Argus IT Help Desk · Squirrel POS
POS Terminal Not Working — First Checks
Most POS issues fall into a handful of causes. Start here.
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Happening during active service? Contact Squirrel Support FIRST Don't wait for a ticket response — Squirrel's support staff know their system best and resolve most POS issues fastest. Squirrel Support: 1-800-288-8160.
📞 Caller ID matters: Squirrel identifies your account by the number you call from. Each venue is registered with a specific phone number — calling from a cell or off-property, you MUST give them your venue's registered Squirrel number or they can't pull up your account.
After contacting Squirrel, submit an IT ticket too so we have a written record and can help with anything on the Argus network side.
⚖️ Quick diagnostic: just this terminal, or all of them?
Before anything else, walk to another POS terminal at the same venue and try it: ✅ Other terminals work normally The problem is just this terminal — continue below. ❌ No terminals work at the venue The back-office server or venue network may be down — skip to Multiple Terminals Down. 💡 This single check tells us 80% of what we need to know. Include the answer in your ticket.
🖥️ Fixed terminal (the main station)
Step 1: Screen and connections 1 Is the screen on? If completely black, check the power cable at the back of the screen and at the wall. 2 Any error message visible? Photograph it with your phone. 3 Touch screen unresponsive? Try the hard reboot below. Step 2: Hard reboot 1 Hold the power button ~10 seconds until the terminal turns off completely. 3 Press the power button once to turn it back on. 4 Wait for Squirrel to load — up to 2 minutes. 5 Log in and try a test transaction. Step 3: Check the cables 1 Find the network (Ethernet) cable on the back of the terminal. 2 Unplug it and reseat it firmly. 3 Check the small LED next to the network port is lit — if it's off, the network connection is dead: submit a ticket.
📱 iPad Mobility terminal (handheld)
The iPad doesn't run Squirrel itself — it's a window into the back-office server via an app called VNC Remotix. Most iPad issues are network or connection drops: 1 Check the Wi-Fi. Settings → Wi-Fi — it must be on the Squirrel POS network (NOT corporate, NOT guest). Wrong network? Tap the correct one. 2 Force-close and reopen VNC Remotix. Swipe up and pause (or double-tap Home on older iPads), swipe the Remotix card away, reopen it. The connection re-establishes automatically. 3 Check the battery. Below 20%, charge 15 minutes before continuing. Won't turn on at all? Plug in and wait 30 minutes — a drained iPad takes time to wake. 4 Restart the iPad. Hold power → slide to power off → wait 30 seconds → power on → reconnect to the Squirrel network and open Remotix. 💡 Much more iPad detail — frozen screens, missing Remotix, Wi-Fi rules — in iPad Squirrel Connection Issues.
💻 Back-office workstation
Back-office workstations connect to the Squirrel server through an RDP (Remote Desktop) shortcut on the desktop: 1 Try the shortcut again. Close the frozen/error RDP window, double-click the Squirrel Back Office RDP shortcut (blue monitor icon), and enter credentials carefully if prompted. 2 Restart the workstation. Save your work, Start → Power → Restart (not shut down), then try the shortcut again. 3 Check the network. Try loading any website. No internet at all? That's a broader network issue — submit an IT ticket. Internet fine but RDP still fails? The Squirrel server may be down — call Squirrel Support (1-800-288-8160) AND submit a ticket. 💡 If RDP keeps failing after these steps, a service on the Squirrel server may need restarting — that's a Squirrel Support task.
🚨 Multiple terminals down
If NO terminals work, it's likely the back-office server, the venue network, or a crashed Squirrel service: 1 Check the back-office workstation. Is it on? Error messages? Internet? 2 Check the network cabinet hasn't been bumped — if you have access, make sure the small switch (black box with blinking lights) has power and seated cables. 3 Call Squirrel Support immediately (1-800-288-8160) if it's during service hours — and submit an IT ticket as well.
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Do NOT power-cycle the back-office server Never restart the Squirrel server itself without Squirrel's direction — it can corrupt open transactions.
🪘 Cash drawer / receipt printer
1 Drawer won't open — usually a connection issue; check the cable from printer/terminal to drawer. 2 Printer not printing — check paper, check the green "online" light, and open/close the paper lid to clear error states. 3 Error light on — the sticker or mini-manual on the printer says what each light means. 💡 If these don't fix it, submit a ticket. Do NOT take printers or cash drawers apart.
💳 Moneris (credit card terminal) issues
1 Try the transaction again — single failures often clear on retry. 2 Check the Moneris terminal display shows ready. 3 Try a different Moneris terminal if available. 4 All Moneris terminals failing? The Moneris service may be down — call Squirrel Support (1-800-288-8160; they can confirm a Moneris-side outage), submit an IT ticket, and accept cash or other payment until resolved.
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Don't retry a declined card If a transaction was declined (not just failed), don't run the same card repeatedly — it can get a legitimate customer's card flagged for fraud.
🆘 When to submit a ticket — and what to include
Submit a ticket if you've done the steps above and it still doesn't work; the server is unreachable; a Moneris terminal fails consistently; a printer/drawer won't respond after reboot; or you see an error you don't recognize. During service hours, call Squirrel first (1-800-288-8160), then ticket us for the record. - Which venue and station — "Lakeside Dining — bar terminal," "Maestro's — server station 2"…
- Terminal type — fixed, iPad Mobility, or back-office workstation (iPads: include the asset tag on the back).
- Just this terminal or all of them?
- Exact error message — photo of the screen is ideal.
- What you've tried, and is service active right now?
ArgusIT KB# 170009 · Tags: squirrel · pos · squirrel terminal · moneris · receipt printer
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