Reasons to Upgrade to Version 2.02 of Microsoft RMS

Even with the new Retail Management Hero software being available at low cost to Microsoft RMS users, several stores using RMS version 2 have actually opted to only upgrade to RMS version 2.02 for the time being. As RMS version 2.02 (with service pack 5) will be supported through  July 2021 (per this page on the Microsoft website: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/lifecycle?p1=17483&forceorigin=esmc), here are some reasons why you may want to just upgrade to version 2.02 and wait on upgrading to Retail Management Hero for the time being (which could be a few months or a few years depending on your preference):

• You have multiple add-ons (shopping cart, loyalty program, gift card program, etc) in RMS that will not yet work with Retail Management Hero
• You have already invested in EMV/Chip Card equipment like Card Defender
• You have passed all PCI compliance testing
• You have remained current on annual software maintenance or are willing to pay a lapse fee to become current on software maintenance
• You are not using Windows XP
• You are not using Windows 10
• Everything is churning along just fine
• You are not receiving any error messages like 941 errors
• The RMS database is not near or at the SQL size limits

Obviously this is not a complete list as everyone's situation is different. The point is that you may want to stick with your current version of RMS, upgrade to version 2.02, or go ahead and upgrade to Retail Management Hero.

Just as situations vary, costs vary as well. Of the last 8 stores using RMS that I helped update to version 2.02 of RMS, the costs ranged from $330 to $1700.

Of course, future industry changes may prompt a "sooner than later" upgrade to Retail Management Hero but, for now, these stores are set through 2021 (but most are looking at upgrading to Retail Management Hero within the next 12 months).

Contact me at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com for more detailed assistance.

Re-sellers and Referral Spiffs

Interested in Making Some Money?  Here are the various programs offered by myself and RITE:

Spiffs and Referral Fees:
I'm always encouraged by the number of retailers that refer other retailers to me. As you know, a referral carries a huge amount of "street cred" and saves me a lot of time and energy when it comes to prospecting. If you refer a retailer to me, and they purchase point of sale hardware or software from me, I'm willing to do a 50/50 commission split with you as my way of thanking you for the referral.

The only stipulation is that the sale must include something more than just service work, I must be the salesperson/service tech, and the business be located within the states of Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Idaho, Utah, Montana and Wyoming.

This offer does not apply to RITE re-sellers - see below.

RITE Re-seller Program: RITE RMS Add-Ons and Card Defender:
At RITE, we actually have a re-seller program in place when it comes to our numerous plug-ins for the Microsoft RMS point of sale software as well as our Card Defender EMV/Chip Card solution for Microsoft RMS.

For our RMS plug-ins, you must be a Microsoft RMS Partner to qualify for re-seller pricing.  A RITE re-seller application can be found here: http://rite.us/Portals/0/Downloads/Forms/RITEResellerAgreement.pdf

More information on our RITE RMS plug-ins re-seller program, and the actual plus-ins can be found here: http://rite.us/Partners.aspx

Card Defender Re-Seller Program:
Businesses who have established themselves as showing an interest in multiple Card Defender sales can enjoy a spiff or rebate on each Card Defender sale. The minimum number of Card Defender sales is three with the spiff growing as more Card Defender sales are closed and installed.  As details vary depending on your experience with technology sales, please contact us directly at 1-888-267-7483 or sales@rite.us to discuss in more detail.

I can also be reached directly at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com

Retail Point of Sale Service and Sales - Utah

A quick note that I'm headed to perform some sales and service work in the following areas and would be happy to swing by your retail business to offer some no cost retail point of sale advice (any service work would need to be scheduled ahead of time):

• Salt Lake City, Utah
• Ogden, Utah
• Logan, Utah
• Layton, Utah
• Lehi, Utah
• Park City, Utah
• Provo, Utah

Do call (208-340-5632) or email (kevinantosh@gmail.com) me if we should schedule a time to meet.

Windows 10 SHA-1 and SHA-2 Issues

Update 10/4/2016: Heartland has provided an alternate payment portal which resolves this issue. Do contact them directly if Heartland has not already provided you with the updated information. Your Microsoft Dynamics RMS Partner may also be able to assist with the required changes. Contact me at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com if you do not have an RMS Partner.

A special thanks to a couple of stores that called me to explain the resolution to this issue and confirmed that things are working correctly again - very much appreciated.

Also of note, detailed resolution information will be made available soon on RITE's website: http://www.rite.us/Support/MicrosoftRMSSupport/RMSTutorials/DoesMicrosoftDynamicsRMSSupportSHA2.aspx

Update 9/27/2016: Working on testing a possible resolution - will provide more details once they are made available to me.

Update 9/21/2016: thanks to those of you who contacted me directly thanking me for posting about this issue!  I will update this post as applicable but, so far, the only response from Heartland has been a blanket "we are working on a resolution and will advise" response as well as what I can only describe as a single Heartland Rep displaying the biggest act of un-professionalism that I have ever seen in my 18+ years of working with point of sale systems (they have managed to tarnish my sentiment towards Heartland but thankfully I have other Heartland Reps that I work with in person who are happy to help restore my positive sentiment towards Heartland).

Original Post:
Just when everything appeared to be sorted out related to the new SHA-2 security requirement, a recent Windows 10 update has caused some new problems.

