I’ve been using SambaPOS for a few months now and really love it but im having a few issues with windows 8 tablets and connectivity to the server.
My Setup:
i7 Server with 4GB ram connected via ethernet
Netgear wifi router
Unisoft 10" Tablet (Win 8)
Lenovo 7" Tablet (Win 8)
SQL Express 2012
The server itself doesn’t actually take orders but the tablets do all the work with one setup at a counter and the other used for mobile orders.
The question im wondering is, has anyone setup a wifi tablet setup without getting connection interruptions to the server?
About 2-3 times a day i find the tablets lose connection to the server for one reason or another and the application need to be restarted.
One thing i did notice (and implemented an attempted solution today) is that when i lose connection to the server and open a command prompt and ping the server, the first two responses time out and then the connection comes back alive for the last 2 response. This happens consistently.
I wrote a small script today that will ping the server on a regular basis in an attempt to keep the connection alive, but i guess i’m wondering what are your experiences?
(also aware that the netgear router is probably lacking, but i would like to change that as a last resort)
Hmm, I have had an issue that is similar to this but with another pos I was dealing with a while back. In my assumption, your tablets are directly connecting to the server and have samba installed on the windows tablet (So your not doing RDP).
The way I resolved my issue was by fixing the static ip settings. You need to go change the range in which the router will hand out IP adresses to a range that will not include your ip of the tablets and server with samba. You also need to go in windows settings and set a static ip for each tablet.
You are correct in assuming each tablet has a local install of sambaPOS and connects directly to the sql instance on the server.
Have allready configured DHCP range and placed each device with static IP outside of DHCP range. I tried both with DHCP reservations as well as this option.
Oh okay, then Im out of ideas, sorry. This is why I like RDP. I have it setup at a restaurant through RDP and they love it. I have not had issues besides once over the last 6 months. Even then it just needed to be restarted because it was going extremely slow that day but its on a windows xp old pos machine so I dont think samba will encounter any issues. I will be posting my experience once I go live in a month or so.
You can setup secure and reliable Wifi Networks but it will not be with cheap off the shelf routers and simple setups. You have to plan it out and invest in solid hardware this includes signal boosters, repeaters, etc. It is not enough just to stick an off the shelf router in a room and expect it to run business critical wifi.
I could write a lengthy and informed post here on this but it would be better if you do your own research as you would retain more of it and form your own opinion.
My advice for anyone considering Wifi as an option (It certainly can be a good one) is to do your research and plan it well. Do not try and get by with cheap.
You should invest in the proper tools to test your coverage, peak and minimum performance, range, etc. Do your research on wifi by looking at what successful vendors are doing. Wifi is used every day as a reliable networking medium even in mission critical environments. The problem is people confuse good strong wifi with simple home setups… these are two completely different things.
RDP is certainly a great option if you want to invest the money into supporting it fully. Personally I find it much more affordable to invest into a strong wifi setup and not use RDP. Bottom line is it all comes down to your personal preference and how much time/money you wish to invest just be sure you do your homework and study it thoroughly.
Look for:
features like failover/failback, load balancing, secure VPN, VLAN support, IPv6 support, multiple encryption modes, dual-band WiFi broadcast (2.4 GHz or 5 GHz)
Good features to invest in. There are routers built specificly for business environments and they work quite well. Sometimes you simply may need to boost signal as it would not matter how good of a router you have.
I am certainly aware of the difficulties and complications of wifi setups (have worked in IT for 10+ years). However i am also aware of how easy it is to blame an issue on hardware only to change the hardware and still have the issue.
In your opinion is the #1 cause for wifi SQL connection interruption wireless hardware? Or are there other configurations that you find effect the performance?
Do you have a Wifi setup operating without any dropouts with Windows 8 tablets?
The answer can be several things. The tablets used may be causing some of it if they have cheaper modems. Every installation is different there is no real way to say what is the #1 cause.
