FranchiseOS · Reliability
An outlet that cannot bill is closed
Internet drops. In an office that is an inconvenience; at a restaurant counter with a queue, it stops the business. FranchiseOS is built so a branch keeps trading through it.
How it works
The branch runs a desktop till — a Windows application, not a browser tab. Alongside it runs the Local Hub, a service on the same machine that coordinates every device in that outlet over the branch's own network.
While the internet is down, the till keeps taking orders, raising bills and printing receipts and kitchen tickets. Phones in the outlet talk to the Hub directly over the local network, so they keep working too. When the connection returns, everything syncs to the cloud.
Why a local hub rather than just a cached browser
Caching a web page lets one device limp along. It does not let the devices in a branch stay in step with each other — the till, the kitchen printer and the manager's phone all need the same view of the same table while the outlet is cut off. That coordination has to happen locally, which is what the Hub is for.
Printing is local by design. Receipt and kitchen printers are reached over the branch network, not through the cloud, so printing is unaffected by an outage.
What syncs back
- Bills raised during the outage, with their original numbering
- Stock movements from those sales
- Shift activity and cash reconciliation
Sync failures are recorded and surfaced rather than dropped quietly — a queue that fails silently is worse than one that stops loudly.
Questions
Do we need special hardware?
A Windows PC at the branch to run the till and the Hub. Printers connect over the branch network as usual.
What happens to bill numbers raised offline?
Each branch has its own bill series, and numbers issued offline are preserved on sync, so the sequence stays continuous for GST purposes.
Can phones be used in the outlet while offline?
Yes. They connect to the Local Hub over the branch's own network rather than via the internet.