Background
Checkout or the Computer Crashes
Postgres Server Needs to Be Restarted
Issue with the Mac User
Attempting to Open Checkout 3 on macOS 10.12 Sierra
Corrupt OS Installation

Background

Checkout uses what is known as a Postgres database. When launching Checkout a Postgres server is started that allows Checkout to access this database. If there is a problem with starting this Postgres server Checkout will not be able to run correctly. When you attempt to log in you will see no Checkout store available to log in to.

Checkout or the Computer Crashes

When Checkout or the computer Checkout is running or crashes while Checkout is running it can cause a problem when a user attempts to open and log in to Checkout. The reason this happens is that there is a file (or files) that are preventing Checkout from opening properly. We can resolve this by deleting these.

This video explains the process of deleting the Postmaster.pid file. Written instructions are available below the video:

You can delete the problem file Postmaster.pid by following these instructions:

1. Exit Checkout
2. In Finder, select Go > Go to Folder
3. Enter ~/Library in the field and click Go
4. Double-click on the Application Support folder
5. Double-click on the Checkout folder
6. Depending on which version of Checkout you are using (Checkout 3 or Checkout 4)
7. Checkout 3: Click, one-time on the Database.checkout file
8. Checkout 4: Click, one-time on the Database93.checkout file
9. Select Duplicate from the File menu (top of screen)
10. Depending on which version of Checkout you are using (Checkout 3 or Checkout 4)
11. Checkout 3: Control-click on the original Database.checkout file and select Show Package Contents.
12. Checkout 4: Control-click on the original Database93.checkout file and select Show Package Contents.
13. Delete the file named Postmaster.pid
14. Empty trash
15. Launch Checkout again as normal

If the issue was this lingering Postmaster.pid file and you are able to open and log in to Checkout you can go back and remove the duplicate database that you created in Step 7 of the above process. If this does not resolve the issue you can follow the exact same set of instructions listed above but instead of deleting the Postmaster.pid delete the Postmaster.opts file.

Although this is the most common cause there can also be an issue with the Postgres server itself.

Postgres Server Needs to Be Re-Started

If the Postgres server is already running you need to have the server stop and restart. This can normally be managed by just quitting out of Checkout, rebooting the computer, and then relaunching Checkout.

If this does not resolve the issue you can close Postgres through the Activity Monitor. To do this:

1. Close Checkout
2. Open Spotlight (the magnifying glass in the very upper right corner of the screen)
3. Type in Activity Monitor and hit Enter
4. In the uppright right corner of Activity Monitor is a search field, type in postgres and hit Enter
5. Click the PID column in Activity Monitor
6. Select the lowest number PID and click the X in the upper right corner
7. You will be given the option of Cancel, Quit, Force Quit. Choose to Force Quit
8. Launch Checkout again as normal

If the store still isn't accessible it could be an issue with the user that is logging into the Mac.

Issue with the Mac User

Checkout can be installed by a user with Mac Administrator privileges, or by a user with Mac Standard user privileges. In either case, the name and password of a user with Administrator privileges will be required for installation. Once installed, Checkout will need to have been registered, which can be done by the Standard Mac user.

The Store(s) will be located in the library of the Mac user who created the Store(s). Therefore all Store employees, will need to log into the Mac using the Mac User Name of the User who created the Store(s). Stores will only be available to the Mac User who created the Store(s).

If you log into your Mac using a Standard and the Store(s) are not available, it's possible the Store(s) were created by a different user. If this is the case and you want to move the store do a different user:

1. Log into the Mac with the other Mac User Name
2. Launch Checkout
3. Create a backup of the Store, saving the file to the Desktop
4. Exit Checkout
5. Open Finder and choose Go > Go to Folder > from the menu bar at the top of the screen
6. Type in /tmp and hit Enter
7. Drag the backup file to the /tmp folder
8. Log out of the Mac User you are currently in
9. Log back into the Mac as the User you want to use Checkout in
10. Open Finder and choose Go > Go to Folder > from the menu bar at the top of the screen
11. Type in /tmp and hit Enter
12. Drag the backup file from the /tmp folder to the Desktop
13. Launch Checkout
14. Restore your Checkout Backup from the Desktop
15. Log in to your store as normal

Attempting to Open Checkout 3 on macOS 10.12 Sierra

Checkout 3 cannot run at all on macOS 10.12 Sierra. It requires an earlier version of Apple's Operating System. More information is available here.

Corrupt OS Installation

If you've attempted all the above solutions and you are still not able to access the Checkout store you are most likely looking at a permissions issue on one of the system folders. Postgres requires access to the system folder /private/tmp to be able to work correctly. To attempt to change permissions:

1. Open Finder
2. Choose Go > Go to Folder from the menu bar at the top of the screen
3. Type in /private and hit Enter
4. Inside of the private folder you'll see the tmp folder. Click once on this folder to select it
5. Click File > Get Info from the menu bar at the top of the screen
6. At the bottom of the Get Info window you'll see a section labeled Sharing and Permissions
7. Click on the lock in the bottom right hand corner (if it is locked) and enter your Mac User's password
8. Change all Permissions to Read & Write and then click the action-menu at the bottom right corner
9. Choose "Apply to Enclosed"
10. Attempt to Launch and Log In to Checkout

If this does not resolve the issue there is most likely a problem with the OS installation. At this point you will need to contact an IT professional or Apple as it's a problem that is outside of the Checkout software and may require reinstallation of the Operating System or reformatting of the machine.