Shift & Day End
Open and close register shifts, organize cash drawers, count cash, configure automatic day end, and customize shift closing receipts.
- Shift & Day-End Fundamentals
- How Shifts and Day End Work Together
- How to Use Multiple Shifts in One Business Day
- How Business Dates Work Across Midnight
- Cash Drawer Setup
- What Is a Cash Drawer in RepairNest POS?
- How to Add or Edit a Cash Drawer
- How to Use One Drawer on Multiple Registers
- Opening & Running a Shift
- How to Select a Cash Drawer
- How to Open a Shift
- How to Enter and Verify Starting Cash
- How to Review an Open Shift
- Closing Shifts & Day End
- How to Close a Shift
- How to Handle Counted Cash, Leaving Cash, and Differences
- How to Close Day End Manually
- How to Configure Automatic Day End
- How to Choose Manual or Automatic Day End
- Denominations & Cash Counting
- Shift Receipts & Printing
- How to Enable Automatic Shift Receipt Printing
- How to Customize the Shift Closing Receipt
- What Can Appear on a Shift Receipt?
- Shift & Day End: Complete Guide
Shift & Day-End Fundamentals
Understand business days, multiple shifts, and the relationship between shifts, cash drawers, and day end.
How Shifts and Day End Work Together
A shift records activity for a cash drawer during a working period. A day end groups every shift and invoice for one business date and then locks that date when it is closed.
Typical sequence
- Choose a cash drawer.
- Open a shift and enter the starting cash.
- Process sales, refunds, expenses, and other register activity.
- Count the cash and close the shift.
- After all shifts are closed, review and close day end.
When the first shift opens and no day end is active, the system creates a new day end automatically. Additional shifts opened during that business date belong to the current day end.
How to Use Multiple Shifts in One Business Day
You can run more than one shift under the same day end. This is useful for morning and evening teams, employee handoffs, or separate cash drawers.
Example
A store may open a morning shift, close it at the staff handoff, and open an evening shift without closing the business day. Both shifts remain part of the same day end.
Best practice
- Close the outgoing shift and count its cash.
- Record the amount left in the drawer for the next shift.
- Open the next shift using that amount or a fresh count.
- Close day end only after every shift for the business date is closed.
The day may last 12 hours, 24 hours, or cross midnight. Keep shifts under the intended business date until operations for that day are complete.
How Business Dates Work Across Midnight
The POS uses the active business date, not simply the clock changing at midnight, to organize the day. This prevents late-night sales from being separated from the store day they belong to.
Choose a closing routine
- Manual day end: a manager reviews the day and closes it when operations are complete.
- Automatic day end: the system attempts closure at the configured local time.
Your location time zone controls the schedule. Set the correct time zone in General Settings before relying on automatic day end.
Do not close day end while a shift is still open. The system requires open shifts to be resolved first.
Cash Drawer Setup
Create cash drawers and choose whether registers use separate drawers or share one drawer and shift.
What Is a Cash Drawer in RepairNest POS?
A cash drawer is the accounting container used by a shift. It identifies which pool of cash and register activity employees are opening, using, and closing.
A drawer is not permanently limited to one computer. You can configure:
- Individual drawers: each register or workstation uses its own cash drawer and shift.
- A shared drawer: two or more registers select the same drawer and operate within the same drawer-based shift.
Choose the arrangement that matches how cash is physically handled. Separate drawers provide clearer individual accountability; a shared drawer is convenient when several terminals use one physical till.
How to Add or Edit a Cash Drawer
- Open Settings, then select Shift.
- In Cash Drawer, expand the cash drawer list.
- Select New to add a drawer.
- Enter a clear drawer name, such as “Front Counter” or “Register 2.”
- Enter the Default Cash Open amount, if your store normally begins with a standard float.
- Add a description when it helps employees choose the correct drawer.
- Save your changes.
To edit a drawer, use its edit action, update the details, and save. Keep at least one cash drawer available.
