Settings
The Settings tab on the iPad is the mission-control panel for everything that isn’t direct service work — pairing printers and card terminals, checking the Zavo Network (the live connection between all your devices) is healthy, troubleshooting failed print jobs, and flipping the iPad between POS and Kitchen Display mode.
Managers use this screen far more often than servers. Most servers won’t need anything here beyond checking that printers are connected.
Each row opens a right-side drawer (about a third of the screen) so you can see your work on the main screen while you poke at settings.
The rows you’ll see, in order:
- Connected devices — printers and card readers
- Zavo Network — sync status and the live connection between your devices
- Print Jobs — the receipt/kitchen-ticket print queue
- KDS Mode — flip the iPad into Kitchen Display mode
- Quick Service — only visible if this iPad has Quick Service enabled
- Debug Menu — developer tools (usually ignore)
- Software version & updates — the footer at the very bottom
One flow sits outside the Settings tab but belongs in this doc because it’s a manager-only mission-control screen — the lock screen (register open, register close, cash in/out, and the X-day / Z-day reports). See Register & end-of-day at the bottom.
The iPhone’s settings screen is a cut-down version — no KDS toggle, no Quick Service options, no Debug menu, and the device-configuration bits are hidden. See Handheld Mode — Settings for what’s on the phone.
Connected devices
The first row shows a live status summary on the right side — little pills showing how many printers and card readers are connected vs. configured:
- Printer pill — coloured dot (green = all connected, amber = some, grey = none) + X/Y
- Card reader pill — same idea
- If you haven’t set up any hardware yet, it shows “Configure printers & hardware”
Tap the row to open the Devices drawer.
”This station” card
At the top of the Devices drawer sits a card showing:
- The device label (set in the Dashboard’s Devices page)
- The current status (active, inactive, etc.)
- A row of pills showing every operation mode on this device: Full service, Quick service, Reception, Kitchen Display, Handheld
- A pill showing the Quick-tab slot (only relevant when Quick Service is on)
Tap the card to edit the Quick-tab slot number. Each device running Quick Service needs a unique slot — slot 1 owns quick-tab numbers 100–199, slot 2 owns 200–299, and so on. The slot number matters when two iPads are both running Quick Service: each needs its own range so the order numbers on their receipts don’t clash. Slot is auto-assigned on first startup; override here if there’s a clash (needs manager approval). The modal also lists which slots are already taken by other devices.
You can’t change a device’s operation modes from the iPad — that’s a Dashboard setting. Open the Dashboard’s Devices page to flip between Full service, Quick service, Reception, Kitchen Display, or Handheld.
Printers tab
Lists every receipt/kitchen printer saved to this iPad. Each row shows:
- Printer name and address (Wi-Fi IP / Bluetooth MAC / built-in)
- Role — Receipt or Kitchen
- A connection icon — green Wi-Fi for connected, grey slash for disconnected
- A three-dots menu on the right
Printer three-dots menu
Tap the three dots to reveal actions:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Test Print | Fires a basic ESC-POS test print. |
| Bitmap Test | Renders a full test receipt and prints it as a bitmap (matches what guests will actually see). |
| Receipt | Flags this printer as a receipt printer (bills, payment receipts). Green star when selected. |
| Kitchen | Flags this printer as a kitchen printer (kitchen tickets, order chits). Amber star when selected. |
| Set Default Receipt / Set Default Kitchen | Picks this one as the default for its role. Show up as Default Receipt / Default Kitchen once set. |
| Remove | Removes the printer from this iPad. Red text — confirms first. |
Discovering a new printer
The blue Discover printers button at the bottom of the Printers tab opens a sub-drawer to scan:
- Wi-Fi scan — looks for Epson ePOS-compatible printers on the same network (Epson TM-m30III is the certified model)
- Bluetooth scan — pairs with BT printers
Results come in as they’re found. Tap one to add it. The first printer you add is automatically set as the default receipt printer.
See Connecting Hardware for the full “out of the box” printer setup steps.
Card readers tab
Lists every payment terminal paired with this iPad, split into CONNECTED and DISCONNECTED sections. Each row shows name, host/IP, and a status dot.
Card reader three-dots menu
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Test Connection | Pings the terminal with a handshake message. Shows success/fail right there. |
| Set Default | This terminal becomes the one preselected in Payments and in Pay at Table. |
| Remove | Unpairs the terminal from this iPad. |
Discovering a new terminal
Two ways at the bottom of the Card readers tab:
- Scan for terminals — the iPad searches your local network for Zavo card readers
- Add by IP address — type in the terminal’s address and tap Probe (useful if it’s on a different network)
No hardware yet?
