Store Commerce app for mobile platforms
This article describes how to get started using the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce Store Commerce apps for Android and iOS.
The Dynamics 365 Commerce mobile apps for Android and iOS make the process of deploying full-featured mobile point of sale (POS) devices for your retail environment straightforward and simple. The Store Commerce mobile apps deliver nearly all the capabilities and advantages of the Store Commerce app for Windows, and perform well on a wide range of iOS and Android phones and tablets. The Store Commerce mobile apps can be installed directly from the Apple and Google Play app stores, and don't require a developer to create a new application package to deploy or update them.
The Store Commerce mobile apps retain full functional parity with current Retail hybrid apps. In addition, Store Commerce for iOS includes support for a dedicated hardware station, so that iOS devices can communicate with networked payment terminals, receipt printers, and cash drawers without requiring the deployment of a shared hardware station.
Important
The Store Commerce apps for Windows, Android, and iOS are the next generation POS applications for Dynamics 365 Commerce. The Store Commerce apps offer numerous improvements over their predecessors while retaining full functional and feature parity. Microsoft will deprecate MPOS and the Retail Hybrid apps for Android and iOS in late 2023, and recommends that you use the Store Commerce apps for Windows, Android, and iOS and Store Commerce for web for all new POS deployments. Existing customers should plan to migrate from MPOS and the Retail hybrid apps to Store Commerce. For more information, see Migrate Modern POS to Store Commerce.
App architecture
The Store Commerce mobile apps use the same topology as the Store Commerce app for Windows when deployed in hybrid mode. The Store Commerce mobile apps are shell applications that render Store Commerce for web directly from the Commerce Scale Unit (CSU), and connect to Headless Commerce and Commerce headquarters via the CSU. The shell application model enables Store Commerce apps to support a dedicated hardware station for direct integration with a payment terminal, printer, cash drawer, and other peripherals. You don't have to set up a shared hardware station to use hardware devices.
To update a Store Commerce mobile app, just update the CSU. All new POS functionality and features are automatically picked up by the app. For more information about how to update the CSU, see Apply updates and extensions to Commerce Scale Unit (cloud).
The shell apps are serviced through app store updates. When a minor version reaches general availability (GA), Microsoft publishes it to the app stores. Microsoft might also publish patches between minor version updates to release high-priority bug fixes.
Feature parity with Store Commerce for Windows
Important
The Dynamics 365 Payment Connector for Adyen doesn't currently support Store Commerce for iOS with local network architecture configurations.
The following table compares the capabilities of the Store Commerce app across Windows, Android, and iOS platforms.
| Feature | Windows | Android | iOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dedicated hardware station | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Dedicated hardware station extensibility to support external payment connectors | Yes | Planned for 2024 Wave 2 | No |
| Shared hardware station | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Communication with networked peripherals (payment terminal, printer, and cash drawer) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| OLE for Point of Sale (OPOS) peripherals through a local hardware station | Yes | No | No |
| Offline mode | Yes | No | No |
| Adyen cloud architecture | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Adyen local architecture | Yes | Yes | No |
Prerequisites
The Store Commerce mobile apps require the CSU and Commerce headquarters components of Dynamics 365 Commerce. The following table lists the minimum operating system (OS) and CSU versions that are required by the Android and iOS mobile apps.
| Prerequisite | Android | iOS |
|---|---|---|
| OS version | 8.1 | 17.4 |
Install the app
You can install Store Commerce mobile apps directly from the Google Play store or Apple App Store.
The Android app (.apk) packages can be downloaded from the Shared asset library in Microsoft Dynamics Lifecycle Services.
Access preview builds
To access Android Store Commerce preview builds for beta testing, go to Android app testing at the Google Play Store. To access iOS Store Commerce preview builds for beta testing, go to Join the Store Commerce beta - TestFlight on your iOS device.
Note
- Whenever a new release reaches GA, it supercedes the previous version. For hot fixes, Microsoft recommends that you use the latest version. Once a current version reaches GA, there aren't any new releases until the next public preview date.
- Android and iOS apps are backward and forward compatible. Customers can always update to the latest version regardless of the CSU version.
- To test new versions of the apps before they are pushed to production, customers should configure policies through Google Play Store and Apple App Store to manage automatic updates.
Device and register setup
Before a register can be activated on the Store Commerce mobile apps, you must set up a device and a register in Commerce headquarters. For more information, see Devices and registers.
Device setup
To create and set up a new device, follow these steps.
In Commerce headquarters, go to Retail and Commerce > Channel setup > POS setup > Devices.
