About Retail Extensions
Retail Extensions · the App library in Desk · checked 2026-10-18
Retail Extensions are apps you add to iVendNext from the App library, in Desk. Each one does one job, such as an approval before a price changes, a receipt layout, a rule for a field at the till, or a connection to another system. It adds that job without changing the rest of your system. This section explains the screens you use to add, update and remove them, and how a partner can change one for you.
What an extension does for your shop
An extension is an app made for iVendNext, by iVendNext or by a partner. Before you install one, its card in the App library tells you what it does, what you set up first and who uses it. When you install it, iVendNext lists exactly what it changes on your site. The list names the record types, buttons, print layouts and till keys the app adds, and any outside address it may call. Nothing is installed until you accept that list.
The App library shows the apps in three groups:
| Group | What it means |
|---|---|
| Ready to add | You install these yourself. A free app needs a free key, and the others need a key. |
| Installed | These are on your site now, or iVendNext is installing them. |
| Part of iVendNext | These run inside your site. Your partner adds them. If you have no partner, ask us through Help. |
Apps and Rules
Every extension in the App library is one of two kinds. This site shows them in two groups, Apps and Rules.
| Kind | What it is | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| App | A complete app. It adds records your team works in every day, or a screen of its own. | Bin locations, Customer-owned loyalty, Price change approvals |
| Rule | One check, field or layout added to a screen you already use. It adds only the settings it needs. | Till guard rules, Warranty terms, UAE tax invoice receipt |
An App has records you create or review in your daily work, such as a bin, a member, a deviation or an approval, or a screen of its own, such as a kiosk. A Rule has none of that. It has a rule record, a unit code, a warranty term or a setting, and it acts on a screen you already use.
You can use an App or a Rule without changes. If it nearly fits your shop, a partner can change it for you: see How to customize. Every app and rule lists every one with its kind.
What the screens call them
Your screens use two other words, and neither means an App or a Rule.
| Word | What it means on your screens |
|---|---|
| Package | The record iVendNext keeps for each app you install, one per version. You see it under Extension Packages. |
| Module | A small program from a partner that does one job for your shop, such as a check before payment. You add one under Extension Modules. |
The screens of this section
Each page of this section covers one screen in Desk. You find the six screens on the Retail Extensions card of the settings workspace, and you find the others by searching for their names.
| Screen | What it is for | Page |
|---|---|---|
| App library | Find an app and install it | The App library |
| Extension Packages | Install, update and see each app's record | Installing and updating |
| Retail Extension Install | Read what the installer made for an app | Install records |
| Extension Subscriptions | Turn on a service or a check that an app answers | Turning on a service or a check |
| Extension Modules | Add a partner's small program | Modules |
| Connected apps | See every app on your site and where it runs | Connected apps |
| Extension Log | Read what partner apps did on your site | The extension log |
To take an app off your site, see Removing an extension.
Building an extension
Partners build extensions with the iVendNext Partner Kit, at developer.ivendnext.com.