How to Use One Drawer on Multiple Registers
- Create a drawer that represents the shared physical till.
- At each participating register, open the shift or drawer selection screen.
- Select the same cash drawer name.
- Confirm that employees understand they are contributing activity to one shared shift.
All participating computers can use the selected drawer; the setup is not restricted to one computer and one drawer. At closing, count the shared physical cash once and close the drawer’s shift according to your store procedure.
Important: If separate accountability is needed, create and select different drawers instead of sharing one.
Opening & Running a Shift
Select a drawer, open a shift, enter starting cash, and monitor shift activity.
How to Select a Cash Drawer
- Open the register or the Shift area.
- If no cash drawer is selected, choose Select Cash Drawer.
- Pick the drawer that matches the physical till your register will use.
- Continue to Open Shift.
If several computers should share one shift, select the same drawer on each. If each register must balance independently, select a different drawer for each register.
You can change the available drawer records in Settings → Shift → Cash Drawer. Confirm the drawer before processing sales so activity is recorded in the intended shift.
How to Open a Shift
- Select the correct cash drawer.
- Choose Open Shift.
- Review the notice showing whether the shift will join the current day end or create a new day end.
- Choose Count Cash to enter quantities by denomination, or Enter Total to type one starting amount.
- Review the starting total.
- Submit to open the shift.
If a current day end is open, the new shift is attached to it. If none exists, opening the shift creates a new day end. The register must have an open shift before checkout can be completed.
How to Enter and Verify Starting Cash
Starting cash is the float available when the shift begins.
Count by denomination
- Choose Count Cash.
- Enter the quantity of each bill and coin.
- Check the calculated total.
Enter one total
- Choose Enter Total.
- Type the full starting amount.
The open-shift screen may show how much the previous shift ended with. Compare it with the physical cash before opening. If the amounts do not agree, recount and follow your manager’s cash-difference procedure rather than carrying an unexplained difference forward.
How to Review an Open Shift
Use the Shift area to confirm the active drawer and review the current shift before closing it. Shift summaries can include sales, payment methods, refunds, expenses, purchases, open invoices, category totals, and cash activity, depending on your permissions and receipt layout.
During the shift
- Confirm all register activity is being recorded under the intended drawer.
- Use notes when your store requires an explanation for cash activity.
- Review open invoices and unresolved transactions before closing.
- If the drawer is shared, coordinate with every register using it before starting the close.
Closing Shifts & Day End
Count the drawer, close shifts, review day-end totals, and complete or automate day end.
How to Close a Shift
- Finish or pause register activity for the selected cash drawer.
- Choose Close Shift.
- Count the physical cash using the denomination fields.
- Review Expected Cash, Counted, and the calculated Difference, when your permissions allow those totals.
- Enter a note if a difference or handoff needs explanation.
- Enter Leaving Cash—the amount that will remain in the drawer.
- Review Cash in Hand, then submit the shift close.
If permitted, the open-drawer control can be used from the closing screen. Recount before confirming an overage or shortage.
How to Handle Counted Cash, Leaving Cash, and Differences
Counted is the physical cash found in the drawer. Expected Cash is the system calculation. Their difference identifies an overage, shortage, or balanced drawer.
Leaving Cash is the portion retained in the drawer for the next shift. The remaining amount becomes cash in hand for removal or deposit according to your store procedure.
When there is a difference
- Count the drawer again.
- Verify that every denomination quantity is correct.
- Review refunds, cash expenses, payouts, and other shift activity.
- Add a concise closing note when required.
- Escalate unexplained differences according to store policy.
How to Close Day End Manually
Day end finalizes the entire business date, including all shifts and invoices assigned to it.
- Close every open shift for the business date.
- Choose Close Day End.
- Review the business date, shift count, invoice count, sales, expected cash, and status.
- Resolve any open-shift warning. A day end with no completed shift cannot be closed.
- Confirm the day-end close.
- Wait for the success message. The financial lock becomes active immediately; historical records may finish processing safely in the background.
