Website Guy Retail Cash Manager

Website Guy Retail Cash Manager (RCM) helps businesses control physical cash from daily reconciliation through safe custody and banking. It is designed for retailers, cafes, hospitality businesses, service businesses and other organisations that handle cash and want to move beyond spreadsheets, paper sheets, manual processes or disconnected systems. RCM is not a point-of-sale system. It works alongside your existing POS, ecommerce platform or sales process, recording what happened after trading so that cash, card totals, expenses and physical cash movements can be reconciled and understood. You do not need an existing WordPress website, WooCommerce store or ecommerce business. RCM can run on a dedicated WordPress installation used purely as an internal business application. If you would like to use RCM without managing WordPress or hosting yourself, Website Guy can set up, host and maintain a suitable installation for you. RCM includes guided first-run setup for your business, branch, payments, cash handling, people and notifications. Each operator can use an individual RCM login with branch membership and granular access. Businesses can require a different eligible person to authenticate and approve selected higher-risk actions, preserving both performer and approver in the audit trail. Guided Setup New installations include a Setup Wizard that asks practical questions about how the business works. It covers the business and first branch, payment methods, cash handling, the till float and counting approach, people and branch access, optional second-person approval, and notifications without expecting the administrator to understand RCM's internal configuration terminology. Automatic first-run setup is limited to genuinely unconfigured installations. Existing installations with branches, configuration or operational history are not arbitrarily forced through fresh onboarding. Administrators can deliberately reopen the Wizard later to review a branch without resetting its operational records. People & Access RCM membership connects a WordPress user to one or more branches. Manager, Supervisor and Staff profiles provide practical starting permissions for new assignments: Manager starts with broad branch operation and management access, Supervisor with day-to-day operation and review access, and Staff with a restricted routine-work experience. Profiles are starting points rather than the security mechanism by themselves. Effective branch permissions control what each person can see and do, authorised managers can choose branch membership, and changing a profile template does not silently rewrite permissions already granted to existing members. A WordPress user is not automatically an RCM member or employee. Login and Staff Attribution RCM uses WordPress authentication through an application-focused sign-in screen with Remember Me and the normal forgotten-password workflow. Operational accounts created inside RCM receive a temporary password that must be replaced on first sign-in. Restricted frontend-only accounts are returned to the RCM application and kept out of normal wp-admin areas. For supported operations, RCM can use the signed-in branch member as the authenticated actor. This improves accountability compared with relying only on typed names, but it does not remove Staff Signoff. Staff Signoff remains the operational name attached to Cash-Ups, counts and other established workflows, and a Staff Signoff name does not create a WordPress login. Second-Person Approvals Each branch can optionally require another authorised person to approve selected sensitive actions, such as configured completion, cancellation, reversal, variance and maintenance operations. The person performing the action cannot approve their own action. The approver must be an active member of the same branch, have the required approval access, and authenticate with their own WordPress password. RCM retains both performer and approver identities and the approval event in the audit history. Minimum eligible-approver rules prevent a branch from enabling an approval policy that cannot be operated safely. This is sometimes called four-eyes approval. Daily Cash-Ups Create one Cash-Up for each branch and business day. Record expected and actual amounts for Cash, Card and other configured payment channels, with a clear discrepancy for each channel and for the overall day. A value that is not yet known can remain pending instead of being treated as zero. For cash channels, staff can enter a manual total or count by denomination. Each branch can choose whether staff count all cash in the till, including the Standard Till Float, or count only cash above the float. Full-till counting remains the default, and each saved Cash-Up keeps the counting method it used. Staff Signoff records who completed the operational step. RCM currently uses a Shared Till Group for each branch's daily Cash-Up. It does not yet provide separately controlled individual tills or multiple Cash-Ups for the same branch and day. Safe Management RCM keeps a clear picture of where physical cash is held. Depending on your branch setup, this includes the Shared Till, Banking Safe - Available Cash, an optional Change Float Safe, Sealed Cash Drops and Prepared Lodgements. Staff can count physical safes, compare a count with the expected ledger balance, and record an explicit corrective