Frequently asked questions

General

How to download the latest version of Spice?

If you don't have Spice already installed, follow this guide to download and install Spice.

Otherwise, if you have it installed, use the 'Update' button in the Spice UI.

What version of Windows does Spice support?

Spice supports Windows 8 or newer.

Where is Spice installed?

Spice is installed at the following location (as well as all installed updates): %APPDATA%\Spice\bins, which is

C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Spice\bins

It is located here because it is installed for the Windows user, instead of being installed globally.

Can Spice be installed for multiple users on the same machine?

Spice can be installed for multiple Windows users on the same POS machine; however, only one instance can be running at a time.

Where are Spice's logs stored?

Spice's log files can be found at this location: %APPDATA%\Spice\logs, which is

C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Spice\logs

Each day, a new log file is added here. If the file reaches the limit of 10 MB, an additional log file will be added for the day.

How long are Spice's logs stored for?

Each log file is stored for 14 days before it is automatically deleted.

EFTPOS pairing

After following the Install and pair guide, you may have some of these frequently asked questions.

How to check if Spice is paired with an EFTPOS terminal?

In the Spice UI > Status tab, if the terminal is paired you will see a 'Connected' status. You will also see the Terminal ID which identifies the paired terminal.

What happens when the wrong payment provider is selected?

This will cause auto-address resolution to not work properly.

Why don't I see any options within the 'Payment provider' drop-down?

In the Spice UI > EFTPOS terminal pairing form, if no options display within the Payment provider drop-down, you should contact us on your dedicated Slack channel or at [email protected] and tell us the issue. If you are located outside Australia, please also tell us which country you are located in.

Why is pairing displaying 'Paired but trying to connect'?

This is often caused by entering incorrect EFTPOS terminal pairing details. You should unpair Gecko Bank then retry pairing it with:

Payment provider as Gecko Demo Bank, and
Developer mode disabled.

Can Spice pair with multiple terminals at once?

This is possible when using Pay at table.

What happens if the local IP address of a POS changes while it is paired?

If Auto address resolution is enabled, then if the local IP address of the paired POS changes, its new IP address will be found automatically. The POS will remain paired but will temporarily disconnect before connecting again. Learn more

How to troubleshoot a pairing issue?

If pairing fails, you should try the following to identify the issue.

1. Check that you have entered all details correctly.

Make sure you are entering the correct EFTPOS terminal pairing details into Spice.

Check that the POS ID is 16 characters or less and does not contain spaces or special characters.

2. Check that the devices are on the same network.

The POS machine and Gecko Bank need to be connected to the same network (e.g. the same Wi-Fi network). To check this, you can ping Gecko Bank from your computer by running a command such as telnet 192.168.0.1 8080

3. Check that they are on the same subnetwork.

The POS machine and EFTPOS terminal need to also be connected to the same subnetwork, if applicable.

4. Check that your network is stable.

If the network is unstable (it is intermittently failing), this can affect pairing. To detect this, check the logs for disconnections and failed ping tests.

5. Check your firewall and antivirus software.

Firewall and antivirus software can sometimes block Spice from sending and receiving requests. This software may be running on your local computer and/or router.

Importantly, check that Spice's port is not blocked — it is port 8282 by default.

6. Check the version of Spice and Gecko Bank.

We recommend upgrading to the latest version of Spice and Gecko Bank.

In the Spice settings, check if you are using the latest version.

For Gecko Bank, you can check for the latest version in Google Play.

7. Still unable to pair?

If you are still not able to identify the issue, please contact us on your dedicated Slack channel or at [email protected] and describe it to us.

Transactions

After following the Transactions guides, you may have some of these frequently asked questions.

Why are all the transactions not appearing in the Transactions tab?

In the Spice UI, the Transactions tab only stores the 10 most recent transactions.

Furthermore, transactions made by other Windows users on the same POS machine and those made by other computers on the network will not be displayed.

How to make transaction receipts print from the EFTPOS terminal?

In the Spice settings, you can enable the settings Print customer receipt from terminal, Print merchant receipt copy, and Confirm customer signature on Terminal.

Where are transactions logged?

Transactions are logged in the standard log files, amongst the other logs: %APPDATA%\Spice\logs, which is

C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Spice\logs

But for easy access to the last 10 transactions, you can use this file: %APPDATA%\Spice\transaction_log.json

Should settlements be integrated with my POS?

This is not required since Spice's UI gives merchants the ability to manage their settlements. However, you can choose to integrate this using the POST /v1/settlement and POST /v1/settlement_enquiry endpoints.

