Every BooksPOS shop has one store PC: the main PC that runs the store server and keeps the shop's records. This guide covers what that PC needs, the Windows installer, and the Set up this store screen that turns it into your shop's store server the first time BooksPOS starts.
What the store PC needs
| Windows | Windows 11, 64-bit (23H2 or later). Windows 10 22H2 (64-bit) has been tested on a till; Microsoft's consumer support for Windows 10 ended in October 2025. Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 are not supported. |
| Screen | 1366 × 768 or larger. Every screen was checked at 1366 × 768 and 1920 × 1080. |
| Disk | The PC's own disk. The shop's database must never be on a shared folder, OneDrive or Google Drive. |
| Internet | Not needed for billing. Needed only to pair with BooksPOS Cloud, to send records to it and to fetch updates. |
| On while the shop is open | Tills on other PCs bill through the store PC, so it must stay on while they work. |
| An administrator | Installing, and setting the PC up the first time BooksPOS opens, need a Windows administrator; Windows asks for permission. Using BooksPOS afterwards does not. |
Installing on the store PC
- Run the BooksPOS installer on the shop's main computer.
- If Windows says Windows protected your PC, check first that the file's SHA-256 matches the one on the Download page (in PowerShell:
Get-FileHashfollowed by the file name), then choose More info and Run anyway. - The installer asks nothing about the PC. When it finishes, open BooksPOS.
- The first time, BooksPOS shows Set up this PC. Choose Main PC of the shop. If other PCs in the shop will bill too, leave Extra tills on the shop network will connect to this PC ticked. Choose Set up this PC as the main PC; Windows asks for permission once (choose Yes). It takes about a minute.
- BooksPOS then shows Set up this store (below).
If Windows did not get permission, or the setup stopped, BooksPOS says so and asks again the next time: nothing else is needed.
What happens on the main PC:
- Puts BooksPOS in
C:\Program Files\BooksPOS. Everything it needs is inside: nothing else has to be installed. - Runs the store server as the Windows service BooksPOS StoreHost. It starts with Windows, before anyone signs in, and starts again by itself if it ever stops unexpectedly.
- Keeps the shop's database, backups and downloaded updates in
C:\ProgramData\BooksPOS\store, which only Windows itself and the PC's administrators can open. - With the extra-tills box ticked, lets the store server through Windows Firewall on private networks only (TCP port 47512). If Windows treats the shop network as Public, change it to Private in Windows settings, or tills cannot connect.
- Adds BooksPOS to the Start menu and the desktop.
Running the installer again keeps the shop's data and its settings. To tick or untick the extra-tills box later, open Set up this PC from the Start menu (in the BooksPOS folder) and choose Main PC of the shop again.
Installing on an extra till
Run the same installer on the other PC and open BooksPOS. On Set up this PC, choose Extra till, then Set up this PC as an extra till (Windows asks for permission once). No store server runs and no shop data is kept on that PC. BooksPOS then asks for the store PC's address and a one-time code: on the store PC, open Staff & counters and choose Add a till. See Tills on other PCs.
Chose the wrong one? Open Set up this PC from the Start menu (in the BooksPOS folder) and choose again. On the main PC, BooksPOS warns before it becomes an extra till: its store server stops and other tills can no longer bill through it, while the shop's data stays on its disk.
The Set up this store screen
Set up this store appears only once, on a PC whose store server has no shop yet. "This PC becomes the store server: it keeps the store's database and serves this counter. It needs no internet."
First choose one of two options:
- A new business: your first (or only) shop.
- A branch of a business on BooksPOS Cloud: a second shop of a business whose first branch is already paired with BooksPOS Cloud. See Joining a new branch to your business.
For a new business, fill in:
| Field | What to type |
|---|---|
| Business name | As customers know the shop, for example Ilmi Book Depot. |
| Branch name | Starts as Main branch. |
| Branch code | Starts as MAIN. 2 to 8 capital letters or digits. It appears in every bill number (MAIN-C1-S000042) and item code, so keep it short. |
| Address (on receipts) | For example Urdu Bazaar, Lahore. |
| Phone | The shop's number for receipts. |
| First counter | Starts as Counter 1. More counters can be added later. |
| Owner's sign-in | Full name, Username (3 to 32 lower-case letters, digits, dot, dash or underscore), Password (8+ characters) and Password again. |
Choose Create store. BooksPOS creates the business, the branch, the first counter (code C1), the shop floor where stock is kept, the chart of accounts, and the owner's account. Then it shows the sign-in screen.
Nothing ships with a default password. Write the owner's username down; the password is known only to the owner.
After setup
- Business details. The business name is fixed at setup (it is the business's identity in BooksPOS and in the cloud). The name printed on receipts, registered name, NTN, email and city are under Settings › Business.
- Receipts and printer. Under Settings. See Receipt and printer settings.
- Your account. Pair the store with your BooksPOS account under Sync & FBR, with a code from the owner portal. That activates its licence. See Pairing with BooksPOS Cloud.
- Backups. Set a backup password straight away under Sync & FBR › Backups. See Backups and restoring a store PC.
Updates and removing BooksPOS
Updates. The store PC asks BooksPOS Cloud for new versions. Under Settings › System & updates, an owner or manager sees the version on this PC and the store server's, and chooses Check for updates, Download and Install now. A download is used only when BooksPOS's signature on the release and the file's SHA-256 both check out, and again just before it runs. A backup is taken first; the store server stops for about a minute and starts again by itself, and BooksPOS closes on that PC. Extra tills are updated by running the new installer on each of them.
Removing BooksPOS. Uninstall it from Windows Settings › Apps. The program, the service and the firewall rule go; the shop's data and backups stay in C:\ProgramData\BooksPOS unless you tick the box that deletes them too. Installing BooksPOS again brings everything back.
Rules worth knowing
- One store PC per branch. Do not set up a second store server "just in case" on another PC of the same shop. Two store servers would be two separate shops with separate stock.
- Setup cannot be run twice. Once a store is set up, the screen does not come back ("This store is already set up").
- Moving to a new PC is a restore from a backup, not a new setup. See Backups and restoring a store PC.
Common questions
Can I install BooksPOS on a laptop?
Yes, if it runs 64-bit Windows 11. As the store PC it must stay on and on the shop network while other tills are billing, because they work through it.
Does the store PC need a server version of Windows?
No. An ordinary Windows 11 PC is what BooksPOS is developed and tested on.
I set up a new business by mistake on my second shop's PC. What now?
A store set up as a new business is a separate business and cannot join the first one's cloud account. There is no button to turn it into a branch. Tell the BooksPOS team before you bill on it, so it can be set up again as a branch with you.
Is there a demo I can try?
The team uses a demo store with invented data, marked "(demo)", when showing BooksPOS. It is not part of the installer.
Related guides
Last updated 30 September 2026. Still stuck? Contact us.