Support Issue Management

What is this?

Margin Master includes a built-in support issue system that lets you report bugs, request features, track open issues, and communicate with Margin Master support — all without leaving the application. The system has six main capabilities:

• Submit a new issue with file attachments
• View open issues in the title bar and Help menu
• Track your issue's progress through the Help > Support Issues window
• Update an existing issue with new information, comments, or attachments
• Confirm a fix when a resolution is ready for your testing
• Reopen a closed issue if the problem returns

What to Expect: Issue Lifecycle

When you submit an issue, you'll receive up to three email notifications as it progresses:

Many issues are resolved quickly — all three emails can arrive within the same hour. More complex problems may take additional time.

Each email includes a link to view your ticket online, where you can add comments or attach additional information. You can also check the status of all your issues at any time from within Margin Master under Help > Support Issues.

When a Fix Is Ready for Testing

When we believe your issue has been resolved, you'll receive an email explaining what was found and how it was addressed. The email will include instructions for testing the fix in your environment.

If the issue is still open, you can confirm the fix is working from within the application under Help > Support Issues by selecting Confirm Fix (see Confirming a Fix below). If the Confirm Fix option is not available, the issue is already believed to be resolved.

Issues in testing status will automatically be marked as resolved after three days if we don't hear back. You can always revisit your issues — including resolved ones — from Help > Support Issues.

Resolved and Closed Issues

Once an issue is resolved, no further action is needed on your part. If the same problem returns or you have additional concerns, you can reopen the issue at any time from Help > Support Issues (see Reopening a Closed Issue below).

Title Bar Issue Pill

When your store has open support issues, a small badge (the "issue pill") appears in the title bar next to the application title. This gives you at-a-glance visibility into your active issues.

What It Shows

Hovering over the pill shows a tooltip like "1 open support issue — click to view" or "3 open support issues — click to view."

Clicking the Pill

Clicking the pill opens a context menu listing all open issues. Each issue displays as "MM-1234 — Issue Title" with three actions:

Help Menu — Support Issues

The Help menu provides the same issue management actions in a permanent menu location.

Menu Structure

Help
├── Submit New Issue
└── Support Issues          ← only visible when open issues exist
    └── MM-1234 — Issue Title
        ├── View Details Online
        ├── Update Issue
        └── Mark Issue Resolved
    └── MM-1235 — Another Issue
        ├── View Details Online
        ├── Update Issue
        └── Mark Issue Resolved

Submit New Issue is always available. The Support Issues submenu only appears when your store has at least one open issue. The header shows "Support Issue" (singular) or "Support Issues" (plural) based on count.

Submitting a New Issue

How to Access

From the main window menu bar, click Help > Support Issues, then Create Support Issue in the window that opens (or click the issue pill in the title bar).

The wizard opens as a dialog window and guides you through up to three steps. If your store has open issues, the wizard first asks whether you're updating one of them; otherwise it opens directly on the contact step.

Step 1: Update an Open Issue, or Something New?

Shown only when your store has open issues. The header reads "You have open issues" and asks: "Are you providing an update to one of these issues, or is this a new issue?"

Issue Selector

A dropdown lists your options:

When You Select an Existing Issue

A summary panel appears showing the Issue ID, Title, Status, Type, and Created date so you can confirm it's the right one — along with two choices:

Tip: Choose "related to this one" when your problem is connected to the open issue but is a distinct new occurrence — for example, the earlier issue was worked on but something new broke in the same area. Choosing "add my update" is right when you're supplying more information about the same problem.

Navigation

Click Next to proceed to the contact step. If you selected an existing issue to update, your contact information is pre-filled from that issue's primary contact.

Step 2: Who is Submitting?

This step asks you to identify yourself as the person submitting the issue.

1. Store Contacts / Support Reps - pick who is reporting.
2. Contact Details - name, email and phone for the selected contact.
3. Create New - add yourself if you are not listed.
4. Next - continue to the issue details.

Contact Selector

A dropdown at the top of the step lists contacts associated with your store's organization:

If a primary contact exists for your organization, it is automatically selected when the wizard opens.

Contact Fields

When you select an existing contact, their information is pre-filled. You can edit these fields. Changes are saved back to the contact record when the issue is submitted.

CC Contacts

Below the primary contact fields, an Add CC Contacts... button lets you add additional contacts who should receive notifications about this issue. CC contacts appear as removable tags — click the X next to a contact to remove them. If you select a CC contact as the primary contact, they are automatically removed from the CC list.