You’ll see an empty state: “No terminals configured yet. Scan for terminals to get started.” for terminals, and no-printer placeholders for printers. Scan or add by IP to get going.
Zavo Network
Shows the real-time health of the Zavo Network — the live connection that keeps all your iPads, iPhones, printers, and KDS screens in sync with each other.
Think of this drawer as your answer to “why aren’t my orders showing on the kitchen’s iPad?” — if the other device isn’t listed here, the two iPads can’t reach each other right now.
The row’s right-side pills summarise:
- Peers pill — how many other Zavo devices this iPad can see (green dot = connected)
- Cloud pill — shows if this iPad is reaching Zavo’s cloud for backups and dashboard sync
- Version pill — a tiny timestamp of the last menu/config update this iPad received
Tap to open the Zavo Network drawer.
Transport Status
Four pills showing which ways this iPad can talk to the other devices:
- BLE — Bluetooth (short-range, works without Wi-Fi)
- LAN — same Wi-Fi network
- AWDL — direct iPad-to-iPad connection (Apple-only)
- WiFi Aware — direct Android connection
Green = active, grey = off. If one’s off and you need it (for example, Bluetooth to talk to a KDS when the Wi-Fi is patchy), check the iPad’s system Settings → Bluetooth.
Network map
A live diagram of this iPad and every other Zavo device it can see right now. Each one shows up as a card with its label, with lines connecting the devices that are currently in contact.
This Device / Remote Peers
Two sections with one card per device. The list of other devices is labelled Remote Peers with a live count, e.g. “Remote Peers (3)”.
Each card shows:
- Device label (e.g. Bar POS, Kitchen KDS)
- Zavo Device ID — the same identifier you’ll find in the Dashboard’s Devices page
- Native info — the operating system and model (e.g. iPadOS | iPad Pro)
- Network SDK — the Zavo app’s internal network version. Handy if you’re on a support call.
- Cloud status — Connected to Cloud / No cloud connection
- Connection types — which of the four ways above are currently active for this device
If the kitchen iPad isn’t in this list, the two devices can’t reach each other right now.
Print Jobs
Every kitchen ticket and receipt is pushed through a shared print queue across the Zavo Network, so any iPad can trigger a print and any iPad with a printer can pick the job up and actually run it. This row is your window into that queue.
The right-side status pill tells you at a glance:
- Red — “X failed” — something went wrong, retry needed
- Purple — “X active” — jobs currently pending / printing
- Green — “X completed” — everything’s done
- “View print relay status” when there’s no activity
When there are failed jobs, the whole row gets a thin red border.
Tap to open the Print Jobs drawer.
Filter tabs
Four pills at the top:
- All
- Active — pending + claimed + printing
- Failed — jobs that errored out
- Done — completed
If there are failed jobs, a X FAILED badge shows in the header.
Job cards
Each job card shows the printer it’s bound for, the ticket or receipt it represents, its status, and — for failed jobs — a Retry button that re-queues it through the Zavo Network.
Check the printer’s connection in Connected devices — a red failed job is almost always a disconnected or out-of-paper printer.
KDS Mode
A toggle — not a drawer. When flipped on, the iPad becomes a Kitchen Display System showing order tickets for the prep station you pick. Flip off to go back to POS mode.
Flipping it on
Toggle the switch
A prep station picker modal slides in.
Pick a station
Options are pulled from the Dashboard’s Prep Stations config — each with an icon (chef’s hat, flame, coffee, pizza, etc.) and a name.
Or pick View All (Expo) to see every ticket for every station. Use this for the expediter/pass station.
Confirm
Once you tap a station, the iPad flips into KDS mode instantly. A big green check appears next to the station you picked so you know which one’s active.
When the toggle is locked
If this iPad is set to KDS only in the Dashboard’s Devices page, the toggle is greyed out and the description reads “Enabled by device configuration (cannot be changed)”. Flip the device mode in the Dashboard to free it up.
If no prep stations are configured
The picker shows “No stations configured for this location”. Set them up in the Dashboard under Menu → Prep Stations first.
Quick Service
Only appears when this iPad has Quick Service enabled in the Dashboard. Configures quick-tab defaults for counter service.
