Giftcard QR Code

Questions
22

Hi Bryan,

I want to be clear that I am using Square Register hardware and not the Square POS app.

When I scan the card I get the Invalid gift card scanned message shown in my original post, nothing appears in the card number entry box.

The scanner is working with other items, and if I scan the card from the order entry screen I get this expected message that the item does not exist with a sku of the card number.

igcsm2

Also, if I manually type in the card number, the balance and transactions show up as expected. See:

igcsm3
igcsm3754×704 719 KB

Is there anything else I should try or any more details you need?

Thanks!

23

That error means that the Register is looking for an item. Have you navigated to the gift card balance check section and is the cursor in the input field for the gift card? :slightly_smiling_face:

24

Hi Bryan,

I have, and that is where the first picture is from. I was only showing the product lookup to confirm for you that the bar code scanner is working.

I also have some more information that partially explains things, but that doesn’t really help me.

The first card number ending in 9251 is a 19 digit gift card I converted from our prior POS. I am able to lookup the 19 digit card on the web (where I got the bar code that is not working for me), and I am able to do transactions using the card number when keyed in.

As part of additional testing, I “borrowed” an unused physical gift card from a friend’s Square store, just to see how it worked. To my surprise, I was actually able to activate the card and it seems quite normal to me. I used your website to get a bar code for the 16-digit plastic card, and that bar code actually works with my scanner.

For more background, I have several thousand gift cards with balances, and I am trying to avoid staff having to key the 19 digits on every transaction. I am able to send customers a bar code to replace the plastic cards they have, but I need to retain the full 19 digit card numbers in case the email is not received or lost.

The only other difference aside from the card number length is that the “borrowed” card shows a gan_source of “SQUARE” and the card I converted has a gan_source of “OTHER”.

When I have a little more time, I will try a made up 16-digit converted card to see if the issue is with the card number length or the gan_source value.

In case it is helpful, here are the retrieved card details from the API.

Physical gift card "borrowed" from another Square Merchant.
Works either via magnetic swipe OR scan of sqgc://<gan> bar code
{
  "gift_card": {
    "id": "gftc:426c73e2272b4629a09ac787a17e06bf",
    "type": "PHYSICAL",
    "gan_source": "SQUARE",
    "state": "ACTIVE",
    "balance_money": {
      "amount": 100,
      "currency": "USD"
    },
    "gan": "7782730329105812",
    "created_at": "2023-03-05T18:00:05Z",
    "customer_ids": [
      "WZ6934N5NH5NASQQKNFH20EXPW"
    ]
  }
}

Gift card from prior POS that I loaded via API
{
  "gift_card": {
    "id": "gftc:bbb49f06facc4d2d8b175a3d18c39765",
    "type": "PHYSICAL",
    "gan_source": "OTHER",
    "state": "ACTIVE",
    "balance_money": {
      "amount": 1000,
      "currency": "USD"
    },
    "gan": "6050110010037709251",
    "created_at": "2023-01-30T18:21:38Z"
  }
}

Let me know if any additional information would be helpful.

Thanks

25

I had time to test this with a 16-digit card number, and as far as I can tell, it is the gan_source of “OTHER” that prevents the bar code from working.

The “SQUARE” gan_source is reserved not available to API callers, so I don’t think this is something I can fix on my own.

So, amending my question, this seems like a bug to me and I hoping it can be easily fixed. The fact that the Square website generates and displays the bar code implies to me that at least part of the team thought it should be able to work.

Is there perhaps another protocol/scheme other than 'sqgc://' (say 'othgc://') that might make the bar code work?

If fixing the Register application recognize these cards is not possible, is there anyone at Square who would be able to do a one-time change of the gan_source of to make my existing card inventory usable?

Any other ideas to get around the operational headache of having to hand key these long card numbers?

Thanks

26

What is an example gan that isn’t working. If you could provide one that has no value we can try and replicate. :slightly_smiling_face:

27

Hi Bryan,
UPDATE ///
I misread your response, sorry. Here is a GAN that has no value.
6050110010037709156
///
These GANs do not work via a bar code.
6050110010037709251 (19 digits)
6050110037709251 (16 digits)

I’ve also attached the bar codes from the balance lookup page.
igcsm4
igcsm5

Let me know if you need anything else.

Thanks!

28

I just tested the 19 digit gan with a scanner and the Square app and it worked as expected. I was able to scan the barcode to check the balance and complete a sale. :slightly_smiling_face:

29

Thanks Bryan!

Hmm. Could it be related to using the Square Register hardware rather than the app?

And the card is of type ‘OTHER’ and not ‘SQUARE’, correct?

This is potentially good news, but it is not what I’m seeing in my account.

Thanks

30

Yes, the card was of type OTHER when I tested. There shouldn’t be a difference between the app and Register. They should have the same behavior. :slightly_smiling_face:

31

Hi Bryan,

I feel badly for dragging this out for so long and taking up your time. My explanation is also going to be a bit detailed, so I apologize for that as well.

The scanner I am using is a Zebra/Symbol DS6878-SR. This is not listed as an officially supported model, but I purchased half a dozen of these based on forum posts from other customers saying they work well and have 2D (read QR) capabilities. I don’t think the issue is with the bar code scanner, but I want to provide complete information.