Navigating

• Click Next to proceed to Step 3. The button is disabled until a first name is entered.
• Click Back to return to Step 1 (only available when your store has open issues).

Step 3: Issue Details

The third step is where you describe the issue and attach any relevant files.

Issue Type and Priority

Two dropdowns appear side by side at the top:

If you selected an existing issue in Step 1, the type and priority are pre-filled from that issue.

Title

A single-line text field for a brief summary of the issue. Required to submit.

When creating a new issue, a default title is generated automatically in the format: "Support Request - Ace Hardware #1234" (using your issue type, vendor name, and store number).

Description

A multiline text area for a detailed description of the issue. Optional but recommended. Include steps to reproduce, expected behavior, and any error messages you see.

If you selected an existing issue, the description field is cleared so you can add a fresh comment.

Attachments

The Attachments section offers three ways to include files with your submission:

Tip: The database backup is the single most useful attachment for support. It allows the support team to reproduce your exact data conditions. Include it whenever possible.

Important: Large file uploads (especially database backups) may take several minutes depending on your internet connection speed and database size.

Navigation and Submission

• Click Back to return to Step 2 (contact).
• Click Submit to submit the issue. The button is disabled until a title is entered and an issue type is selected.

During Submission

When you click Submit, a progress bar and status message appear. The navigation buttons are hidden during submission to prevent interruption.

The submission process:

1. Issue creation or update — If creating a new issue, all system information is automatically collected and sent (see Technical Details below). If updating an existing issue, a comment is added noting the update.
2. Log file upload — If the log file checkbox is checked, the most recent log file is compressed and uploaded.
3. Database backup upload — If the backup checkbox is checked, a database backup is created, compressed, and uploaded.
4. Additional file uploads — Any files added via the file picker are uploaded one at a time.

After Submission

When submission completes, the form is replaced with a success panel showing:

• A confirmation message: "Issue submitted successfully!" (or "Issue updated successfully!" for existing issues)
• The Issue ID (e.g., MM-1234)
• A Related to MM-XXXX line when you chose "Submit a new issue related to this one"
• A View Issue on Web button that opens the issue in your browser on the Margin Master support portal

If any file attachments failed to upload, a warning message appears listing which files could not be uploaded and why. The issue itself is still created successfully — only the attachments are affected.

Click Close to dismiss the dialog.

Updating an Existing Issue

There are three ways to update an existing issue:

1. Title bar pill — Click the pill, select the issue, then click Update Issue
2. Help menu — Click Help > Support Issues > [Issue] > Update Issue
3. Submit wizard — Click Help > Submit New Issue, then select the existing issue in Step 1

All three paths open the same Issue Submission Wizard, pre-filled with the selected issue's details. The dialog title changes to "Update Issue — MM-1234" to indicate you are updating rather than creating.

When updating, your description text is added as a new comment on the existing issue. Contact information is updated, and any new file attachments are added to the issue.

Viewing an Issue Online

To view the full details of an issue on the Margin Master support portal:

1. Title bar pill — Click the pill, select the issue, then click View Details Online
2. Help menu — Click Help > Support Issues > [Issue] > View Details Online
3. After submission — Click the View Issue on Web button on the success panel

This opens the issue in your default web browser. The application requests an authenticated link so you may not need to log in separately.

Marking an Issue as Resolved

When a problem has been fixed and you want to close the loop:

1. Title bar pill — Click the pill, select the issue, then click Mark Issue Resolved
2. Help menu — Click Help > Support Issues > [Issue] > Mark Issue Resolved

A confirmation dialog appears showing the issue ID and title. You can optionally add a comment (e.g., "Fixed after updating vendor data"). Click Submit to mark the issue as resolved.

After confirmation:

• The issue status is updated on the Margin Master support portal
• A confirmation message appears: "Thank you! Issue MM-1234 has been marked as resolved."
• The issue pill and Help menu update automatically to reflect the change

Support Issues Window

The Help > Support Issues menu item opens a dedicated window for viewing, replying to, and managing all your support issues. It is the primary place to track issue progress and communicate with the support team after an issue has been submitted.

Tip: This menu item is always available even when no issues are open. Click it anytime to see your full issue history.

How to Access

From the main window menu bar, click Help > Support Issues.

You can also click the issue pill in the title bar (when it appears) to jump directly to that issue in the window.

Layout

The window is divided into two panels:

1. Open Issues and Closed / Resolved lists.
2. Detail panel for the selected issue - description, comment thread and reply area.
3. Create Support Issue - starts the submit wizard.
4. Actions menu - contact management and other commands.