I can not really provide you a definite answer as like I said it can be multiple issues, range, interference, weak modems on the tablets, router that cant keep up with traffic, too much traffic causing collision, and multiple other sources which I am sure your aware of already since you have been in IT.
Best approach is to investigate the breakdown, Watch it closely is it happening in specific areas more than others, is it specific times of day, is it a specific tablet that does it more than others. These are just a few things you can do.
Yes I have a strong Wifi setup that runs with very very good uptime and almost no SQL interuptions. I would not expect to build a system with 100% no interruptions as this is almost impossible. Wired solutions will always be more reliable however even they will have breaking points every now and then.
What I am trying to say is RDP is a great setup and it can be more foolproof vs wifi connection to the SQL server however even they will have drawbacks and the #1 is price. Its not cheap to setup a good RDP network. I am also saying you can build a good strong Wifi setup with minimal interruptions if you do your research, testing, and invest wisely.
BTW just something to think about… the #1 retailer in the world Walmart uses wifi extensively in its stores for mission critical systems. I can not comment on how they do it because I am sure very few people are trained as they have a highly specialized and sought after system that leads the industry. However I said it just to prove my point that wifi can and is used every day in mission critical environments.
@barchie I will answer your question but it more than likely would not help you with yours as every setup is different when it comes to WiFi.
I have virtually no dropouts. Its a single tablet in a working environment we are a small Dairy Bar sit down restaurant in southern USA. I use a MS Surface Pro 3 and I use a Cradlepoint MBR1400 router with an Amped Wireless High Power Wireless-N 600mW repeater.
I have power settings on the tablet set to performance and it sits in its doc most of the time so charge is not an issue. My server is a surface pro 2 that stays plugged in and its hooked via ethernet to the router.
I would also recommend a wifi spectrum analyzer it can show you how reliable your setup really is. Many times we can think we have good coverage signal strength looks good etc but without a true analyzer we can not know where any interference or periodic dead spots might be. An analyzer will help you identify trouble areas and you can plan around it, switching channels, installing repeaters, etc.
Expect to pay around $200+ for a good analyzer but its invaluable if your having issues with wifi performance. Can find used ones for $100-200
This is one I use its price is actually not bad compared to most on the market. I bought it when I used to do contracted installs. This thing saved me so much time and money considering it reduced the # of calls I had after an install saying their system was not reliable.
I have seen a lot of talk about cheap windows tablets so I will weigh in my opinion. Do your research on the modems they use. Some of the cheaper tablets put cheap cheap modems in them which results in really poor WiFi performance. I probably went with tablet thats little on expensive side… the core i3 Surface Pro 3… but I feel it was well worth the price. I am not saying you or anyone else should do the same but I do feel you should invest time into studying components that go into the tablets you buy for your business. Often cheap really does mean cheap but sometimes you can find a good gem in the rough.
BTW before I bought my Cradlepoint1400 I used a Linksys WRT1900 which was great but I find the Cradlepoint more reliable for my business so my Linksys is not at my home.
Hey Kendash, thanks for your great responses! Will definitely consider them all and post back my findings.
Any idea what the SQL tweaks are?
Starting to think that one of the tablets wifi could be a little dodgy (as you mentioned in your last post). The lenovo seems to be working fine while the unisurf seems to be dropping out.
Just an update as to where i am at with this stuff.
I ended up getting rid of the unisurf tablet and buying a toshiba hoping for some higher quality components. Still had a few dropouts on the toshiba, but not on the lenovo.
Have upgraded the router to a cisco srp 547w (spare that i had for testing). Used a mobile phone wifi analyzer to select the best channel and since then im down to 1 dropout a week.
Like Kendash recommended, don’t skimp on quality hardware! It would be good if there was a way of rating a devices wireless capability (both AP and tablets). Generally speaking vendors dont give too much information regarding AP hardware and it is very hard to know which wireless cards within the tablets are well performing ones.
For now ill just stick to name brands, Microsoft, Lenovo, Toshiba & Cisco.