# GateFlow FAQ

## Does GateFlow work across different event types?

Yes.

GateFlow is QR entry control for events. It works wherever someone needs to control entry for tickets, passes, or invites: paid ticketed events, paper-ticket sales, sticker passes, wristbands, WhatsApp / Instagram / cash access, museums, venues, exhibitions, weddings, launches, school functions, corporate programs, festivals, conferences, workshops, private events, staff and VIP access, guest invites, free events, and any other managed arrivals where the organiser wants a clean gate without changing how access is distributed.

## How do I get started?

The account-side flow is five steps. The website prepares; the Gate Device runs.

1. **Create the operation.** Sign in on the website and add the basics: name, date, venue.
2. **Add access types.** One row per access type with a quantity - for example: General Admission 10,000, VIP 500, Staff 100, Media 50, Sponsor 30. No gates to configure here, no attendee list to upload.
3. **Generate.** Review the operation, the access types, the total admissions, and your available balance, then mint the unique QR admissions.
4. **Export.** Download the **CSV with links** for distribution and the **printable QR ZIP** for paper tickets, stickers, and passes. Use the latest generated batch downloads to send out only what just changed.
5. **Operation Key.** Generate the Operation Key, follow the activation checklist on screen, and paste the key into GateFlow Client on the Windows Gate Device.

Then on the Gate Device:

- Click **Activate Operation**. The Gate Device activates, downloads the operation, and becomes Ready for Offline Use in one guided step.
- Approve scanners locally. Staff phones reach the Gate Device over the venue's local Wi-Fi.
- Run entry locally.
- Click **End Operation** when the event is over and let the Gate Device auto-sync.

Before activation, you can still adjust this operation from your account. After the Operation Key is activated on a Windows Gate Device, the operation is finalized here so live entry runs from one consistent setup.

The Gate Device never asks for your GateFlow account email or password. The Operation Key is the only setup credential.

## Do I need to upload an attendee list?

No. GateFlow is admission-inventory based - you tell GateFlow how many of each access type you need and it generates that many unique, unguessable QR admissions. No names, emails, or phone numbers are required. Attendee-list uploads are not part of the product direction.

For example, on the **Access types** step you might enter:

- General Admission - 10,000
- VIP - 500
- Staff - 100
- Media - 50
- Sponsor - 30

Click **Generate admissions** and GateFlow mints 10,680 unique QR codes, each tied to one access type. Each QR is independently random - no sequential IDs, no guessable patterns, no shared codes per access type.

Distribute the QRs your way: print onto paper tickets, sticker onto passes, share the hosted link over WhatsApp / Instagram / email, paste into your existing ticketing platform - GateFlow does not pick the channel.

## How do I get the QR admissions to guests?

GateFlow generates the QR admissions. You distribute them through whatever already works for your team - GateFlow does not pick.

After you generate admissions, the operation card shows a **QR admissions** step. Click **Generate QR admissions** and GateFlow renders one secure QR per admission.

Then you have two downloads:

- **Download CSV with links**: one row per admission with a unique `ticket_url` you can mail-merge into email, WhatsApp, your CRM, your ticketing platform, or any partner tool.
- **Download QR ZIP**: one printable SVG per admission (grouped by access type where practical) for paper tickets, stickers, or printed passes.

If you add more admissions before activation, use **Download latest generated batch** to send out only the rows you just minted. Every existing QR stays exactly the same, so anything you have already printed or shared still works.

## What if I need to add more admissions, handle refunds, or replace lost tickets?

It depends on whether the operation has been activated on a Gate Device yet.

**Before activation** (the operation is still being prepared on the website):

- For more admissions (a last-minute VIP batch, walk-up tickets, additional staff, etc.), open the operation and use **Add more admissions** on the Access types step. GateFlow generates the new rows and keeps every existing admission intact. **Download latest generated batch** gives you a CSV and a printable ZIP for just the rows you minted.
- GateFlow does not maintain a per-buyer list (no names, no emails, no phone numbers), so refunds and lost tickets are handled at the QR level. Cancel the QR (refunded, wrong QR, duplicate, lost, or other) and, if you need a replacement, add a fresh admission for the same access type.

**After activation** (the Operation Key has been activated on a Gate Device):

- This operation is activated on a Windows Gate Device. Account setup is now view-only so live entry stays consistent. Live scanning and operation controls are handled on the Gate Device.
- Emergency QR changes during the live operation happen on the Gate Device locally - block a lost or compromised QR from the dashboard, unblock it if it was a mistake.
- For account-side changes after activation (extra batches, refunds, replacements at scale), contact support at `hello@gateflow.vip`.

## What is an Operation Key?

An Operation Key is a scoped activation credential generated on your GateFlow account, used to activate one operation on a Gate Device.

What it lets a Gate Device do:

- activate the selected operation
- download the operation
- run admissions offline
- sync results back to your account

What it cannot do:

- view billing, payments, or account settings
- create, edit, or delete operations
- see other operations
- act as your account password

The Operation Key is shown once when you generate it. Save it then. Before activation, you can regenerate the key from the website if you lose it; regenerating revokes the prior key.

Activate this operation on your Windows Gate Device when your setup is ready. After activation, account edits pause for this operation and the Gate Device becomes the live entry workspace. The Operation Key, the access types, and the admission inventory are all finalized at that point so scanners use one reliable operation copy. Emergency Gate Device changes during a live operation go through support at `hello@gateflow.vip`.

## Does GateFlow generate QR codes too?

Yes.

Every operation has its own signed QR credential per admission. Each QR uses a cryptographically random ticket code (no sequential IDs, no shared codes per access type), so QRs are independently unguessable. Once the Gate Device is prepared, it can validate both scanned QR codes and manually typed ticket codes at the door. QR codes are tied to the specific operation and cannot be reused across operations.