movement where a variance needs to be reconciled. This preserves a traceable operational history instead of silently changing financial records. The Safe workspace focuses on current physical safe operations, while Cash Deliveries and the Ledger have their own dedicated workspaces. Cash Drops and Recounts Cash Drops can be created from a Cash-Up and formally confirmed as sealed cash. A whole-bag recount lets authorised staff count a sealed drop by denomination, compare it with the recorded value and document any shortage or overage. The chain remains visible from Cash-Up to Drop to Safe or banking position. Lodgements and Collection Authorised staff can prepare a Lodgement from Banking Safe cash, eligible Cash Drops, or a combination of both. RCM supports partial Banking Safe contributions, denomination reconciliation, optional physical bank bags or references, and Staff Signoff while holding the prepared value separately from available cash. A Prepared Lodgement can be collected or cancelled through an audited workflow. Collection records that the physical cash has left the business. Cancellation returns the whole held value to Banking Safe - Available Cash while preserving the historical link to any related Cash Drops. Cash Deliveries Authorised staff can record cash or change physically received from a bank or cash supplier. The received amount is calculated from a denomination count and enters Banking Safe - Available Cash. It is not treated as sales or income. Each delivery can include Staff Signoff and optional supplier or reference details, and has an immutable DEL reference. If a delivery was entered incorrectly, an authorised reversal preserves the original delivery and denomination evidence while recording a separate correcting movement. The reversal is blocked when Banking Safe no longer contains enough available cash. Ledger The standalone Ledger shows immutable physical cash-movement history. It helps answer practical questions such as where cash came from, where it went, when it moved and which operational record caused it. The Ledger records physical cash movements. The Audit Log records operational, user and system actions. Together, they provide a clear history without mixing the two purposes. Expenses and Reporting Record branch expenses, including expenses paid from the till. Cancelled expenses remain visible in history but are excluded from active totals rather than being silently deleted. The dashboard provides a quick daily position. Reports include daily and date-range summaries, the Daily Cash-Up Breakdown, branch totals and discrepancy information. The Audit Log provides a read-only history of important operational actions. Branches and Operational Configuration RCM is branch-scoped. Configure each branch with its payment channels, expense types, Staff Signoff names, cash locations, denominations and standard till float. Branch configuration and records remain separate between branches. Authorised managers can control branch membership and access without granting global WordPress administrator capabilities. Starting RCM in an Existing Business Businesses with existing RCM history do not need to rewrite or delete that history just to begin using the current Cash Control workflow. Fresh Operational Cutover allows an administrator to preserve historical Cash-Ups, Expenses and Reports, physically verify the opening balances, and establish a new audited Cash Control starting point for future operations. Moving Your Setup Setup Transfer helps administrators move supported RCM configuration between sites, including branches, payment channels, expense types, Staff Signoff names, denominations, cash locations, branch permissions and selected settings. It does not transfer transactional history, WooCommerce data, passwords, credentials or unrelated WordPress settings. Every import begins with a checksum-validated dry-run and is administrator-only. Why WordPress? RCM uses WordPress as an application platform, not as a POS feature. It benefits from mature authentication, permissions, database infrastructure, localisation, hosting flexibility, software updates and plugin architecture. Improvements and security fixes can be distributed through the normal WordPress plugin update process instead of requiring businesses to maintain bespoke installations. Publication through WordPress.org also means the plugin is subject to WordPress.org review, security, packaging and compatibility expectations. This is not a certification or guarantee, but it supports a practical, maintainable way to deliver the software. Interface Choices Classic is the default RCM interface. Modern is an optional application-style interface, and each signed-in user can choose Comfortable or Compact display density. Both interfaces use the same underlying records, permissions, calculations and operational handlers. Auditability Important operational actions are recorded in the audit history. Posted cash movements are immutable where applicable, and corrections or reversals are used in preference to silently rewriting financial history. Staff Signoff supports day-to-day accountability. Current Scope RCM is not intended to replace a POS, accounting software or bank-reconciliation software. Advanced individually controlled till workflows, change given or returned, outstanding change obligations, general internal cash transfers and denomination exchanges are not yet included.

