USB Cash Drawer Not Opening

[berkeleyarc]

I have an APG VB554A-BL1616 cash drawer with USB connection. It shows up in the hardware setting in the Square POS app, but it will not open when hitting the "test" button or performing a cash transaction. 

I thought the cash drawer might be faulty, but it works fine using the APG test app on Windows.

I called Square support, but they weren't much help. APG said the drawer is fine since it works fine on Windows

A bit of my background: I supported and programmed Aloha POS for several years for many national restaurant chains, so I can try any technicial things that may be needed. I already did all of the troubleshooting I could think of, including powercycling everything, reinstalling the app, restoring the iPad, etc. Hoping someone with more Square experience might have an idea.

Thanks!

[Helen]

I'm sorry for the frustration @berkeleyarc! It looks like that specific cash drawer isn't compatible with Square at this time.

To use a USB cash drawer with an iPad you'll need to use the Square Stand, and the APG Vasario 1616 USB cash drawer. Other cash drawers are supported, but only by connecting the drawer to a receipt printer. There's more information about supported hardware for iPads in our Support Center but if you have any other questions please let me know. 

[berkeleyarc]

I have this drawer: https://squareup.com/shop/hardware/us/en/products/cash-drawer-16-inch-usb

How is it not compatible when it's listed on the Square site?

Thanks.

[RHatch]

Are you using the Square Stand?  As stated on the product page it is compatible with the Square Stand.

[berkeleyarc]

Yes, I have a Square Stand that the cash drawer is plugged into. It shows up in the Settings on the Square app, but will not open.

[Helen]

Thanks @berkeleyarc! We're talking about the same cash drawer, I'm sorry I didn't recognize it in your first post.

I know you mentioned you've done some troubleshooting but can you take a look at this list and run through these troubleshooting steps you haven't tried already? Also can you let me know if the iPad is charging when it's in the Stand and the Stand is plugged in to an AC outlet? 

[berkeleyarc]

I followed all of those steps again, as well as tried a different cable. The drawer will not open, but it shows up in the app as "APG VB554" and says it's connected.

[Helen]

If it's still not opening @berkeleyarc please call our CS team. They'll be able to help troubleshoot or, if needed, help you file a warranty for with the manufacturer. Apologies again for all the trouble this caused. 

[berkeleyarc]

The cash drawer works with the test app on Windows, so the drawer itself is fine. I called Square customer service and they just read the troubleshooting steps off of the website.

[Tom]

Hey @berkeleyarc, Helen is out today but I wanted to step in get some more information so that we can escalate this to our engineering team for further review. Can you reply with the version of the iPad and Stand that you're using? In addition, please let me know which iOS your iPad is running—this will help us take a deeper dive. Appreciate your help with this.

[berkeleyarc]

iPad: 3C668LL/A (5th Gen)

Stand: S089

iOS: 11.3

[Tom]

Thanks! I've opened an internal ticket with our engineering team and asked for additional insight on what may be causing this issue. We'll circle back as soon as more information is available.

[berkeleyarc]

Any update on this? Thanks.

[Tom]

Hi @berkeleyarc, sorry to keep you waiting. I was able to touch base with our engineering team and they reviewed everything that you've been encountering. Unfortunately, they were unable to find any kind off error or issue in their logs that would explain what's causing the trouble.

To be sure we're on the same page, can you run through these steps once again and let us know if anything improves?

• Remove the cash drawer in the app and re-add it.
• Take the iPad out of the Stand, force-quit Point of Sale, reboot the device, open Point of Sale back up, and then plug the iPad back into Stand.
• Delete the app and re-download it from the App Store.

If, after giving these a try, the drawer issue is still ongoing—please reply with the date and time where you attempted to use Point of Sale to open the cash drawer and it was unresponsive. The more specific the date and time—the better.

Thanks again for taking the time to have another look. I'll keep an eye out for your reply.

[berkeleyarc]

Thanks. I tried all of those steps. I just tested opening the drawer with a transaction at 3:39pm PST. 

Also to note: the Stand seems to randomly say it’s getting disconnected and reconnects a moment later. Not sure if that could be related. 

Thanks. 

[berkeleyarc]

Any update?

[Fivesixstore]

@berkeleyarc did you get it to work? iam having the same problem

[Tom]

Hi @Fivesixstore and @berkeleyarc, I'm sorry to hear that this is still an issue and I apologize that we missed your last reply.

I reviewed the internal ticket from the initial report, and our engineering team was not able to reproduce this issue. @Fivesixstore, can you make sure that you've tried the three troubleshooting tips listed above? If those doesn't clear this up, please let me know or get in touch with our Customer Success team—with that, an account specialist will be able to take a deeper dive into your settings.

[Fivesixstore]

i've tried all the steps listed. it shows in my square app that it's connected but it will not open in either settings or the action portion. @berkeleyarc said it cuts off the stand and connects back. i've plugged it into a windows computer and did the test drawer and it opens up just fine. 

[nika]

@Fivesixstore Were you able to contact our Customer Success Team? 

[TriforksEmpire]

Any solution here? My APG drawer (purchased from Square) is no longer connecting, but even when it randomly does connect, it will not open.