A hub on the shop's network

A hub at the shop keeps every device in step without the internet: a waiter’s phone sends an order to the counter, and held orders show everywhere, even when the shop’s internet is down.

What to run it on

A Raspberry Pi 4 or 5, a mini PC, a NAS that runs Docker, or any small always-on computer. It needs very little: about 120 MB of memory. Install it with Docker (host networking) or the Linux installer.

Plug it into the router with a cable if you can, and keep it on a UPS or a separate socket from the kitchen equipment.

Give it a fixed address (recommended)

Routers hand out addresses that can change, for example after a power cut. Devices find their hub again on their own when that happens (they look for it on the network, usually within half a minute), but a fixed address avoids the wait and makes the back office’s address easy to remember.

In the router’s admin page (often 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1, see the label on the router), look for DHCP reservation, Static lease, Address reservation or Bind IP to MAC, pick the hub from the list of connected devices, and save. Restart the hub so it gets the reserved address.

Finding the hub from a device

• When pairing, the POS app lists Hubs on this network; tap one to fill in its address.
• If the hub moves to another address, paired devices follow it by themselves. Settings → Hub shows “Looking for the hub on this network…” meanwhile.
• If devices can’t see the hub on the network (some guest Wi-Fi blocks this, as do separate networks for staff and customers), put the hub and the devices on the same network, or use Settings → Hub → Change hub address.

Reaching the back office from home

Use a private network such as Tailscale, or a Cloudflare Tunnel; see HTTPS and remote access. Don’t open the hub’s port on the router to the internet.