When you set up the Shop Floor mobile app in Business Central, you choose between two ways to handle users: fixed users and login users. The choice depends on your Microsoft license setup and on whether several employees share the same device.
A fixed user logs in automatically when the Shop Floor window opens, with no PIN code or user code required. You set this up by attaching a fixed resource number to the Business Central user.
A login user has to enter a user code, which is the resource number, or a PIN code if one is set up. Use this when several people share one scanner or one computer in the production area.
You can keep the client open and let employees log in for each flow they start. This way every flow gets a specific resource attached to it. A setting also lets users enter the PIN code only once when they open the Role Center, instead of for each flow.
Choosing between fixed users and login users in the Shop Floor app
When you start using the Shop Floor mobile app, the first decision is whether to set up users as fixed users or as login users. Two things drive that choice.
The first is the licenses from Microsoft, depending on whether you use device users or named users. The second is whether you use one scanner or one computer that several employees share.
How a fixed user works
With a fixed user, the app logs straight into the Shop Floor production window with no input. When you open the window, it shows the mobile flow for production tied to your initial resource, for example SLO for Sale on Location basic. You do not enter anything and you do not enter a PIN code.
This works because the Business Central user has a fixed resource number attached. A fixed user makes sense when each person has their own device.
How a login user works
If you want one computer to sit in the production area where people come to do registrations, you remove the fixed resource number from the Business Central user. The user is no longer a fixed resource.
Now when you open the Shop Floor window, the app asks for your user code, which is your resource number. If you have set up a PIN code, you enter that instead. After entering the code you are logged in as that resource, for example SLO.
When you leave the window and someone else logs in to the same window, they enter their own user code or PIN code. They are then logged in as a different user. This is how several employees share one scanner or computer.
Keeping the client open and logging in per flow
Every time you start a flow, you enter your user code. This means you can leave the client open. If you use tablet mode or scanner mode, you see the window as a Role Center, and when you start a flow you enter your user number again.
The benefit is that each flow can have a specific resource attached to it, so the registrations are tied to the right person.
There is also a setting that lets users enter the PIN code only when they open the Role Center or the overview page, instead of entering it for every flow. The setup of that option is covered separately.
Q&A
What is the difference between a fixed user and a login user in the Shop Floor app?
A fixed user has a fixed resource number attached and logs into the Shop Floor window automatically with no PIN code. A login user has no fixed resource number and must enter a user code or PIN code each time, which lets several employees share the same device.
When should I use login users instead of fixed users?
Use login users when several employees share one scanner or one computer, for example a shared computer in the production area where people come to do registrations. Use fixed users when each person has their own device.
What determines whether to set up fixed users or login users?
Two things: the Microsoft licenses you use, depending on whether you have device users or named users, and whether you share one scanner or computer between several employees.
How do I change a fixed user into a login user?
Remove the fixed resource number from the Business Central user. The user is then no longer a fixed resource, and the app will ask for a user code or PIN code when the Shop Floor window opens.
Do users have to enter a PIN code for every flow?
By default users enter their user code each time they start a flow, which ties each flow to a specific resource. There is also a setting that lets users enter the PIN code only once when they open the Role Center or overview page, so they do not have to enter it for every flow.