## Can multiple staff manage entry?

Yes.

Multiple approved phones can scan while the local dashboard keeps one shared event state for the team.

## Does GateFlow Client work without internet?

Yes, after the Gate Device has been activated with the Operation Key.

Internet is needed for:

- activation and preparation (the Gate Device exchanges the Operation Key, downloads the operation, and stores everything locally, all in one guided step when you click **Activate Operation**)
- sync (results upload to your account when internet returns)

Internet is NOT needed during live admissions after activation finishes.

Local Wi-Fi is still needed throughout the event so staff phones can reach the Gate Device. Wi-Fi and internet are not the same thing: a venue can have local Wi-Fi without an internet uplink and GateFlow continues to admit attendees correctly.

Live admission work stays local:

- scanner approval, decline, block, unblock
- QR admission validation
- duplicate protection and re-entry checks
- dashboard visibility
- local admission block / restore
- usage recording

Sync happens later when internet is available again. If a Gate Device's activation has been revoked while it was offline, the next online sync surfaces the revocation and the Gate Device stops admitting people.

## Which time zone does GateFlow use?

For the live event, GateFlow follows the local time on the Gate Device (any laptop, desktop, or mini PC running Microsoft Windows). Keep that Gate Device's clock correct before doors open.

For internal oversight and business-side views, GateFlow uses Egypt time where appropriate.

## Does every phone need approval?

Yes.

Every scanner phone must:

1. open the scanner page
2. enter a scanner name or ID
3. choose a gate
4. wait for approval from the local dashboard

## What happens if a scanner is blocked?

A blocked scanner cannot reconnect or scan until it is manually unblocked from the dashboard and requests approval again.

## What counts as usage?

`1 usage = the first successful admission of a unique QR for that operation`

These do not count again:

- duplicate scans
- denied scans
- retries
- re-entry

## Do scanner device counters equal billable usage?

No.

Per-device counters are operational counters for each approved phone.

Billable usage follows only the operation usage rule: first successful admission of a unique QR for that operation.

## What happens if confirmed admissions are low?

The website and the client show low confirmed-admission warnings.

The current operation can continue locally. Buy more confirmed admissions before the next production operation.

## How do confirmed-admission purchases work?

Choose a payment amount on the account page, continue to hosted Paymob checkout, and return to GateFlow after payment.

GateFlow keeps the payment path simple:

- choose the amount you want to pay
- complete hosted checkout through Paymob
- return to the account page and let GateFlow refresh the credited state

## What happens if confirmed admissions run out during an operation?

The active operation does not stop immediately.

GateFlow Client keeps validating every QR locally against the prepared operation records and the configured rules. Invalid, unknown, used, or blocked QRs are still rejected at the gate. Once the Gate Device has admitted as many unique QRs as the last known confirmed-admission balance allowed for, further new admissions are refused and the scanner shows `Admissions full - top up`. Exits, re-entries, duplicates, and blocked tickets still respond as normal.

Buy more confirmed admissions before the next operation. The next Operation Key activation refreshes the balance for that operation.

## Why does the scanner phone show "Admissions full - top up"?

The Gate Device has admitted at least as many new QRs since the last successful account refresh as the confirmed-admission balance allowed for. To resume new admissions:

1. buy more confirmed admissions on the account page
2. prepare the next operation and generate its Operation Key so GateFlow can pull the new balance
3. activate the next Gate Device with that Operation Key

Duplicates, re-entries, and exits keep working at the gate even when new admissions are capped.

## What does the website do?

The website handles:

- account creation and sign-in
- monthly starter admissions visibility
- Paymob payment checkout for confirmed admissions
- client download
- operation setup, access types and admission generation
- export of QR admissions (CSV with links, printable QR ZIP)
- Operation Key generation and the activation checklist
- view-only summary, Gate Device status, and sync status after activation
- synced operation history and support contact

GateFlow is QR entry control for events. It is not a ticketing platform, payment platform, marketplace, or message-delivery service. **GateFlow does not replace how access is distributed; it makes entry controlled.** After GateFlow generates QR admissions, you distribute them through your own channels - paper tickets, stickers, printed passes, wristbands, WhatsApp, Instagram, email, bank transfer, cash, your existing ticketing platform, or any tool your team already uses.

## What does "Activate Operation" do?

It runs the entire Gate Device setup in one guided step: activates the Operation Key with GateFlow, binds this Gate Device to the operation, downloads the operation you prepared on the website (operation details, admission inventory, QR signing key, and the admissions allocation for this Gate Device), and stores everything in the local SQLite store. When it finishes, the Gate Device is **Ready for Offline Use** and can run live admissions without internet.

If the network drops between activation and download, the screen offers **Retry preparation** so the Gate Device finishes setup without you having to enter the Operation Key again.

## What does "End Operation" do?

It freezes the Gate Device immediately so no more new admissions are recorded, and auto-syncs the final results to the website.

- Sync success: operation moves to **closed**; admissions are committed against your account.
- Sync blocked by network: operation stays at **Pending Sync**; reconnect and the Gate Device finishes the sync automatically.
- Sync blocked by a tamper or integrity problem: the Gate Device shows "This Gate Device is locked until recovery is completed." Use another Gate Device, or contact support.

A Gate Device cannot prepare the next operation until the previous one is resolved.

## What does the client download include?

The client receives the GateFlow Client package only.

The client does not receive the internal console, backend admin tooling, or the full source tree.

## How do I get support?

Start with the Help Center at [gateflow.vip/help](https://gateflow.vip/help). It covers every part of GateFlow in plain language and includes a glossary. For anything not answered there, email `hello@gateflow.vip`.