Tap to open the Quick Service drawer.
New orders default to “To Go”
A switch — when on, every new quick tab starts with the To Go toggle already enabled. Staff can still untoggle it per order. Off by default.
Auto-complete quick tabs
A switch — when on, in-progress quick tabs automatically mark themselves as completed after a duration you pick. Useful when you’ve got a busy counter where nobody manually closes out each tab.
Below the switch, pick the Complete after duration:
- 1 minute / 5 / 10 / 15 / 20 / 30 / 45 / 60 minutes
- End of day — don’t auto-complete until you close the register (the Z-report — your end-of-day cash-out). Good for bar tabs that run all service.
The selected duration has a green tick. Change it any time.
Debug Menu
For developers and support staff. Contains diagnostic tools that aren’t part of normal day-to-day use — event logs, raw data inspectors, manual triggers.
The Debug menu exposes internal state and can affect live data. Only use it under guidance from Zavo support — the toggles and buttons inside are not idempotent.
Software version & updates
The very bottom of the Settings screen — not a row, just a small centred block:
- Zavo POS vX.Y.Z — the app version
Below it, one of three states:
- “Up to date” (grey, tappable) — tap to check now
- “Checking for updates…” / “Downloading update…” — a spinner while the app looks for or pulls a new version
- “Update Available” (green pill) — tap it to get a confirmation alert. Update Now restarts the app and applies the update; Cancel defers.
Updates are over-the-air — no App Store trip needed. They download in the background while the iPad’s online and are applied on next launch.
Applying an update restarts the app. The iPad will be unusable for about 10 seconds. Avoid applying mid-service — wait for a lull, between seatings, or between lunch and dinner.
Register & end-of-day
The lock screen is the full-screen PIN pad you hit whenever the iPad isn’t actively signed in to a staff member. It’s also where managers live at the start and end of every service — opening the register in the morning, counting cash, checking the day’s numbers mid-service, and closing out at the end.
Think of it as the register lifecycle screen. The same pad handles:
- Staff log-in (type your 4-digit PIN → you’re back on the floor)
- Opening the register at the start of the day (with an opening float)
- Cash in / Cash out movements during the day (top-ups, bank drops, tip payouts, petty cash)
- X-day report — a live snapshot of the day so far
- Closing the register at end of service — the full Z-report with cash counted and variance flagged
Plain PIN-entry is available to every staff member. The manager-only actions (Close register, Cash in/out, X-day report) require a staff role with the reports.close_register, reports.cash_in_out, or reports.view_x_report permissions. Without them, the PIN is rejected with a “Manager access required” toast.
The lock screen
Top of the screen — a status line tells you what this iPad is currently doing:
- “Register closed” — first thing in the morning, no register open yet
- “Register locked” — register is open; staff log in to continue
- “Close register” — manager tapped Close register and the PIN pad is now gating the close flow
- “Cash in” / “Cash out” — gating a cash movement
- “X-day report” — gating a read-only report view
- “Register conflict” — rare: two iPads both think they’re the open register. A manager must resolve it from Register conflict below.
Below the PIN dots, the keypad. The bottom-left key has a £ currency icon when the register is open — tap it to start a cash-in/cash-out (manager PIN follows). Right of the 0 key is the backspace.
Footer actions
At the bottom of the lock screen, underneath the keypad:
- “Close register” (red link) — only when the register is open. Kicks off the end-of-day close flow.
- “X-day report” (grey link) — only when the register is open and not in another flow. Lets managers peek at today’s numbers without closing.
- Device registration code (small monospace text with a monitor icon) — the code you’d pair this iPad with in the Dashboard’s Devices page. Handy for support.
Opening the register
If the register is closed when the iPad wakes up, the first PIN entry routes straight to the Cash amount screen with mode=open.
Enter your PIN
The header reads “Register closed — Enter your personal passcode to open the register.”
Count the opening float
The iPad flips to a big number pad with a £0.00 figure. Type the cash amount that’s in the drawer right now. This becomes the opening float on the Z-report.
Confirm
Tap Confirm. The register is now open, a new Z-report is started, and you land in the main POS.
Cash in / Cash out
Mid-service you’ll often need to record money moving in and out of the till that isn’t a customer transaction — a change top-up from petty cash, a bank deposit, a tip payout, a supplier paid in cash.
Tap the £ key
Bottom-left of the PIN pad (only visible when the register is open). A sheet slides up asking Cash in or Cash out.
