Does check-in at the entrance require an internet connection?

Yes. Checking people in with the Donoor app needs internet, but a simple mobile connection (4G) or the venue's Wi-Fi is enough. Each ticket is checked live by the Donoor server: this is what allows a ticket that has already been used to be refused, even if it is shown at the same moment at another door.

The app does not keep a list of tickets on the phone: without a network, it can neither check nor validate an entry.

Why the network is essential

A ticket's QR code only contains an identifier. When you scan it, the app sends it to the server, which finds the ticket and checks that it:

• belongs to your organisation, and to the chosen event if you are scanning from an event;
• has actually been paid for;
• has not been cancelled or refunded, and that the event has not been cancelled;
• has not already been used.

If two volunteers validate the same ticket in the same second, only one goes through: the other sees Already scanned. A copy of the ticket (screenshot, photocopy) therefore only lets one person in.

If the network is weak or down

With a weak network, the answer simply takes longer to arrive. When it does not arrive:

• the app shows “Verification failed. Please try again.” and the camera starts again: show the QR code once more;
• if the connection drops when you tap Validate entry, the ticket details stay on screen: tap again as soon as the network is back;
• the counters never block scanning: if they do not load, you can still scan.

Good to know: after a connection drop, if a new attempt shows Already scanned with your name and a time from just now, the validation had been recorded on the first attempt: let the person in.

Test the network at the entrance before opening, charge the phones (bring a power bank) and keep an exported list of participants as a backup.

Preparing for the day

1. Install the Donoor app on every phone at the entrance (iPhone or Android).
2. Invite each volunteer with their own account: in the dashboard, Settings › Team › Invite a member. There is no limit on the number of members (see the Team training).
3. In the member's profile, check the permission “Check in tickets at the entrance” (Ticketing category). It is turned on by default for the Administrator and Volunteer roles, not for Member, and it requires the “View ticketing” permission.
4. Allow camera access the first time you open the scanner. If it was refused, the scanner offers to turn it on in the phone's settings.
5. Do a test run: scan a real ticket, check that Valid ticket appears, then tap Cancel. The ticket is not used up.

Tip: if every scan shows “Verification failed. Please try again.” while the network is working, check the volunteer's permission: without it, the app shows the same message.

Scanning a ticket step by step

Checking in happens in two steps: the scan displays the ticket, then you validate the entry (details in the Ticketing training).

1. Open the scanner: Ticketing tab › Scan for all your events, or open the event and tap Scan a ticket for that event only, with its counters.
2. Point the camera at the ticket's QR code, on paper or on a phone.
3. Valid ticket appears with the name, the rate, the ticket number and, if any, the options purchased and the session. Check the person.
4. Tap Validate entry: a green tick confirms the entry. The ticket is only used up at this moment; Cancel goes back to the camera without recording anything.
5. Tap Scan again for the next person.

Damaged QR code? Tap Enter a ticket number, type the number printed on the ticket (BIL-…, or TKT-… for older ones), then confirm: the rest happens in two steps, just like a scan. This number is unique within an event: to type one in, preferably open the scanner from the event.

Warning: the Scan button in the dashboard also opens a scanner, but there the ticket is validated as soon as it is scanned (“Ticket validated”). If you make a mistake, use Cancel this check-in.

Possible messages

Several volunteers, several doors

You can scan with as many phones as you need, at the same time. A ticket validated at one door is refused at all the others, with the name of the volunteer who validated it.

• Give each volunteer their own account rather than a shared password: their name is what appears in Scanned by.
• Open the scanner from the event: the Tickets, Scanned and Remaining counters update with every entry, including those from the other phones.
• The scanner in the Ticketing tab (“All events combined”) accepts tickets for all your events, but without counters.

In the dashboard, the event's Participants list can be filtered by Valid, Scanned or Not scanned: handy to see who has not arrived yet, or to compare entries with tickets sold at closing time.

A participant without their ticket

Flat phone, lost email: if the person is registered, their QR code is not essential.

1. Open the event's Participants list and search for them by name or email (the search ignores accents and capital letters).
2. Open their profile: you can see their rate, whether their entry has already been recorded, and their ticket Number.
3. Tap Check in to validate their entry. If this button does not appear for you, type the number into Enter a ticket number in the scanner.

Not on the list? Register them with Add a participant (see registering on the spot). An entry validated by mistake can be corrected from the profile with Undo check-in: the ticket becomes valid again.

Key takeaways

• A connection is needed (4G or Wi-Fi): there is no offline mode.
• In the app, validation takes two steps: scan, then Validate entry.
• A ticket only gets in once, even with several doors: after that, it shows Already scanned.
• Each volunteer needs their own account and the permission to check in tickets at the entrance.
• Without a QR code, look the person up in Participants or type in their ticket number.