Because of this Windows 10 update, error messages may appear in the Microsoft RMS point of sale software in specific situations as noted below:

• Point of Sale Software: Microsoft RMS
• Operating System: Windows 10 with September 2016 update installed
• Website for credit card processing is not SHA-2 compliant
• Merchant Services Company: Heartland

Other Notes:

• At this point, the issue is specific to Heartland as Mercury and TSYS appear to be functioning normally
• Heartland does not have any information on when they expect the issue to be resolved
• This shows how unexpected issues can crop up with anything related to technology so please use this as a reminder to have a point of sale partner/vendor/VAR that you can rely on for ongoing support after your point of sale system is up and running

As this may prevent you from being able to fully tender credit and debit card transactions, the following options are available:

• Roll back to previous Windows 10 build
• Disable new updates to Windows 10 until the issue is tested as resolved
• You may be able to process credit and debit card transactions manually but note that you will be paying a much higher percent for "hand keying" a credit or debit card transaction (easily 4% to 4.5%)
• Consider using Card Defender for Microsoft RMS which allows full EMV/Chip card processing within RMS as well as NFC payments like Apple Pay and Google Wallet. Card Defender is unique in not charging any additional per transaction fees as well as being processor agnostic (Heartland, First Data and TSYS).  More information on Card Defender can be found at http://retailpospondering.blogspot.com/p/card-defender-emv-for-rms.html and http://www.payconfident.com/

Do contact me with any questions at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com

Retail Point of Sale Idaho and Wyoming

A quick note that I'm headed to perform some sales and service work in the following areas and would be happy to swing by your retail business to offer some no cost retail point of sale advice (any service work would need to be scheduled ahead of time):

• Mountain Home, Idaho
• Twin Falls, Idaho
• Pocatello, Idaho
• Blackfoot, Idaho
• Rigby, Idaho
• Rexburg, Idaho
• Idaho Falls, Idaho
• Jackson, Wyoming
• West Yellowstone

Do call (208-340-5632) or email (kevinantosh@gmail.com) me if we should schedule a time to meet.

Microsoft RMS Change of Partner Form

A quick reminder that I am able to process Microsoft RMS Change of Partner forms as needed. If you do not have an official partner, are unhappy with your present partner, or your partner is no longer in business, please contact me for a simple form to complete.

A few notes on Microsoft RMS Change of Partner forms:

• There are no costs associated with completing this form
• I've filled in the form with all the details to save you time 
• This is not locking you in to any sort of paid service contract
• Completing this form keeps Microsoft happy knowing that you have a local company for RMS support
• By having the form on file, this prevents delays in obtaining support for your Microsoft RMS software - whether that support is needed 2 days from now or 2 years from now

Completed forms can be emailed to me at kevinantosh@gmail.com or faxed to my attention at 320-230-1796.

Call me at 208-340-5632 with any questions. It normally takes Microsoft 1-2 business to process the form.

RITE Wins Award

Wow - so for the second year in a row that Retail Information Technologies Enterprises (RITE - Sartel, MN, Dallas, TX and Boise, ID) has won the Circle of Excellence Growth Award as part of the annual Retail Realm and Microsoft retail technology conference. As one of the largest Microsoft RMS, HQ, Dynamics AX, Retail Realm Essentials, and Retail Management Hero (RMH) Partners in the United States, RITE is committed to ensuring that customer service is not compromised by growth.

Cloud Retailer Video Review/Demo/Overview

A quick demo/overview/review of the very flexible Cloud Retailer point of sale software. Cloud Retailer has proven to be adaptable to multiple type of retail vertical markets and offers unique pricing option making for an affordable investment.

I can be reached at kevinantosh@gmail.com or 208-340-5632 for no-cost information on Cloud Retailer or retail point of sale systems in general.

New Stuff for Retail Management Hero

Wow - so things are moving along quickly when it comes to the new Retail Management Hero (RMH) software which is essentially a direct replacement for the retired/end of life Microsoft RMS point of sale software. One RMH partner has taken the steps to offer their customers several add-ons to close some of the gaps between RMS and RMH which include:

• Full timeclock functionality (coming Q1 2017 - third party integration)
• Full gift card functionality (now available)
• More options when it comes to the merchant services choices in RMH (not locking you in to just Vantiv/Mercury or Cayan) - Heartland has been added - looking for First Data and TSYS support via third party integration by Q3 2017.

Contact me for more information (email: kevinantosh@gmail.com cell: 208-340-5632).

How to obtain a 30 day trial version of Retail Management Hero: http://www.pospondering.com/2017/01/how-to-obtain-30-day-trial-license-of.html

EMV in the US Continues to Experience Issues

Even though the October 1st, 2015 EMV Liability Shift Date in the US has come and gone, retailers continue to experience issues with EMV adoption and hardware/software as highlighted in this article from Innovative Retail Technologies (at least users of the Microsoft RMS point of sale software have the Card Defender EMV solution for RMS).

Article can be found here: http://www.innovativeretailtechnologies.com/doc/retailers-ready-and-waiting-for-credit-cards-to-catch-up-with-emv-capabilities-0001?vm_tId=1941564&user=EAF658D4-3538-4904-81F7-EDC3F871C31C&utm_source=et_6214150&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ISRET_08-05-2016&utm_term=EAF658D4-3538-4904-81F7-EDC3F871C31C&utm_content=Retailers+Ready+And+Waiting+For+Credit+Cards+To+Catch+Up+With+EMV+Capabilities

Information on Card Defender for Microsoft RMS can be found here: http://retailpospondering.blogspot.com/p/card-defender-emv-for-rms.html

You can also contact me directly at kevinantosh@gmail.com or 208-340-5632 for no cost retail point of sale (and EMV) advice.