Start out the year right for your restaurant POS system. Let’s tackle some of the most common and critical mistakes that retail business owners make in regard to some very simple configuration aspects of the computer system. Some of these mistakes can cost restaurant owners thousands of dollars of wasted time and money. Even worse than that… it can frustrate you, your customers and staff.

Whether you’re the one who’s going to configure your restaurant’s computer system or not somebody else to do it for you] — you better make sure that everything is done accordingly for your own sake.

Please don’t let me be guilty of giving you the wrong message. I do not always recommend configuring your own computer system! I recommend letting a professional do it for you. But I know some of you will do it yourself no matter what I say. So this is for those of you that insist on doing your own computer installations and for everyone else to double check and make sure everything was done properly. This could help you avoid some major problems and save hours of precious time.

So here’s your retail POS system configuration checklist for a Windows network:

1) Using a Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
One of the main causes of your electronic component failure is due to fluctuations in electricity (up and down). A good UPS can solve this problem by regulating the power. I recommend that you at least put a good UPS on your server. And it’s a good idea to use them on every worstations too.

2) Plug All Your Cables Into the UPS
All cables that powers your computer and network must be properly plugged into your UPS. It’s also important to check if cables that can carry electrical charges are plugged into a surge protector or UPS. For example, the phone line for your modem can fry your computer if you don’t plug it into a surge protector. So you better make sure that all cables are plugged properly. Your modem line, network cables, and power cords can cause severe damage if not plugged properly.

3) Passwords and Security
At the very least, I suggest locking down your server with a strong password on all Windows accounts so your employees and hackers have more difficulty messing with your server.

4) Intalling and Configuring Security Tools Like An Antivirus Software and AntiSpyware Software
It is gravely important for you to make sure that these security tools are configured to updating automatically, so you would never forget.

5) Limit Your Employees’ Internet Access
Employees that surf the internet can cause more problems than anything. You mave the lastest antivirus and antispyware software installed but if an employee unwittingly downloads the wrong program or accepts the wrong message, it can cause some serious problems to your system. You can avoid this by disabling internet browsing on your computers. Or another option is to password protect internet access.

For restaurant owners, this is very important! In order to protect secured files from the hands of the dirty minds, limiting employee internet access is a must. A retail business owner has to strickly implement rules to protect his business as well as his profit. Otherwise, what good will a restaurant POS system do if it’s run by a misbahaved or ignorant personnel.

6) Configure Your Back Up To Run Every Night
As well proven in many situations, it’s best to configure your back up to run automatically after work hours. But you still need to remember to change your back up device (like tapes) daily.

7) Testing Your Back Up At Least Once A Month
I can’t remember how many times I’ve talked with business owners that have hard drive failure and think they have a good back up plan to restore. But when they try to restore they find it hasn’t been working for months or years. That’s why you need to do a “real” test restore once a month to make sure it’s working. By the way, you should also remember o restore to an alternate file location so you don’t mess up your existing software.

So please check your computer system now. If you don’t, you might regret it later. Have a happy and successful 2009!

With over 20 years of restaruant experience, the author and Vice President of Customer Relations at POS-for-Restaurants.com, helps you use your technology to be more efficient and more profitable.