Stock Reservations
Use this page to find out why a product shows less stock available than you have on the shelf, and how to free it up.
Quick steps
Brother POS holds (reserves) stock by itself while a sale is unfinished — an item in a register cart, a held order, or an online order waiting to be packed. You never create a reservation by hand.
To see what is holding a product's stock:
- Go to Products and open the product.
- Click the Inventory tab.
- Look at Reserved Stock and Available Stock next to Current Stock, and at the Active Reservations list below. Each row shows the Source, Qty and when it Expires.
To free the stock:
- Finish or cancel whatever is holding it — complete the sale, recall or delete the held order, or fulfil or cancel the online order.
- Or wait: every hold runs out on its own at the time shown under Expires.
Adding stock to make more available inflates your count. Deal with the order instead.
Common questions
The register says a product is out of stock, but it's on the shelf. Those units are most likely held for an unfinished cart or order. Check Active Reservations on the product's Inventory tab.
I don't see Reserved Stock on the product. Nothing is held right now. Those boxes only appear while stock is reserved.
How long does a hold last? A register cart item holds for 30 minutes, a held order for 24 hours, an online store order for 48 hours, and a WooCommerce order for 7 days.
Can I delete a reservation? No. Finish or cancel the cart or order that is holding it, or let it run out.
More detail: how reservations work
A stock reservation sets stock aside for a sale that has started but isn't finished yet. It stops the same units being sold twice, for example to a walk-in customer while an online order for them is waiting to be packed.
Reservations are created and released automatically. You don't create them by hand.
How Reservations Work
- Something starts a sale — a clerk adds an item to the register cart, an order is held, or an online order comes in.
- The units are reserved. They are still counted in your stock, but they no longer count as available to sell.
- When the sale finishes or is cancelled, the reservation is released.
- Every reservation has a time limit. Once it runs out, the units count as available again, even if the order is still open.
Stock Terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Current Stock | Everything you have on hand — what you would count on the shelf. |
| Reserved Stock | Units held for sales that aren't finished yet. |
| Available Stock | Current Stock minus Reserved Stock. This is what can still be sold. |
Example: you have 50 units and 8 are sitting in a waiting online order. Current Stock is 50, Reserved Stock is 8 and Available Stock is 42.
More detail: what reserves stock, and for how long
What Reserves Stock
| What | How long the hold lasts | Released when |
|---|---|---|
| An item in a register cart | 30 minutes, restarting each time the cart line changes | The sale is completed, the item is removed, or the cart is cleared |
| A held order on the POS | 24 hours | The held order is recalled to the register or deleted |
| A WooCommerce order waiting to be fulfilled | 7 days | The order is fulfilled or cancelled on the POS |
| An online store order or an emailed invoice waiting for payment | 48 hours | The order is completed or cancelled |
| A wholesale order from a retailer | 48 hours | The order is approved, rejected or cancelled |
A held order stays on the held orders list after 24 hours, but its units stop being reserved. If you recall it later, check that the stock is still there.
More detail: the product's Inventory tab and the Inventory report
Viewing Reservations on a Product
- Go to Products and open the product.
- Click the Inventory tab.
When anything is reserved, two read-only boxes appear next to Current Stock:
- Reserved Stock — units held by carts and orders.
- Available Stock — current stock minus reservations. It shows in red when it is at or below the product's Low Stock Alert level.
These boxes only appear while something is reserved.
Active Reservations
Below the stock fields, an Active Reservations list (with the count in brackets) shows each hold:
| Column | Shows |
|---|---|
| Source | What is holding the stock — a register cart, held order, online order, wholesale order and so on |
| Detail | The reference number of that cart or order |
| Qty | How many units it holds |
| Expires | When the hold runs out |
| Time Left | Time until it runs out: green with more than an hour left, amber with more than a minute, red under a minute |
On the Inventory Report's Stock Tab
The low stock list on the Inventory report's Stock tab goes by stock on hand, not available stock. A product with 20 on hand and 15 reserved is not listed as low if 20 is above its Low Stock Alert level, even though only 5 are free to sell. The list still shows Reserved and Available columns, so you can spot a product that looks well stocked but is mostly spoken for. See Low Stock Alerts.
More detail: the register, freeing stock, and transfers
How Reservations Affect the Register
The register works from available stock:
- If a product has 10 on hand and 8 reserved, the register treats it as having 2.
- A product with nothing available shows as out of stock, unless the product is allowed to sell into negative stock.
- If a clerk adds more than is available, a Stock Override Required window shows the available stock and asks for a Reason for Override and a manager's PIN (someone with the Adjust Stock permission) before the item can be added. Staff who have Adjust Stock themselves only give the reason.
If clerks see a product as out of stock while it is on the shelf, those units are most likely held for an order that isn't finished yet.
Freeing Up Reserved Stock
There is no button to delete a reservation. To free the units, finish or cancel whatever is holding them:
- Register cart — complete the sale or remove the item. An abandoned cart's hold runs out after 30 minutes.
- Held order — recall it to the register or delete it.
- WooCommerce, online store or wholesale order — fulfil, complete or cancel the order.
Otherwise the hold runs out on its own at the time shown under Expires.
If stock is tied up in reservations, don't add a stock adjustment to make more available. That inflates your count. Deal with the orders instead.
Reservations, Transfers and Purchase Orders
- Stock transfers don't check reservations. Before you send stock to another store, look at the product's Available Stock so you don't send units that are promised to an order.
- Receiving a purchase order adds to current stock, so available stock goes up by the same amount.
More detail: troubleshooting and best practices
Troubleshooting
| Problem | What to check |
|---|---|
| A product shows as out of stock on the register but is on the shelf | Open the product's Inventory tab and look at Active Reservations. |
| Reserved Stock doesn't appear on the product | Nothing is reserved right now. The box only appears while stock is held. |
| An old held order no longer holds its stock | Held order reservations last 24 hours. The order is still on the held list, but its units are available again. |
Best Practices
- Deal with held orders the same day. After 24 hours they stop protecting the stock.
- Fulfil online orders promptly. Their units stay unavailable to walk-in customers until you do.
- Reorder by available stock. A product with plenty on hand but little available still needs restocking.
What's Next?
- Low Stock Alerts — Find products that are running low.
- Stock Adjustments — Correct stock after a physical count.
- Purchase Orders — Restock to cover orders and walk-in sales.
- Stock Transfers — Move stock between your stores.