PIING
Reading Hardware and NFCTroubleshooting taps
Hardware and NFC
- Tap Box overview
- Install a Tap Box
- NFC readers and cards
- While you wait for Apple's tap entitlement
- Troubleshooting taps
- Scan-in points
- What staff see at POS
In this guide
- 1. The reader appears offline
- 2. The reader is online but does not recognise the credential
- 3. The visit appears against the wrong store
- 4. The tap is accepted but no second visit appears
- 5. The visit exists but nothing happened downstream
- 6. The customer is still not recognised
- What to send support
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Hardware and NFC 5 / 7
Troubleshooting taps
Separate reader connectivity, credential linking, store assignment and downstream delivery so a failed tap is fixed at the right layer.
A tap crosses four layers: the physical reader, its Piing credential, the customer's card or pass, and the configured actions after the visit. Check them in that order so a CRM issue is not mistaken for broken hardware.
The reader appears offline
- Confirm the supplied power and network connections using the device sheet.
- Open Hardware & check-ins, then Stores and readers and check that the unit is enabled.
- Send Test heartbeat to the correct reader ID.
- If the token was recently rotated, confirm the unit was reprovisioned with the new one. The previous token no longer authenticates it.
A successful heartbeat proves connectivity and identity. It does not prove that a customer credential is linked.
The reader is online but does not recognise the credential
Test a known linked physical NFC card first.
- If the physical card fails, confirm it is assigned and active under Physical NFC cards.
- If the card works but an iPhone does not, check Apple VAS entitlement, certificate, Pass Type ID, pass payload and reader configuration.
- Do not use a Google Wallet phone tap as a hardware test. Piing's current Google Wallet route is QR.
- Keep the card or phone steady in the intended read area and remove any physical obstruction identified in the reader's installation sheet.
The visit appears against the wrong store
Open Stores and readers and inspect the reader assignment. Move it to the correct Piing store before the next test. If Shopify POS context is expected, also confirm that the POS location maps to that store.
Past records retain the store written at the time. Correcting the assignment fixes future visits.
The tap is accepted but no second visit appears
Piing has a 60-second duplicate guard and can apply store cooldown or daily limits. Check the original record and its status before repeating the tap. A deliberately suppressed duplicate is different from a reader failure.
The visit exists but nothing happened downstream
The reader has done its job once the check-in exists. Then inspect the configured destination:
- confirm the integration connection is active;
- confirm that the event or route is enabled;
- for loyalty points, confirm that Piing reward relay is enabled and that this visit trigger has a value;
- inspect integration delivery health for success, retry or failure;
- verify that the field or Wallet update is selected in the relevant settings.
Connecting a loyalty provider for balance reads does not automatically authorise Piing to award points.
The customer is still not recognised
Open Pass holders or Physical NFC cards and verify that the identifier belongs to the intended customer. For digital passes, use the QR at a kiosk to determine whether the pass itself resolves. For a physical card, use the built-in test action.
What to send support
If the issue remains, contact us with:
- the reader ID and internal position label;
- the Piing store;
- the time of the test and its timezone;
- whether it was a physical card, Apple VAS or QR test;
- the customer or card record used;
- the heartbeat result and whether a check-in row was created.
That is enough to separate device, identity, store and delivery issues without exposing a reader access token.
Related guides
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Scan-in points
Use the stable store-specific QR and optional NFC tag so customers can check in on their own phone with no tablet or reader.
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