Counter PCs on the main PC shows it under Add a counter PC on the shop network. To find it by hand:

1. On the main PC, search for cmd and open Command Prompt.
2. Type ipconfig and press Enter.
3. Note the IPv4 Address of the adapter on the shop network, for example 192.168.1.10.

Ask whoever set up your router to reserve this address for the main PC (routers call it DHCP reservation or address binding). Otherwise, after the router restarts when the power comes back, the main PC may get 192.168.1.14 and every counter loses it.

You can test the connection from the counter PC's browser: go to http://192.168.1.10:8321. If the MediPOS sign-in page appears, the network and firewall are ready. Signing in there does not work: a counter PC uses the MediPOS app, which your plan counts by the PC's machine ID.

What a counter PC stores

So when counter 2 sells the last strip of Augmentin 625, counter 1 sees the stock drop at once: they use the same database. A counter PC that breaks is replaced by installing MediPOS on another computer, with nothing to restore.

How bill numbers work with several counters

All counters share one number series per document type, handed out by the main PC's database. Counter 1 prints INV-000245 and counter 2 the next bill, INV-000246. Two cashiers finishing a bill at the same second never get the same number, and a bill that fails gives its number back, so the series has no gaps. There is no separate series per counter PC; to see who made a bill, look at the Cashier on the receipt and in the sale.

What happens if the main PC is off

Counter PCs keep no copy of the data, so they cannot bill while the main PC is off or unreachable.

• When a counter opens MediPOS, it shows "Cannot reach the MediPOS server at 192.168.1.10. Check that the main PC is on and connected to the network." with a Try again button.
• If the connection drops while a cashier is completing a bill, the POS shows "Connection problem — press F12 again. The sale will not be duplicated." Once the main PC is back, press F12 again. MediPOS recognises it as the same bill and records it once.

During load-shedding the main PC, the router and any network switch all need power. A counter laptop on battery cannot bill if the router has gone dark. One UPS for the main PC and the router is usually enough.

Rules and tips

• If the main PC's address changes, the counter says it cannot reach the main PC. Press Change how this PC connects (or open Set up this PC from the Start menu), choose Counter PC and join the main PC again from the list. A counter that is paired already needs no new code.
• Some antivirus programs have their own firewall. If the browser test fails with Windows set to Private, allow incoming TCP port 8321 on the main PC in that program.
• Only the main PC is activated. A counter PC is not activated on its own, but it still takes one of your plan's PCs: it is added when it pairs (or when the owner first signs in on it), and it appears under Account → Plan & billing → Licensed PCs as Counter PC of your main PC.
• A counter where MediPOS was removed completely and then installed again takes back its own seat when it pairs with the same main PC, so it does not use a second PC of your plan.
• Only someone who may manage settings can make a pairing code, and each code adds one counter. That is what keeps an unknown laptop on your Wi-Fi from joining.
• To remove a counter PC you no longer use, click Remove next to it under Licensed PCs at medipos.pk. It stops working when the main PC next checks in online, within a few hours, and its PC is free for another counter.
• Every cashier needs a team member account, and your plan limits how many team members you can add.
• Each counter updates its own app when it can reach the internet. It holds no data, so it does not wait for a quiet moment.

Common questions

Can counters keep billing when the internet is down?

Yes. Counters talk to the main PC over the shop network, not the internet. What stops them is the main PC or the router being off. Only adding a new counter needs the internet, on the main PC, for a minute.

Does each counter PC count towards my plan?

Yes. Every Windows PC that runs MediPOS takes one of the PCs your plan allows: the main PC and each counter. Upgrade the plan under Account → Plan & billing when you need more counters.

I moved a counter to another main PC. Does it take a second PC?

No. When it pairs with the other main PC, or the owner signs in on it there, it moves there and keeps its one PC. A PC that is itself activated as a main PC cannot be added as a counter until you remove it under Licensed PCs.

The main PC is on but the counter cannot reach it. What should I check?

Check that the main PC has MediPOS 1.0.16 or later (or its network set to Private), that both PCs are on the same router, that its IPv4 Address has not changed, and that the counter box was ticked when it was installed. The browser test at http://<main PC address>:8321 tells you whether the problem is the network or MediPOS.

The pairing code does not work. What should I check?

Make sure you typed the code shown on the main PC right now: a code works for 10 minutes and for one counter, and 5 wrong tries end it. Click New code on the main PC and try again. If it says the main PC needs internet, connect the main PC for a minute, even with a phone hotspot, and press Connect this PC to the main PC again with the same code.

Do I need to back up counter PCs?

No. Everything is on the main PC, which backs itself up every day.

Can a laptop on Wi-Fi be a counter?

Yes, if it runs 64-bit Windows 10 or 11 and joins the same router as the main PC.

Related guides

• Installing MediPOS Offline
• Setting up thermal receipt printers
• Team members, roles and permissions
• Backups and updates