1. Install Website Guy Retail Cash Manager from WordPress.org, or upload the plugin ZIP through Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin.
2. Activate the plugin.
3. On activation, RCM creates a Cash Management page when one does not already exist. The page uses [websiteguy_retail_cash_manager].
4. Open Retail Cash Manager in WordPress admin and create or configure your branch.
5. Add Staff Signoff names, payment channels, expense types, cash locations, denomination settings and the branch standard till float as needed.
6. Assign branch permissions to the appropriate WordPress users.
7. Open the Cash Management page, select a branch and begin entering Cash-Ups.

If your site already has a suitable page, place [websiteguy_retail_cash_manager] on that page. The shortcode requires a signed-in user with the relevant RCM access.

0.5.1

• Fixed Classic and Modern interface switching on sites using logged-in/private page caching.
• Marked the user-specific RCM workspace and login form as non-cacheable while leaving the rest of the site cacheable.
• Invalidated the switching user's LiteSpeed private cache after a successful interface preference save.
• Expanded public and installed documentation for the Setup Wizard, People & Access, authenticated Staff attribution, second-person approval, login behavior and Cash-Up float counting introduced in 0.5.0.

0.5.0

• Added a guided Setup Wizard for first-branch configuration, payments, cash handling, people, notifications and fresh-zero onboarding.
• Added People & Access with Staff, Supervisor and Manager profiles backed by granular branch permissions.
• Added frontend RCM sign-in/session controls, authenticated performer attribution and bounded user search.
• Added independently configurable second-person approval for higher-risk actions, with self-approval prevention and immutable approval events.
• Added a branch-level choice to count the full till including float or only cash above the float, preserving the basis used by saved Cash-Ups and meaningful drafts.
• Expanded post-Wizard settings and in-plugin documentation without forcing established installations through destructive onboarding.
• Improved Classic and Modern responsive Cash-Up presentation and request performance while preserving financial calculations.
• Hardened access, approval, migration, security and regression coverage for the new release.

0.4.5

• Added denomination-counted Cash Deliveries from external suppliers into Banking Safe - Available Cash.
• Added Staff Signoff, optional supplier/reference details, immutable DEL references, audit history and duplicate-submit protection.
• Added immutable reversal with sufficient-Safe protection while preserving the original delivery and denomination evidence.
• Added standalone Cash Deliveries and Ledger workspaces and simplified Safe around physical safe operations.
• Kept Shared Till Group configuration in Branch Settings > Cash Locations and normalized retired Safe subsection links.

0.4.4

• Added Lodgements & Collection for preparing, tracking, cancelling and collecting bank lodgements.
• Prepare lodgements from Banking Safe cash, eligible Cash Drops, or a combination of both.
• Added denomination and optional bank-bag tracking with Staff Signoff and full audit history.
• Added dedicated Safe and Lodgements navigation.
• Added fast progressive Prepare, Collect and Cancel actions while retaining the non-JavaScript fallback.
• Improved cash-control safeguards around concurrent preparation, operational cutover and setup transfer.

0.4.3

• Completely refreshed the WordPress.org description, installation guide and FAQ.
• Normalized release versioning so sites running earlier 0.4.2 development snapshots can receive the finalized stable code through normal WordPress updates.
• Includes the finalized Branch Settings response fix, performance improvements, protected branch operational reset, Fresh Operational Cutover and WordPress.org compliance hardening present in the current stable codebase.

0.4.2

• Added an optional Modern application interface while retaining Classic as the default fallback.
• Added a per-user Classic/Modern preference, safe preview, responsive desktop sidebar, and mobile navigation drawer.
• Added independent Comfortable and Compact display-density preferences, context-preserving interface switching, and dirty-form protection.
• Improved dashboard and shared application presentation, Cash-Up semantic columns and field alignment, Compact nested content/control density, accessibility, and button-state contrast.
• Fixed Classic Compact Cash-Up column overlap and inconsistent Modern action-button and field widths.
• Hardened WordPress.org identifiers and verified every active translation call uses the literal website-guy-retail-cash-manager text domain.
• Removed the generic legacy shortcode; use [websiteguy_retail_cash_manager].
• Isolated the configurable Classic accent from the fixed blue Modern interface palette.
• No database schema migration is required; both interfaces use the same operational data and handlers.