Why does the settlement enquiry receipt say 'Settlement not available'?

This means that no transactions were settled on the selected date.

What is the 'schema_name' of transactions paid using Afterpay?

Afterpay transactions have schema_name: "afterpay" in their transaction response. This is because Afterpay has its own Bank Identification Number (BIN) in Australia and New Zealand. (In Australia: 523163, and in New Zealand: 523163.)

The afterpay schema name allows these transactions to be distinguished from other transactions, and the merchant acquirer can use this for their reporting data.

What happens if internet connection is lost during a transaction?

If there is a network outage or internet disconnection during a transaction, Spice will recover the transaction and return the result.

Why is the transaction pop-up UI not appearing?

You will need to disable the HeadlessTransactions setting. Open the file: %APPDATA%\Spice\spi.json, which is C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Spice\spi.json. Change HeadlessTransactions to false.

Signature transactions

After following the Signature transaction guide, you may have some of these frequently asked questions.

What causes a transaction to require a signature?

Whether a transaction requires a signature is determined by the customer's card or bank account. It is not determined by the merchant or Spice. For instance, international cards often require a signature when used overseas.

Does the Accept/Reject pop-up have a time-out?

No, the Spice UI will show the Accept/Reject pop-up indefinitely until the merchant selects one of the two options.

Once a merchant accepts/rejects a signature, where can this status be found in the Spice API?

During a signature transaction, the merchant will click Accept or Reject in Spice to confirm the customer's signature. The status of which of these they selected is found in the response from the signature transaction which contains a host_response_text field of either SIGNATURE APPROVED or SIGNATURE DECLINED.

This same transaction response can be retrieved at a later time by calling the relevant GET endpoint with the transaction's posRefId, e.g. GET /v1/purchase?posRefId=aa2bc19f-c546-421c-sa82-2294fc25a13e

How to handle 'Confirm customer signature on Terminal'?

No additional logic is needed for your Spice integration to handle the Confirm customer signature on Terminal setting (which is found in Spice settings). This is because when this setting is enabled, the EFTPOS terminal handles the signature workflow, allowing Spice to handle it as a normal transaction.

When this setting is enabled and a signature is required for a transaction, a 'signature required' response will not be returned. Instead, a standard transaction response will be returned (but only after the EFTPOS terminal completes the signature workflow).

Pre-authorisation

Can multiple changes be made to a pre-auth?

Yes, you can top up, partially cancel, and extend a pre-auth multiple times. For example, if there is a pre-auth of $200 and you add a top-up of $20, then another top-up of $20, the pre-auth amount becomes $240.

Can multiple pre-auths be opened at the same time?

Yes, but instead of opening a second pre-auth on the same customer card, it is better to top up the existing pre-auth with more funds.

Pay at table

After following the Pay at table guide, you may have some of these frequently asked questions.

Which EFTPOS terminals does Pay at table support?

Pay at table can be used with all Android terminals (e.g. Verifone T650p) and all Classic VAA terminals (e.g. Verifone VX690). Learn more about supported terminals.

Why are EFTPOS terminals unable to make transactions when Pay at table is enabled?

When Pay at table is enabled in Spice, all paired terminals are only able to make Pay at table transactions, hence they are unable to make standard transactions such as payments, refunds, and cashouts.

However, it is possible to make both standard and Pay at table transactions from an EFTPOS terminal by using two POS machines. Spice must be running on both, with Pay at table enabled on one of them. The terminal must be paired with both Spice instances.

How to troubleshoot being unable to retrieve a bill from the table server?

After making a Pay at table transaction, if your Spice integration is unable to retrieve a bill from the table, you should try the following to identify the issue.

1. Check that Spice is connected to the POS.

To do this, perform a ping test.

2. Check the transaction histories.

Compare Spice's transaction history with that of the EFTPOS terminal to see if there are any differences.

3. Check that Spice is paired with the terminal.

Learn how to check if Spice is paired with an EFTPOS terminal.

4. Retry the transaction.

Try retrieving the bill from the table server again and check if it appears in Spice.

5. Still unable to retrieve the bill?

This means that the issue is likely being caused by the Pay at table software or the POS's software, and you should troubleshoot both of these.

Physical terminals

What to do if my terminal displays a 'Tamper' warning?

Physical terminals display a 'Tamper' warning as a security feature to prevent theft. If this is displayed, you will need to send it back to its source for maintenance.

Or, you can easily switch to using Gecko Bank as your test terminal. We recommend using it instead of a physical terminal. Learn more