POS Troubleshooting: The No-Panic Playbook for When Your System Acts Up

It always happens at the worst possible time.

Not at 10:07am on a slow Tuesday… but at 12:03pm, when the line is out the door, your newest employee is “helping” (😅), and a customer is holding their phone up like, “So… Apple Pay or nah?”

This guide is your POS troubleshooting playbook — the practical steps to diagnose issues fast, keep sales moving, and know when it’s time to stop poking buttons and call for help.

And yes — when it’s a Clover outage, we’ll use the exact outage plan from your Clover downtime guide. 

Start here: the 2-minute POS Troubleshooting Guide (don’t skip this)

Before you restart everything and accidentally turn a small issue into a whole event, do this quick triage:

1) Is it just one device… or your whole store?

• One device acting weird → likely hardware/app/peripheral.

• All devices offline → likely internet/network.

• Your internet works but payments won’t go through → could be processor/system outage.

2) What exactly is failing?

Be specific (this matters):

• Can you open the POS app, but payments fail?

• Can you take payments, but printing fails?

• Does the screen freeze or reboot repeatedly?

• Is the POS fine, but cash drawer won’t open?

Write it down (or tell a manager). It saves time when troubleshooting or calling support.

The golden rule: power cycle in the correct order

When tech gets cranky, restarting works… but only if you do it right.

Restart order (best practice):

1. Modem / router (unplug 30 seconds, plug back in)

2. Wait for internet to fully come back (lights stable)

3. POS device(s) (restart / power down fully, then back on)

This is simple, but it fixes a shocking amount of “POS troubleshooting” issues because it forces a clean network handshake.

If Clover is down: follow your outage playbook

When your Clover POS goes down, the first job is figuring out what kind of down you’re dealing with (internet vs hardware vs system outage). Your outage guide nails this flow, so use it as the official “outage section” of this pos troubleshooting blog. 

How to verify a Clover system-wide outage

• Check Clover’s official status page

• If you’re using Clover Hospitality (BentoBox), that has its own status page

If it’s system-wide, your goal is business continuity, not “fixing” Clover.

Keep taking payments during an outage

Offline payments can keep you moving (with risk controls). Clover provides steps to enable and configure offline payments.

Big reality check: offline payments aren’t authorized in real time, so some transactions can fail later. Clover’s own documentation explains this risk, and developers should treat offline as “record now, reconcile later.”

If it’s NOT an outage: POS troubleshooting by category

A) Internet & network issues (most common)

If your POS depends on Wi-Fi/Ethernet, your network is basically your cash register oxygen.

Fast checks:

• Can a phone/laptop load a webpage on the same network?

• Are other cloud tools down too (email, browsing, music)?

• If Ethernet: is the cable actually seated (and not half-hanging like a loose tooth)?

Quick fix ladder:

1. Restart modem/router (30 seconds unplug)

2. Forget/reconnect Wi-Fi on the POS device

3. Move closer to router (yes, seriously)

4. Temporary hotspot as a lifeboat (even just to finish the rush)

If you want to reduce “internet killed my checkout line” emergencies, you can also build in redundancy (like LTE/4G backup).

B) POS running slow, freezing, or lagging

Slow POS = longer lines = lost sales. That’s not dramatic — it’s math.

What to do right now:

• Restart the device (full reboot, not “sleep”)

• Close unused apps (POS devices get bogged down like old laptops)

• Check storage (if it’s full, performance tanks)

• Update apps/OS (outdated builds cause weird bugs)

What to do this week (prevent repeats):

• Audit device age and workload

• Make sure your POS isn’t trying to do the job of 5 devices at once

• Consider upgrading hardware if you’re consistently pushing limits

C) Payments failing (but the POS “works”)

This is where staff panic starts: “It’s broken!”
Sometimes it’s not broken — it’s one of these:

Common causes:

• Card reader not seated / loose connection

• Contactless disabled or not configured

• Network instability causing timeouts

• The customer’s card is declined (it happens — don’t take it personally)

POS troubleshooting move that saves embarrassment:
Test a small $1 transaction on:

• a different card type (tap vs chip)

• a different device (if you have another register)

If one method works and the other doesn’t, you just narrowed the problem massively.

D) Printer not printing (or printing gibberish)

Printers are… printers. They’ve been difficult since the beginning of time.

Fix order:

1. Check paper + orientation

2. Restart printer

3. Re-pair / reconnect printer in POS settings

4. Print a test receipt

5. If it’s a kitchen printer: verify it’s assigned to the right category/order routing

If your printer is paired but not responding, it’s often Bluetooth/Wi-Fi pairing drift. A re-pair solves it.

E) Cash drawer won’t open

Usually one of these:

• It’s plugged into the printer (not the POS) and the printer isn’t connected

• The receipt printer isn’t getting the “open drawer” trigger

• Drawer cable is loose

• Drawer is physically jammed (coins + chaos = drawer drama)

Quick workaround during the rush:
Use manager key/manual open (if available) and fix the trigger afterward.

Offline mode: use it, but use it like an adult

Offline payments are a legit “keep the line moving” tool, but it’s not magic.

Clover’s official help docs show how to enable and configure offline payments. 

Best practice controls:

• Set a transaction limit for offline payments

• Use it for trusted, lower-risk transactions if possible

• Train staff to tell customers:
  “We’re temporarily offline — your payment may take a bit to fully confirm once we reconnect.”

And again: Clover’s dev documentation explains why offline carries real risk (no real-time authorization).

Staff scripts for the moment things break

Your team needs words when the system’s misbehaving — otherwise they freeze and start free-styling apologies.

Customer-facing line (simple + confident):
“Looks like our checkout system is having a temporary connection issue. We’re getting it back online right now. If you’d like, we can take cash, or you can try tap/chip on our other register.”

Line for the manager/owner:
“POS issue: payments failing on Register 2 only. Internet works on phones. Tried restart. Next step: re-pair reader / check status page.”

These scripts keep people calm and keep the line moving.

Prevention: how to reduce POS troubleshooting emergencies by 80%

Most POS disasters are actually “maintenance debt.”

Weekly (10 minutes)

• Reboot devices

• Check for updates

• Inspect cables (loose cables cause 50% of phantom problems, I swear)

Monthly

• Review speed + stability issues

• Confirm offline payments settings are correct (if you use them)

• Reassess whether your setup matches your current volume (busy businesses outgrow old setups)

Always

Have a backup plan:

• hotspot option

• secondary reader (even a basic backup)

• “cash-only temporarily” signage ready to go

When to stop POS troubleshooting and get help

If you’ve done:

• modem/router restart

• device reboot

• checked for system outage

• verified offline settings / pairing

…and you’re still down, don’t waste another 45 minutes guessing.

For Clover outage-specific steps, use your Clover outage guide. 
For offline payment setup, use Clover’s official instructions.

And if your business needs a setup that’s more resilient (backup connectivity, better hardware fit, cleaner workflows), that’s the kind of situation where having a payments/POS partner who actually answers the phone matters.

Final takeaway

POS troubleshooting is mostly about staying calm and narrowing the problem fast:

• outage vs local issue

• network vs device vs peripheral

• payment issue vs printing/cash drawer issue

• continuity plan (offline mode + backup methods)