Best Practice: Improved System Performance
Following these recommended practices will help keep your Barnet POS system running reliably, maintain accurate information between stores, and make inventory management and troubleshooting easier.
Keep Barnet Software Up to Date
Barnet recommends having your desktop software updated at least twice per year.
The Barnet Portal is updated automatically, generally every two weeks. Release notes are emailed when updates are released.
The following desktop applications require manual updates by Barnet:
- POS Manager – Back-office management software
- POS Service – Synchronizes information between POS Manager and the Portal
- POS Store – Till/POS software
Barnet Support checks software versions whenever possible when assisting a store and may recommend an update at that time. POS Store updates can require additional coordination because tills are often actively being used.
Barnet requires remote access to the applicable computers to complete updates. Having current Windows login credentials available can help avoid delays.
Tip: Your current POS Manager version is displayed in the top-left corner of the POS Manager screen .
Restart Barnet Computers Weekly
Barnet computers should normally remain powered on 24/7 so that automated backups, synchronization, and other scheduled services can run.
However, we recommend restarting the server and POS computers approximately once per week.
This can be done manually or through a scheduled Windows restart. Ideally, schedule the restart for a time when the store is closed, such as early in the morning before opening.
Monitor Server Performance
Regularly monitor your Barnet server to ensure adequate system resources remain available.
Recommended practices include:
- Monitor available memory and storage.
- Remove unnecessary files when appropriate.
- Complete database cleanup when required.
- Investigate computers that are consistently experiencing high memory usage.
- Maintain at least 16 GB of RAM on the Barnet server/back-office computer.
If the server is consistently experiencing high memory or storage usage, contact Barnet Support for assistance.
Archive Your Local Database Annually
Barnet recommends archiving your store's local database approximately once per year.
Keeping too many years of transactions in the active database can affect performance over time.
As a general guideline:
- Higher-volume stores should typically maintain approximately two years of transactions in the active local database.
- Lower-volume stores may be able to maintain approximately three years.
Archiving does not delete your historical information. Your archived data is retained and can still be accessed when needed; however, it is stored separately from the active database and is therefore not available within your normal day-to-day POS Manager operations and reporting.
If you need to research an older transaction, review historical sales, or access other information from an archived period, the archived database can be opened separately to retrieve that information.
Barnet completes the archive for you. Please contact Support to schedule the archive and provide your preferred cutoff date.
A common cutoff is December 31, allowing the active database to begin January 1. Your company's fiscal year-end date can also be used.
Complete Begin Period Regularly
Begin Period should be completed:
- Monthly – Recommended
- Quarterly – Minimum
Begin Period creates an important point-in-time inventory reference and can significantly help when investigating inventory discrepancies later.
Establishing a recurring schedule for Begin Period is recommended so that it is not missed.
