POSitive products are developed to run on a supported Microsoft® Windows® operating system along with supported Microsoft SQL Server® software. The minimum software and hardware requirements are primarily dictated by the version and edition of Microsoft SQL Server software you choose. However, we recommend that you exceed these hardware specifications wherever you can to improve your experience with the performance of POSitive products.

• In order to run at peak efficiency both POSitive and Microsoft products require a modern computing system with:
  • An up-to-date 64-bit Windows operating system (32-bit is no longer supported)
  • A modern processor (CPU)
  • Minimum 8+ GB of memory (RAM)
• A modern high-speed wired network Ethernet adapter is required if you intend to run the software on more than one computer
• High-speed internet access is also recommended in order to obtain superior technical support for your POSitive products

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1. Warnings and Restrictions
2. Optimum Performance Recommendations
3. Microsoft Windows Operating System Compatibility
4. Microsoft SQL Server Software Considerations
5. POSitive Products Hardware Guidelines

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WARNINGS AND RESTRICTIONS
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• Running POSitive products on more than one computer requires a high-speed internal Ethernet network connection
• Running POSitive products over a high-speed wired network is required for best performance and reliability
• Running POSitive products over a wireless network is not officially supported due to poor reliability and performance
• Running POSitive products over the network on a 'workstation' while logged into Windows 10 using a Standard User account type is not officially supported. This is due to poor reliability and performance metrics and difficulty in troubleshooting permissions-based problems.
• Running POSitive products on Microsoft Windows 'Basic', 'Home', 'Starter', 'RT' and (Windows 8, 8.1) 'Core' edition operating systems is not officially supported due to various networking and other limitations. Which Windows OS is supported?

• Support for the following products ended July 9, 2019
  • SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 4
  • SQL Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 3
  • SQL Server 2016 Service Pack 1
• Support for the following products ended January 14, 2020
  • Windows 7 SP1
  • Windows Server 2008 SP2
  • Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1
  • SQL Server 2014 SP2
• Support for the following product(s) ended July 12, 2016
  • SQL Server 2014 (Standard, Express, Enterprise)
• Support for the following product(s) ended May 9, 2017
  • Windows 10, version 1507 (Enterprise, Pro)
• Support for the following product(s) ended October 10, 2017
  • SQL Server 2014 SP1
• Support for the following product(s) ended April 10, 2018
  • Windows 10, version 1607 (Pro)
• Support for the following product(s) ended October 9, 2018
  • Windows 10, version 1703 (Pro)
• Support for the following product(s) ended April 9, 2019
  • Windows 10, version 1607 (Enterprise)
  • Windows 10, version 1709 (Pro)
  • Windows Server, version 1709 (Standard)
• Support for the following product(s) ended October 8, 2019
  • Windows 10, version 1703 (Enterprise)
• Support for the following product(s) ended November 12, 2019
  • Windows 10, version 1803 (Pro)
  • Windows Server, version 1803 (Standard)
• Support for the following product(s) end October 13, 2020
  • Windows 10, version 1709 (Enterprise)
• Support for the following product(s) end November 10, 2020
  • Windows 10, version 1803 (Enterprise)
  • Windows 10, version 1809 (Pro)
• Support for the following product(s) end December 8, 2020
  • Windows 10, version 1903 (Pro, Enterprise)
• Support for the following product(s) end May 11, 2021
  • Windows 10, version 1909 (Pro)
• Support for the following product(s) end May 10, 2022
  • Windows 10 version 1909 (Enterprise)
• Support for the following product(s) end December 14, 2021
  • Windows 10, version 2004 (Pro, Enterprise)
• Support for the following product(s) end July 9, 2024
  • SQL Server 2014 SP 3

Sources:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/lifecycle/search
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/13853/windows-lifecycle-fact-sheet

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OPTIMUM PERFORMANCE RECOMMENDATIONS
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Dedicated SQL Server
We recommend a separate computer to run the Microsoft SQL Server software. In cases where this is not possible or practical be sure to exceed the SQL Server software's minimum hardware requirements for a single register.

High Volume Register
Regardless of how many stations you'll have it's best to install POSitive on your busiest register computer. For the best performance, we recommend exceeding the SQL Server software's minimum hardware requirements.

Storage
When it comes to hard drives, speed as well as storage capacity should be considered. For maximum speed, consider solid-state drives (SSD), or 10,000 or 15,000 RPM drives, and Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) drives, as well as data striping.

Screen Resolution

• Version 'POSitive 2017' and newer products
  A recommended screen resolution of 1920 x 1080 will give you the best viewing experience in newer POSitive products (Minimum: 1366 x 768 but no less than a height of 1080 is strongly recommended)
• Version 6.0 products
  A recommended screen resolution of 1920 x 1080 will give you the best viewing experience in newer POSitive products (Minimum: 1280 x 1024)

• Version 5.x and older products
  A recommended screen resolution of 1280 x 1024 will give you the best viewing experience in newer POSitive products (Minimum: 1024 x 768)

NOTE: Lower resolution touch screens may be used for specialized sales register applications, but they will not be able to properly display all features of the product.

Data Protection
There is no auto‐backup in a POSitive software product, so you must set this up separately. Whatever you use must be able to back up the SQL database and the POSitive software product directory. We recommend using POSitive Backup, which will automatically backup your data every day and store it in a secure, off-site location. Please contact our sales department or click here to learn more: http://www.positivebackup.com
NOTE: There are additional options, such as mirroring hard drives or setting up redundant servers which you may want to consider depending on the critical nature of your operation. Please contact your POSitive dealer or POSitive support to learn more.

Windows and Microsoft Updates
Follow the instructions in the section 'Windows and Microsoft Updates' of the 'Add A Workstation: Network Setup Basics' knowledgebase article.

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MICROSOFT WINDOWS OPERATING SYSTEM COMPATIBILITY
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The Windows operating system you choose should work on no less than the hardware and software requirements specified for whichever supported SQL Server software you're you'll be running.

The following title examples are supported to run Microsoft SQL Server 2016, 2017, 2019 Express (with all current service packs and Microsoft updates installed).
Visit the Hardware and Software Requirements for Installing SQL Server for a more detailed list:

• Windows Server
  • Windows Server 2016 (Essentials, Standard, Datacenter)
  • Windows Server 2019 (Essentials, Standard, Datacenter)
• Windows Desktop
  • Windows 10 (Professional, Enterprise)
    • Only current Microsoft supported versions are supported
    • Learn more about Windows 10 version end of service dates
  • Windows 11 (Professional)

NOTE: Running POSitive products on Microsoft Windows 'Basic', 'Home', 'Starter', 'RT' and (Windows 8, 8.1) 'Core' edition operating systems is not officially supported due to various networking and other limitations.


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MICROSOFT SQL SERVER SOFTWARE CONSIDERATIONS
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The SQL Server software you choose should work on a supported Windows operating system as well as other required hardware and software.
See: Hardware and Software Requirements for Installing SQL Server

NOTE: Although there are other supported versions of SQL Server, this article focuses on the 2019 version of SQL Server.


Single store
Low to Medium volume (1-100 transactions/day) Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Express (free)
Medium to High volume (100 + transactions/day) Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Standard (additional cost)

Multi-store
Low to Medium volume (1-100 transactions/day) Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Standard Edition (additional cost)
Medium to High volume (100 + transactions/day) Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Standard Edition (additional cost)


EDITIONS: Express (free) vs. Standard (additional cost)

In most cases the Express editions of SQL Server are sufficient. You cannot use Express editions of SQL Server if your database size is over 10GB. Also, POSitive Multi-site requires at minimum, the Standard edition of SQL Server running at the master site/Publisher location. Whereas the remote locations can run the free Express edition in most cases. But in all situations, the Express editions of SQL Server have additional limitations which may adversely impact the performance of POSitive products, particularly in high volume situations.


Examples of Limitations of SQL Server 2019 Express and Standard Edition:

• Maximum Compute Capacity Used by a Single Instance
  Express: Limited to lesser of 1 Socket or 4 cores
  Standard: Limited to lesser of 4 Sockets or 24 cores

• Maximum memory for buffer pool per instance of SQL Server Database Engine
  Express: 1410MB
  Standard: 128GB

• Maximum Relational Database Size
  Express: 10GB
  Standard: 524PB

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POSITIVE PRODUCTS HARDWARE GUIDELINES
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The specifications below are considered bare minimum that should work sufficiently in optimum³ situations.

CAUTION: The computer hardware you choose should be no less than the requirements specified for whichever supported SQL Server software you're running.


SCENARIO: Single Register running POSitive and hosting the SQL Server software

Modern Processor (multi-core)¹
1920 x 1080 Recommended screen resolution (Minimum: 1280 x 1024)
16GB RAM 
Microsoft SQL 2019 Express (or higher) is recommended


SCENARIO: Single or Multiple Workstations running POSitive products with a dedicated separate SQL Server

Register(s):
Modern Processor (multi-core)²
8GB RAM (or more)
1920 x 1080 Recommended screen resolution (Minimum: 1280 x 1024)

Server:
Modern Processor (multi-core)²
1280 x 1024 screen resolution
16GB RAM² (or more)
Microsoft SQL 2019 Express (or higher) is recommended


SCENARIO: Single or Multiple Workstations running POSitive products with a dedicated separate SQL Server, using Merge Replication with Multi-store, per location

Register(s):
Modern Processor (multi-core)²
1920 x 1080 Recommended screen resolution (Minimum: 1280 x 1024)
8GB RAM (or more)

Server:
Modern Processor (multi-core)²
1280 x 1024 screen resolution
16GB RAM³ (or more)
Microsoft SQL Server 2019 (or higher) Standard Edition (additional cost)


TABLETS: A tablet with 8GB RAM running Windows 10 or 11 Pro should be able to run POSitive software in touchscreen mode. You can create a touchscreen at a desktop station optimized for the screen resolution of the tablet. Then assign a specific station to the device and launch POSitive in touchscreen mode (employee ID will trigger touchscreen).


¹e.g. Intel Core i3, i5, i7, i9 series, or AMD A, FX and Ryzen series. We do not recommend the use of Intel Atom or AMD Z, C, or E series processors.
²This recommendation should be adequate for up to 10 users.
³No other software running on the computer other than the bare essentials that POSitive software requires.

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Updated 8/26/2022