Frequently asked questions

Top dealer questions, with concrete answers tied to where each feature lives in Arms Inventory.

Uploads & ingestion

What can I upload?

Arms Inventory accepts two document types right now:

• vendor invoice PDFs — Claude parses the PDF, extracts header info (vendor, invoice number, date) and line items (UPC, model, serial, cost), and auto-matches to any open order.
• Excel order files — the distributor's order Excel (.xlsx / .xls); the system reads the spreadsheet, figures out which columns are which, and imports every row for you.

(Transaction reports — .xlsx — are uploaded via the Transactions mode toggle on the upload page; they're not standard inventory ingestion.)

Which distributors' invoices are supported?

There is no fixed list of supported distributors. Arms Inventory reads each vendor invoice PDF directly instead of matching it against pre-built distributor templates, so you can upload an invoice from any distributor or vendor — including one the system has never seen before.

What changes is how much review a document gets:

• Vendors you've uploaded before are recognized and matched more readily, so their invoices flow through with less friction.
• First-time or unrecognized vendors still get parsed, but the resulting invoice goes to the review queue first — you confirm the parse looks right before that vendor's invoices are trusted the same way as an established vendor's.
• Documents that can't be read confidently (a garbled scan, an unusual layout, missing required fields) are held in "Needs Review" with an oxblood badge and a plain-language reason shown on the invoice. Nothing is ever imported silently or incorrectly — you always see why a document was held and what to fix.

What happens if I close the upload tab mid-import?

Nothing is lost. Arms Inventory uses a background upload queue so your upload keeps running on the server even after you close the tab or navigate away.

How it works:

1. When you click Upload, the file is submitted to a background job and you get a job ID immediately.
2. The upload page tracks your active jobs in browser storage and polls for status every 1.5 seconds.
3. If you close the tab and come back — even in a different browser session — the upload page automatically restores any active jobs from the last 24 hours and shows you their current status.

If a job completes while the tab is closed, the invoice or order will already be in the system when you return. The result link appears in the upload history on the upload page.

Bottom line: close the tab freely. The job runs to completion without you watching it.

How do I see my past uploads?

Use Upload History from the upload page or open Upload History.

It shows recent background upload jobs, statuses, and result links when the parser has created invoices or orders. The upload page also shows active jobs from your current browser session.

If you need to find a specific document, use Search and enter the vendor name, invoice number, order number, or other document text.

Inventory & matching

What do the badge colors mean?

Arms Inventory uses four consistent badge colors everywhere (state badges, dashboard tiles, table rows, detail pages):

Copper examples: low-confidence match awaiting review, partial receipt, error queue item pending retry.

Oxblood examples: invoice in "Needs Review" (validation problem held for release), firearm missing required ATF fields (blocked from FastBound push), dismissed error queue item.

Forest examples: verified invoice, fully received receipt line, completed match, resolved error.

If the dashboard shows oxblood tiles, those are blocked items that need correction before they can move forward.

What if a serial number is cut off in the table?

Long serial numbers are displayed using mid-ellipsis truncation in table views — for example, AB123…XY789. The full serial is always stored and never lost.

To see the complete serial number:

• Hover over the truncated value — a tooltip shows the full serial.
• Or open the Firearm detail page (/firearms/{id}) where the full serial is always displayed at large size.

This applies to the Firearms list, the Receiving checklist, the POS Export preview, and the Bound Book list.

A match shows copper — do I need to do something?

Yes. A copper match badge means the match quality is MEDIUM or LOW and the match is waiting for your approval or rejection. (You'll see the same match-quality tier on the match detail page next to the line-by-line signals.)

1. Open the match detail page.
2. Review the evidence: match score, UPC match ratio, price difference, and any discrepancy warnings.
3. Click Approve match if the invoice and order belong together.
4. Click Reject match if they do not.

HIGH confidence matches (forest badge) are also in the review queue — they just have stronger evidence. You still confirm them; the badge color tells you how much evidence supports the match, not whether human review is skipped.

Compliance & FastBound

How do I see which firearms can't be pushed to FastBound yet?

Go to Bound Book from the navigation.

If any firearms are missing required ATF fields (type, caliber, manufacturer, or importer), a prominent oxblood callout appears at the top of the page. It shows the count of blocked firearms with a direct link to the filtered list.

Click the callout or the oxblood tile to see the specific firearms that need attention. Open each firearm, fill in the missing fields, and save. Once all required fields are present, the callout clears.

Common reasons a firearm is blocked:

• Importer is blank on an imported firearm (field is optional on domestic firearms, required on imports)
• Type could not be inferred from the invoice description — needs manual selection
• Caliber extracted as a non-standard string that FastBound won't accept

Does Arms Inventory replace my A&D book?

No. Arms Inventory is not the A&D book of record. FastBound (or your chosen bound book system) remains responsible for:

• ATF A&D book (20-year retention requirement)
• Disposition records
• Form 4473
• Inspection events
• Lost/stolen reporting

Arms Inventory handles the steps before the FastBound handoff: invoice parsing, order matching, physical receiving confirmation, serial verification, and POS export preparation. When the integration is enabled, received firearms are pushed to FastBound automatically on receive.

Account & security

How do I change my password?

1. Click your name in the top-right corner of any page.
2. Select Settings.
3. Go to the Account card.
4. Click Change password and follow the prompts.

You can also use Forgot password on the login page to reset via email if you are locked out.

How do I enable MFA?

Multi-factor authentication (TOTP) is required for admin accounts and available for all users.

1. Go to Settings → Security.
2. Click Set up authenticator app.
3. Scan the QR code with Google Authenticator, Authy, or any TOTP-compatible app.
4. Enter the 6-digit code from your app to confirm enrollment.

Save your recovery codes when they are shown — they are only displayed once. Store them somewhere secure (password manager, printed and locked).

If you lose access to your authenticator app, use a recovery code on the MFA challenge screen.

How do I revoke a session on a shared computer?

1. Go to Settings → Security → Active sessions.
2. Find the session you want to end (listed by device/browser and last seen time).
3. Click Revoke next to that session.

The revoked session is invalidated immediately — anyone on that device will be logged out.

Support

How do I report a bug?

You’re in the right place — fill out the report form at the top of this page. You can reach it any time by opening the More menu in the top navigation bar and choosing Support (the life-buoy icon).

Fill in:

• Category: choose the closest workflow (upload, matching, receiving, export, etc.)
• Page or workflow: where the problem occurred
• Description: what you were trying to do, what happened, and what you expected
• Attach screenshot (optional): drop a PNG or JPG of the page if it helps explain what went wrong

For urgent operational problems — unable to log in, receive a shipment, or export inventory needed for the sales floor — contact support directly and include your business name, the page affected, the action that failed, any visible error message, and when the problem started.

Where do I go for each task?

These help articles cover the most common questions. To jump straight to a workflow, use the navigation bar or one of these links:

• Dashboard — your at-a-glance view of what needs attention
• Upload — add a vendor invoice PDF or a distributor order file
• Search — find any invoice, order, or firearm by name or number
• Receiving — confirm a shipment arrived and verify serials
• Bound Book — see every firearm and what still needs ATF fields
• POS Export — prepare received inventory for your point-of-sale

Still stuck? Use the report form at the top of this page and we’ll follow up.