Manager PIN
Enter a manager PIN. Fails if the role doesn’t have the reports.cash_in_out permission.
Type the amount
Same number pad as opening.
Pick a reason
Cash In — Change float top-up / Tips collected / Petty cash return / Other
Cash Out — Bank deposit / Supplier payment / Petty cash / Tips payout / Other
Other opens a text input for a free-form reason.
Confirm
The movement is recorded against the current Z-report, the drawer opens if one’s connected, and you’re back on the lock screen.
X-day report
A read-only snapshot of the day so far — no register close, nothing committed. Good for a mid-service sanity check (“how much cash should be in the drawer right now?”).
Any manager with the reports.view_x_report permission can pull it up from the lock-screen footer. It shows the same figures that’ll eventually appear on the Z-report — net sales, VAT, payment method breakdown, cash in/out running totals, expected cash drawer figure — but doesn’t close anything.
Closing the register — the Z-report
The end-of-service flow. This is the only way to finalise the day’s numbers.
Tap Close register
Red link at the bottom of the lock screen. You’re pushed into PIN entry with the header “Close register — Enter your passcode to close the register.”
Manager PIN
Fails if the role doesn’t have reports.close_register.
Review open service
The Close review screen lists anything still active:
- Active tables — tables with open sessions
- Active quick tabs — quick orders still open
- Unpaid orders — fired tickets with no payment yet
If anything’s here, the header reads “X blocking items” in amber and the only button is Go to restaurant — you can’t close the register until every row is resolved. Close the tables, pay the tickets, and come back.
When the list is clear, the header turns green — “Ready to close” — and a blue Continue to cash count button appears.
Count the drawer
Another number-pad screen: type the actual cash in the drawer now. The iPad compares this to what it expected (opening float + cash sales + cash-ins − cash-outs) and flags any variance on the final report.
Z-report summary
The full day’s summary is shown on screen — same as the X-day report, plus:
- Expected cash vs Counted cash vs Variance (green if zero, red if off)
- Final Z-report number (sequential, used by accounting)
- Signing staff name & timestamp
A Print Z-report button sends it to the default receipt printer. Tap Done to finalise — the Z-report is saved, the register is marked closed, you’re logged out, and the lock screen reads “Register closed” again.
Once a Z-report is committed, the day’s numbers are frozen — no new sales, cash movements, or refunds can be attributed to it. If you spot an error after closing, raise it from the Dashboard’s Reports page. Don’t reopen a closed day on the iPad.
Register conflict
If two iPads at the same location both have an open register (possible if one was offline during a close), the lock screen flips to “Register conflict” and the only action is a manager PIN → a resolution screen that picks the canonical open register and closes the duplicate. This is rare; it’s mostly a safety net against offline split-brain.
Auto-complete “End of day”
If Quick Service is enabled and you’ve set Auto-complete quick tabs to End of day (see Quick Service above), every in-progress quick tab that wasn’t manually closed will be auto-completed the instant the Z-report is finalised. Useful for long-running bar tabs.
Quick recap — when to come here
- Printer not printing → Connected devices → check connection icon, Test Print
- Kitchen tickets going to wrong printer → Connected devices → tap the printer’s three dots → Kitchen role + Set Default Kitchen
- Can’t pay by card → Connected devices → Card readers tab → check status, Test Connection
- Orders aren’t syncing to another iPad → Zavo Network → is the other iPad in Remote Peers? Is the connection type that should link them green?
- A ticket didn’t print → Print Jobs → filter Failed → Retry
- Switching an iPad to KDS for the evening → KDS Mode toggle → pick prep station
- Bar tabs running forever → Quick Service → turn on Auto-complete → End of day
- New features were announced → scroll to the bottom → tap Update Available
- Starting the day → Lock screen → PIN → count opening float → Confirm
- Bank drop / cash top-up mid-service → Lock screen → £ key → Cash in / Cash out → reason → amount
- Mid-service cash check → Lock screen → X-day report
- End of night → Lock screen → Close register → clear any blocking tables/tabs → count drawer → Print Z-report
Next steps
- Getting Started - iPad POS app — First-time device setup and sign-in
- Connecting Hardware — Out-of-the-box printer and terminal pairing
- Kitchen Display (KDS) — What KDS mode actually shows
- Handheld Mode — Settings — The iPhone’s (simpler) version of this screen
- Table Statuses Reference — The full visual legend