Create a new device, and select either Modern POS - Android or Modern POS - iOS as the application type, depending on the mobile app that you're deploying.
Note
The Modern POS - Android and Modern POS - iOS application types are also used to deploy the current hybrid apps for Android and iOS. After the deprecation of MPOS, the labels for these application types will be updated to Store Commerce - Android and Modern POS - iOS.
Register setup
You can create a new register and associate it with the device that you created, or you can associate an existing register with your new device. For more information about registers, see Create and associate registers.
Screen layout setup
If you're repurposing a screen layout included in the demo data that is provided with your Dynamics 365 Commerce license, the Store Commerce app automatically selects the included compact layout if the screen resolution of your device is less than 480 × 853 pixels in the portrait orientation. However, if you're creating a screen layout from scratch, or if your mobile device uses a larger resolution than the compact layout supports, ensure that you create a resolution and associated button grids that are appropriate for the phone or tablet that you plan to deploy to. For more information about screen layout configurations, see POS user interface visual configurations.
After devices and registers are configured, in Commerce headquarters go to Retail and Commerce > Retail and Commerce ID > Distribution Schedules and run the registers job.
Activate a device
To activate a device on a Store Commerce mobile app, follow these steps.
- Open the app on the mobile device.
- Enter the Store Commerce for web (formerly Cloud POS, or CPOS) URL, which you can find on the environment details page in Lifecycle Services, or on the Channel profiles page in Commerce headquarters (Retail and Commerce > Channel setup > Channel profiles).
- Sign in by using the credentials of a worker who has permission to manage devices.
- Select the store that is associated with the register that you created or reused in Commerce headquarters.
- Select the register that you associated with the device that you created in Commerce headquarters.
- Your device should now be activated. You can sign in to the register by using the operator ID and password of a worker who is associated with the store that you selected.
For more information about device activation, see Activate Store Commerce using guided activation.
Peripheral setup
The Store Commerce apps for Android and iOS can communicate with most commonly used peripherals that use network protocols for connectivity. Peripherals that require OLE for OPOS drivers or direct USB connection typically require a shared hardware station. For more information about network peripherals, see Support for network peripherals.
Receipt printer
The network protocols for Epson and Star printers enable receipt printing on mobile devices running Store Commerce app. For more information, see Support for network peripherals.
Cash drawer
Cash drawers that are connected through an Epson or Star receipt printer's drawer kick (DK) port are supported. The cash drawer configuration in the hardware profile is similar to that of the receipt printer to which it's connected. Specify "Network" for the Drawer setting, specify "Epson" or "Star" for the Device name, and then in the Cash drawer setting in the register's IP Addresses view, enter the printer's IP address into the IP address field.
Barcode scanner
The following options for barcode and quick-response (QR) code scanning are available for the Store Commerce app for mobile devices:
Camera-based barcode scanning - native barcode scanning: The Store Commerce app for Android and iOS can scan barcodes and QR codes with the rear-facing camera. This out-of-box solution supports all workflows where a barcode scanner can be used to capture product, customer, or receipt data.
To enable native scanning in the Store Commerce app, in headquarters open the hardware profile for the register used on the mobile device, and then set the Scanner setting for the first scanner section to Device. When done, run the Registers (1090) job to realize the change in POS. To run the register job manually, in headquarters go to Retail and Commerce > Retail and Commerce IT > Distribution schedules, in the left pane select 1090 Registers, and then on the Action Pane select Run now.
To ensure that everything works as expected, confirm that the shell application on the device is updated to Commerce version 10.0.40 (from Microsoft Lifecycle Services for Android devices), CSU is updated to version 9.50 (10.0.40), and Commerce headquarters is updated to version 10.0.40.
If the scan icon appears but the camera is blocked, confirm that you have camera permissions turned on for the app on your device.
Optical scanner: Handheld devices that are equipped with an optical barcode scanner usually include a location in settings or a utility that configures the scanner. Enabling barcode scanning for the Store Commerce app with one of these devices typically only requires that the optical scanner is configured for keyboard wedge mode, and that a newline character is appended to the decoded output.
Peripheral scanner: Barcode scanners that attach to mobile devices as a sled and communicate via Bluetooth have been successfully used with the Store Commerce app to scan barcodes and QR codes.
Payment terminal
See the Payment terminals and PIN pads section of the Retail Peripherals help topic for information about how to connect Store Commerce mobile app to a payment terminal.
Additional resources
Choose between Store Commerce app and Store Commerce for web