After closure, you can begin the next business day by opening a new shift.
How to Configure Automatic Day End
- Open Settings → Shift.
- Find Automation.
- Enable Auto Close Day End.
- Select the automatic close time. Times are available in 15-minute intervals.
- Save the settings.
The selected time follows the POS location’s configured time zone. Choose a time after normal store operations are complete.
Important: Automatic day end does not remove the need for correct shift procedures. Employees should close and count shifts normally. Open shifts must be resolved before day end can close successfully.
How to Choose Manual or Automatic Day End
Use manual day end when a manager must review totals, confirm every shift, and decide exactly when the business date is finalized. This is best for stores with changing hours or late transactions.
Use automatic day end when the store follows a reliable nightly schedule and needs protection if an employee forgets the final close.
Recommended setup
- Keep normal shift-close responsibilities in place.
- Schedule automatic day end after the latest expected closing time.
- Set the correct location time zone.
- Review the next morning if automatic closure could not complete because a shift remained open.
Denominations & Cash Counting
Customize denominations and use them for consistent opening and closing cash counts.
How to Add, Remove, or Reorder Cash Denominations
- Open Settings → Shift.
- Go to Denominations.
- Enter a positive bill or coin value and select Add Denomination.
- Drag denominations into the order employees should count them.
- Use the delete action to remove denominations your store does not use.
- Save the settings.
Duplicate and zero or negative values are not accepted. The default list includes common bills and coins, but you can adapt it for your country and store process.
How to Count Cash by Denomination
Denomination counting reduces arithmetic errors and creates a repeatable opening and closing routine.
- Open the cash-count screen.
- Enter the physical quantity for each bill and coin—not its total value.
- Review the calculated amount for every row.
- Compare the grand total with the expected or handoff amount.
- Recount any denomination that looks incorrect before submitting.
The same configured denomination list is used wherever shift cash is counted. Remove unused values to keep the screen focused for employees.
Shift Receipts & Printing
Enable automatic printing and customize the information and order on shift closing receipts.
How to Enable Automatic Shift Receipt Printing
- Open Settings → Shift.
- In Automation, enable Auto Print Receipts.
- Save the settings.
When enabled, the shift receipt is printed automatically as part of the shift-close workflow, using the configured receipt printer and current shift receipt layout.
Before relying on automatic printing, confirm the device, printer connection, paper, and receipt layout. The closing record remains important even when a printer requires attention.
How to Customize the Shift Closing Receipt
- Open Settings → Shift.
- Find Receipt Design and choose Customize Receipt.
- Add the sections and individual totals your store needs.
- Drag items into the preferred printing order.
- Remove items that do not belong on the closing receipt.
- Review the receipt preview.
- Save the layout, then save Shift settings.
The default layout is designed to work for most stores. Customize it only when your team needs additional detail, a different order, or a shorter closeout receipt.
What Can Appear on a Shift Receipt?
The receipt designer can include headings and design elements, shift and register details, and detailed operating totals.
Common choices
- Shift status, shift number, register name, date, and time
- Opening detail, closing detail, starting cash, counted cash, cash in hand, and cash difference
- Sales, revenue, net sales, taxable and non-taxable sales, discounts, refunds, tax, surcharge, and income
- Payment methods, category sales, open invoices, expenses, purchases, no-sale count, and serialized transactions
Include enough information for the employee or manager to verify the shift without making the receipt unnecessarily long. Review the preview after every major layout change.
Shift & Day End: Complete Guide
Use shifts to track register activity and cash accountability during part of a business day. Use day end to finalize the whole business date after its shifts are finished.
In this book
- Choose individual or shared cash drawers.
- Open a shift with counted or manually entered starting cash.
- Close a shift, record leaving cash, and review differences.
- Close the business day manually or schedule automatic day end.
- Manage denominations and customize the shift closing receipt.
A calendar day and a business day do not have to match exactly. A store may operate a 12-hour day, a 24-hour day, or across midnight. The POS groups activity under the active business date and its day end.