The window auto-refreshes every 30 seconds, so new comments from the support team appear without you needing to do anything. A notification appears if new comments arrive while the window is open.

Action Buttons

Replying to an Issue

Type your message in the text box at the bottom of the right panel. Click Send (or the send icon) to post the comment. Your reply and the support team's responses appear in the comment thread above.

System info (app version, POS, store number) is automatically appended to each comment so the support team always has context.

Attaching Files

You can attach files to any reply before sending:

1. Click Attach File next to the reply box
2. Select a file from the file picker (images, PDFs, Excel, and any other type are accepted)
3. The file appears as a staged attachment below the reply box — you can remove it before sending
4. Click Send to upload the attachment along with (or instead of) your comment text

A progress bar shows the upload status. Duplicate filenames within the same send action are blocked.

Contact Management

Click Edit Contacts in the right panel to add, edit, or remove the store contacts associated with this issue. Contacts are used to determine who receives email notifications. Changes take effect immediately.

Quick Issue Submit

Quick Issue Submit is a fast-path dialog for submitting a new issue without going through the full three-step wizard.

To open it: click Quick Issue in the Support Issues window, or use the shortcut in the Help menu.

The form is a single screen with the essential fields. Use it when you need to submit an issue quickly and can provide more detail later by replying in the Support Issues window.

Confirming a Fix

When the support team marks an issue as Ready for Testing, the issue moves to the "Ready for Testing" status. Two action buttons appear in the Support Issues window:

You will also receive an email notification when a fix is ready for testing.

Note: If you don't respond within three days, the issue is automatically marked as resolved. You can always reopen it later if the problem returns.

Reopening a Closed Issue

If a previously resolved issue recurs:

1. Open Help > Support Issues
2. Find the issue in the Closed Issues list
3. Select it and click Reopen Issue
4. Confirm the action in the dialog

The issue returns to active status and the support team is notified.

Common Questions

Q: Can I submit an issue without attaching any files? A: Yes. All attachments are optional. However, attaching the database backup greatly helps the support team diagnose your issue.

Q: What happens when I update an existing issue? A: A comment is added to the existing issue with your description text, noting it was submitted from Margin Master. Your contact information is also updated on the issue. Any new attachments are added to the existing issue.

Q: Where are the log files located? A: Log files are stored in C:\ProgramData\RetailerSoft\MarginMaster\Logs\. The wizard automatically finds and attaches the most recent one.

Q: Why does the database backup take so long? A: The backup creates a full SQL Server backup file, then compresses it to ZIP for upload. For large databases, both the backup and compression steps can take several minutes.

Q: I selected an existing issue but want to create a new one instead. What do I do? A: Click Back until you reach Step 1 and select This is a new issue from the dropdown.

Q: What does "Submit a new issue related to this one" do? A: It creates a brand-new issue and links it to the open issue you selected, so support sees both as a connected chain of related issues. Use it when your problem is connected to the open issue but is a new, distinct occurrence. When a fix ships for any issue in the chain, the other open issues in the chain are marked ready for testing with it and their contacts are notified.

Q: What system information is sent with a new issue? A: Margin Master automatically collects: application version, Windows version, SQL Server version and edition, database name, server name, store number, vendor name, RSC, and POS system. This helps support diagnose environment-specific issues without asking you for details.

Q: The issue pill disappeared. What happened? A: The pill only appears when there are open issues. If all your issues have been resolved or closed, the pill is hidden. It will reappear if a new issue is opened or an existing issue is reopened.

Q: Can I add CC contacts to receive notifications? A: Yes. On the contact step of the submission wizard, click Add CC Contacts... to select additional contacts who should receive email notifications about the issue.

Q: How often does the open issues list refresh? A: Open issues are fetched from the server when the application starts. The list updates automatically after you submit, update, or resolve an issue.

Q: How many emails will I receive about my issue? A: At most three: one when the issue is received, one when work begins, and one when a fix is ready for testing or the issue is resolved. You may also receive emails if the support team adds a comment to your issue.

Q: What happens if I don't respond to the "Fix Ready for Testing" email? A: After three days, the issue will automatically be marked as resolved. If the problem returns later, you can reopen the issue at any time from Help > Support Issues.

Q: Can I reopen a closed issue? A: Yes. Open Help > Support Issues, select the closed issue, and click Reopen Issue. The support team will be notified.

Q: Where can I see resolved issues? A: The Help > Support Issues window shows all your issues, including resolved and closed ones. You can view their full history, add comments, or reopen them.