0.4.1

• Added whole-bag Cash Drop recount drafts with exclusive bag reservations and denomination snapshots.
• Matching recounts transfer recorded value to Banking Safe Available; shortages and overages use an explicit variance movement.
• Added Staff Signoff completion, manager variance review, stale-draft warnings, cancellation, immutable history, and reversal.
• Added recount permissions, audit/ledger integration, Setup Transfer exclusions, and dependency-safe Danger Zone ordering.
• Added provider-agnostic zero-, one-, and two-value card modes, staged provider-total completion after cash is closed, and audited card corrections.
• Added an authorised branch picker that preserves allowlisted view context, protects unsaved forms, and retains Cash Control fragments.
• Extended Compact density to populated Cash-Up, Cash Drop, recount, Safe Count, movement, and history detail components.
• Cash-side correction is blocked when downstream recount evidence exists; no bag, movement, or recount history is rewritten.
• Hardened Setup Transfer, streamed import validation, localisation, and release packaging for WordPress.org review.
• Lodgement Preparation remains future work.
• This version is a release candidate undergoing final local package review.

0.4.0

• Added Cash Control V2 Phase 1 stable references, branch migration state, and guarded legacy Cash Drop reclassification.
• Banking Safe now represents available loose cash; confirmed V2 drops are tracked separately as Sealed Cash Drops.
• Added idempotent Cash-Up Clearing so the Shared Till ledger closes to standard float plus retained carried-forward cash.
• Added an authorised correction workflow that reverses a finalised Cash-Up cash-position operation before a replacement revision is posted.
• Historical Safe Counts remain visible as Legacy / scope unknown and are excluded from authoritative V2 latest-count selection.
• Submitted V2 Safe Counts require active branch Staff Signoff and reconcile expected balance to physical count through one idempotent movement when variance is non-zero.
• Added Sealed Cash Drops to Safe Overview and clarified first-live Shared Till cutover.
• Manual and denomination Cash-Up modes now share the full physical drawer basis without reinterpreting historical manual records.
• Setup Transfer format 2 carries V2 location definitions only; Danger Zone understands V2 transactional dependencies.
• Movement references use concise MOV-00001 display codes while retaining stable UUIDs and technical references internally.
• Fixed guarded Shared Till cutover confirmation handling and preserved form state after rejected requests.
• Cash Drop recount, lodgement, delivery, transfer, exchange, and full transactional transfer workflows remain out of scope.

0.3.26.2

• Added a shared Comfortable / Compact display preference per user.
• Added collapsible Cash Control sections and per-denomination bundle-counting controls.
• Improved compact Cash-Up and report layouts, Safe Count cards, history links, and Setup Transfer handling of disabled bundle overrides.
• Fixed Setup Transfer dry-run feedback, Safe Count first-save persistence, Safe Count History deep links, and required Staff Signoff validation when submitting a Safe Count.

0.3.26.1

• Added administrator-only RCM Setup Transfer for setup/configuration JSON export and merge-only import dry-runs.
• Added checksum validation, stable-key configuration matching, guarded apply confirmation, optional local test-user creation, and notification-recipient safety controls.
• Setup exports exclude cash-ups, expenses, movements, counts, audit history, WooCommerce data, passwords, and credentials.

0.3.26

• Added Safe Counts under Cash Control with manual or denomination count methods.
• Added explicit safe opening balance movements and reviewed safe variance adjustments.
• Added safe count history, corrected-count drafts, and branch permissions for safe workflows.
• Danger Zone now clears safe count transactional data while preserving safe definitions.

0.3.25.2

• Cash-Up now explains how active same-day cash expenses affect cash discrepancy.
• Saved Cash-Up view shows expense-adjusted cash reconciliation details.
• Cash-up notification emails now show the cash expense component of cash discrepancy.
• No discrepancy calculation behaviour changed.

0.3.25.1

• Cash Movement Ledger now defaults to Month to Date and includes Today, Yesterday, This Week, Last Week, This Month, Last Month, Year to Date, and All Time shortcuts.
• Cash-Up Total Sales and Expenses summary cards now show hover/focus breakdowns.
• Existing saved cash-ups now open in read-only view mode before editing.
• Simplified cash-drop confirmation wording for retail staff.
• Cash-up notification emails now include cash-drop status and details.