On the Square Register, the barcode scanner is recognized, but identified as a Symbol LS2208.

I don’t have a good Android (or iPad) handy to run the POS App, but I do have a Chromebook that is configured to run Android apps, and the app seems to perform normally on it.

But, the app does not recognize the barcode scanner as a compatible model, and treats it as a HID input device, which is useful, but different. I don’t know if there is any special configuration required to get the app on a Chromebook to recognize the barcode scanner?

When I scan the barcode on the Square Register, I keep getting the Invalid gift card scanned message.

On the POS app, if I click into the card number entry box, the scanner (acting as a HID) is able to populate the card digits, but it requires me to complete the sequence by tapping CONTINUE. The card number is successfully looked up in this manner.

On the Square Register, when I use the “good” card I borrowed from a friend, scanning the associated barcode with the DS-6878 does not require me to select the card number box and it retrieves the card without any further interactions from me.

As I have lots of hardware laying around, I was able to test a unsupported barcode scanner using Square Register, and it behave exactly like the app on my Chromebook (have to select card number entry, and digits are populated, etc.)

So I am not sure how to proceed.

Are you able to tell me a little more about your test configuration?
What barcode scanner are you using?
Does it work without having to select the card entry box?

Is there any more information I can share with you or other tests/troubleshooting you can recommend?

Thanks for bearing with me.

32

I hope I’m not getting this wrong, but most scanners just act as USB keyboards and type the scanned number as if it had been entered from a keyboard. So, at the end of the day, they’re no different than entering the number manually.

Based on that, it seems like the next step would be to know what your card is scanning as, and to compare that with the test card Bryan/Square is using?

33

Hi BrianC,

Thanks for chiming in.

I do think that you are wrong in that many scanners support both a HID (Human Input Device, aka “wedge”) mode that acts as you describe (emulating a keyboard) AND a “direct” mode that allows applications to read directly from the scanner without intermixing the character stream from “real” HID devices.

I am fairly confident that Square Register (and probably the Android app) recognize supported scanners and read them in “direct” mode.

This behavior is evidenced by what I described in terms of having to click into the card number input box for an unrecognized/unsupported scanner to transmit values as if they were from a keyboard.

The supported scanners do not appear to me to work in HID mode and I cannot use them to do things like scan a description into a text box. It looks to me like all supported scanner data is captured and evaluated to be a product lookup, a gift card, or some other supported action.

I’d be very happy to be wrong, and I would also be happy if Square abandoned supported scanners and read all input from the device attached HIDs, using a prescribed format (like “sqgc://”) to differentiate application commands from “normal” input.

I have compared (using HID mode on other devices) that the bar codes that work are essentially indistinguishable from the ones that don’t, differing only in the GAN value that is present.

Is there anything in particular you’d like to see?

Thanks!

1 Like
34

Dual purpose post here, for @Bryan-Square.

Unrelated to this thread, this reply should verify my ability to post to the forum.

Regarding this issue, are you able to share more details about the specifics of your configuration where the scanning worked? Do you have access to Square Register hardware to confirm it works on that platform for you?

Thanks

35

I’m reaching out to a team member that has access to a register. As for my configuration I used a Zebra TC520K. That’s a mobile device with a built in scanner. :slightly_smiling_face:

36

Thanks Bryan, I appreciate it.

While your team member is checking the scanner, would he be able to look at another issue I reported and never heard back on?

In testing with existing (non-Square) gift cards, I discovered that swiping an unsupported gift card forces the Square Register to lock up and display the Square logo screen. The only recovery is to cycle power on the Register.

I understand that foreign cards should not be recognized or allowed, but having a customer being able to take down the register, whether innocently or maliciously, does not seem like a good thing.

Thanks

1 Like
37

Hi Bryan,

I am having similar issue with gift cards. I am using Square Register and my scanner Symbol LS2208 is unable to scan digital gift cards. I can able to scan loyalty card to add customer but when I try to use gift cards I am getting similar message Invalid gift card scanned so it’s seems bugs for Square Register.
If you can look into it would be great as it seems like a pattern and square register issue.
Thanks
Chirag

1 Like
38

@tdgjrb What’s the unsupported card that’s causing the register to lock up? :slightly_smiling_face:

39

Hi Bryan,

Here are three cards that lock the Register.

Card #1

Track 2 ";6050110010037709251=250110110?"

Card#2

Track 1 "%B711967101819279^?"
Track2 ";711967101819279=?"

Card#3

Track 1 "%B6010566786640883^ROU/CMS^00010005000060213578           ?"
Track 2 ";6010566786640883=00010005000060213578?"

You probably know this, but quotes are not encoded on card and line breaks added for readability.

I can snail mail some to you if you need physical cards. PM me if you want me to do that.

Thanks

40

Hi Bryan,

Are you able to provide any update on progress for these related items?

  1. Bar code scanning of non-Square card numbers via Square Register
  2. Foreign gift card swiping locking Square Register

Thanks!

41

Hi. Were you able to find out how the magnetic strip should be encoded?