Track B · Products, channels and flows

You will be able to

• Choose a terminal and integration model
• Set the entry mode and condition code
• Configure a terminal: ids, limits, AIDs, keys, TMS
• Run tips, pre-authorisations, store-and-forward and batch close
• Read a receipt for its mandatory content

The lesson

1. Why it matters
2. The concept
3. Day-to-day operations
4. ECR integration
5. Common mistakes
6. What to test

In the module

• The lesson, with diagrams, common mistakes and what to test
• A worked example you can change: Closing the batch
• Practice: 4 kinds of generated exercise, each with a step-by-step solution
• A quiz of 9 questions

Key terms

Batch

The set of transactions a terminal or merchant has done since the last close, waiting to be settled.

Batch close (End of day, settlement)

Closing the batch: the terminal sends its counts and totals (0500), and the host compares them with its own. A mismatch triggers a batch upload.

Batch upload

Sending every transaction of the batch to the host after the totals did not match, so the host can rebuild them.

ECR (Electronic cash register)

The merchant's till or point-of-sale software. It sends the amount to the payment terminal and gets the result back.

Floor limit

The amount below which a terminal may approve offline without going to the issuer. It is zero on many terminals today.

mPOS

A small card reader paired with a phone or tablet that runs the payment app.

Parameter download

Loading a terminal's configuration from the host or TMS: merchant details, card ranges, limits, EMV parameters and keys.

PIN entry device (PED, PIN pad)

The tamper-responsive part of a terminal where the PIN is typed and encrypted. It holds the terminal's keys.

POS terminal

The device at the point of sale that reads the card, takes the PIN and talks to the acquirer host.

Receipt

The printed or digital record of the transaction. It shows a masked PAN, never the full number, track data or PIN.

Semi-integrated

An ECR integration in which the ECR sends only the amount and the terminal handles all card data, which keeps the ECR out of most PCI scope.

SoftPOS (Tap to phone)

Contactless acceptance on an off-the-shelf phone without extra hardware, with the PIN entered on the phone screen under special security rules.

Store and forward

Keeping transactions approved offline in the terminal or acquirer and sending them later, when the link comes back.

Terminal management system (TMS)

The system that manages a terminal estate: software and configuration downloads, parameters, status monitoring.

Unattended terminal

A terminal with no staff present, such as a fuel pump, kiosk or transit gate. Pre-authorisation and limits are common there.

Tools for this module: Transaction FlowsJourney Lab

Read the opening of the lesson →