0.3.25

• Added an immutable general cash movement ledger and formal cash drop workflow.
• Added explicit Cash-Up confirmation for posting a Shared Till Group to Banking Safe movement.
• Added non-binding suggested drop guidance, optional bag/reference and notes, posted-drop display, and reason-required reversal/cancellation.
• Added a minimal Cash Control drop list and permission-gated read-only movement ledger.
• Existing/imported cash-ups are not converted into formal drops or historical movements.

0.3.24

• Added the authoritative branch cash-location foundation.
• Added one default Shared Till Group and Banking Safe per branch.
• Added opt-in Change Float Safe configuration with a branch-specific target.
• Associated existing and new cash-ups with the default till group without enabling multiple cash-ups per date.
• Kept dormant till, safe, and safe-ledger tables as non-authoritative compatibility placeholders.
• Added no cash movements, formal drops, safe counts, lodgements, deliveries, or transfers.

0.3.23

• Added controlled compact-mode line wrapping for Daily Cash-Up Breakdown headers.
• Added accessible collapsible Branch Settings sections.
• Added inclusive From/To date filtering and quick ranges to Expenses.
• Added standard-float helper values inside the denomination counter.
• Corrected historical Shop cash mapping so actual cash is Drop value plus Float carried over.

0.3.22

• Added a synced top horizontal scrollbar for the Daily Cash-Up Breakdown table.
• Added branch shared/default till standard float setting.
• Added cash-up cash drop and float carried-over fields with Cash-Up helper display.
• Added Cash drop and Float carried over report columns.
• Added converter and Import Tools support for historical cash drop and carried-forward values.

0.3.21

• Added a dedicated horizontal scroll wrapper for the Daily Cash-Up Breakdown report table.
• Added a compact table display toggle for large report ranges.
• Kept Date and Staff Signoff visible with sticky report-table columns where supported.

0.3.20

• Added client-side sortable headers to the Daily Cash-Up Breakdown report table.
• Added accessible sort direction states and visual indicators for sortable report columns.
• Clarified System / Maintenance audit visibility for WordPress admins in the frontend Audit Log.

0.3.19

• Fixed imported range report aggregates by adding an all-reportable-branches scope and summing active expenses directly for the inclusive date range.
• Added Week to Date, Month to Date, and Year to Date report shortcuts.
• Added Cash-Up Previous Day and Next Day navigation relative to the selected date.
• Renamed the historical import expense type Cafe supplies to Coffee / Juice Bar Supplies with a narrow upgrade rename for exact existing rows.

0.3.18

• Fixed historical converter expense branch assignment so daily B:C expense rows map to Shop by source position rather than raw label text.
• Added Import Tools branch assignment reasons to admin dry-run samples.
• Added an admin System / Maintenance audit filter so import/reset audit entries are easier to find.

0.3.17

• Added explicit Import Tools support for historical expense-only cash-up candidates, with separate dry-run/apply counts and no invented payment channel values.

0.3.16

• Fixed Import Tools dry-run validation so expenses without matching imported branch/date cash-up candidates are reported as blocking errors before apply.

0.3.15

• Improved historical import staff matching with accent-insensitive normalisation, first-component handling, unique cross-branch fallback, and ambiguous match reporting.
• Added an admin-only Users tab utility to copy missing staff signoff names between branches without copying users or permissions.

0.3.14

• Fixed an Import Tools admin fatal caused by an invalid PHP filter constant.

0.3.13

• Added guarded admin-only apply mode for historical cashbook CSV imports after a clean dry-run, with backup acknowledgement, exact confirmation phrase, no overwrite behaviour, email suppression, and one maintenance audit entry.

0.3.12

• Fixed Import Tools dry-run expense type warning consistency and clarified staff matching/non-blocking handling before future apply mode.

0.3.11

• Improved Import Tools dry-run matching for historical payment channel aliases, branch-aware expense types, and old workbook staff signoff variants.

0.3.10

• Added an admin-only Import Tools screen for dry-run validation of normalised historical import CSVs against the installed RCM database. No database writes or apply/import action are available.

0.3.9

• