Host Display Documentation

The Host Display gives your front-of-house team a live, at-a-glance view of the floor — perfect for a host stand or reception area. It stays in sync with your Shopify POS in real time and can be opened on any device with a web browser.

Overview

The Host Display is designed for restaurants that want a dedicated view of table availability and status without requiring the host to be inside Shopify POS. Key uses include:

• Host stand or reception desk — quickly see which tables are open, seated, or waiting
• Any tablet, monitor, or computer with a browser — no app install required
• Real-time sync with Table Service orders in Shopify POS

Each Host Display is tied to a specific Shopify POS location and gets its own unique URL that you can bookmark or pin as a browser shortcut.

Setting Up a Host Display

Host Displays are created and managed from the Flip POS Settings page in Shopify Admin.

1. Go to Shopify Admin → Flip POS → Settings
2. Find the Host Displays section
3. Click the Add Host Display button
4. Select the POS location where this display will be used
5. Enter a name for the display (e.g., "Front Entrance", "Bar Host")
6. Save — a unique Host Display URL will be generated

You can create multiple Host Displays — one per location, or multiple for the same location if needed.

Using the Host Display

The Host Display header shows tabs for Floor Plan, and — if enabled — Reservations and Check-in, plus live counts of Occupied, Available, and Dirty tables. A Servers button opens the list of staff on duty, and the gear icon opens display settings.

Table Status Colors

• Available (green) — open and ready to seat
• Occupied (blue) — guests seated, order in progress
• In Service (dark) — items have been sent to the kitchen
• Dirty (amber) — needs to be cleared/reset before it can be seated again
• Reserved (orange) — has an upcoming or current reservation
• Blocked (grey) — unavailable for seating, not tappable

Seating a Walk-In

1. Tap any Available table on the floor plan.
2. Enter the Server and Guest Count (both required). Optionally attach a customer.
3. Tap "Activate Table".

Seating a Reservation from the Floor Plan

If a table is Reserved and has a matching confirmed reservation, tapping it shows an "Upcoming Reservation" panel with the guest, party size, time, and notes.

1. Tap the reserved table.
2. Review the reservation details in the panel.
3. Tap "✓ Seat Now" — this marks the reservation as seated and activates the table in one step.

Select Mode

Select mode is used both for seating a party across multiple tables and for the first step of combining tables.

1. Tap "Select" in the bottom bar.
2. Tap one or more Available tables — non-available tables can't be selected while in this mode.
3. Tap "Cancel" to back out, or "Activate ({N})" to seat the selected table(s).

Combining Tables

Combine two or more adjacent tables into one shared check for a party that's split across them — for example, a large group seated at Tables 4 and 5.

1. Tap "Select" in the bottom bar.
2. Tap each table you want to combine. The bottom bar shows "{N} tables selected".
3. Tap "Activate ({N})".
4. Fill in the Server and Guest Count, then tap "Activate Table".

The first table you tapped becomes the primary table — the shared check lives there. The floor plan shows a "+N" badge on the primary table and a "↔ T{primary #}" badge on each secondary table. Tapping a secondary table jumps straight to the primary table.

Note: There's no separate "un-combine" button. Marking the primary table Dirty or Available automatically releases all of its secondary tables back to Available. You can also split a combination from within Table Service — see Combine Tables in the Table Management docs.

PIN Security

Protect a Host Display with a PIN so it can't be used by anyone who happens to have the URL. Once set, any new device must enter the PIN before the floor plan loads.

Setting a PIN

1. In the Flip POS admin, go to Settings → Host Displays.
2. Find the display in the list and, in the Security column, tap "Set PIN" (or "Change PIN" if one is already set).
3. Enter a PIN (4–6 digits).
4. Tap "Save PIN".

Note: Setting or changing a PIN immediately requires every already-connected device to re-enter it — this is what protects the display if a device is lost or a shift ends.

Entering a PIN on the Display

When a PIN is required, the display shows a "Host Display Locked" screen with a numeric keypad. Entering an incorrect PIN shows "Incorrect PIN" and clears the entry so it can be retried immediately — there's no lockout after repeated wrong attempts.

Removing a PIN

1. In Settings → Host Displays, tap "Remove PIN" next to the display.
2. Confirm the removal.

Note: Unlike setting or changing a PIN, removing one does not force already-connected devices to re-authenticate — it simply means new devices won't be asked for a PIN going forward.

Add to Shopify POS as a Tile

For the quickest access during service, add the Host Display as a link tile directly in Shopify POS. This lets staff open the display without leaving the POS environment.

1. In Shopify POS, tap Add Tile
2. Select Link
3. In the URL field, paste the Host Display URL that was generated when you created the display
4. Set a Title (e.g., "Host Display") — this is how the tile will be labeled on the POS grid
5. Save the tile

Tapping the tile in Shopify POS will open the Host Display directly, keeping your team within the same workflow.

Accessing the Display

The Host Display URL can be opened on any device with a web browser — no login or app install required. Common setups include:

• A dedicated tablet at the host stand, with the URL bookmarked or set as the browser home page
• A wall-mounted monitor near the entrance
• A link tile added to Shopify POS (see above)

The display refreshes automatically and always reflects the current state of tables at your location.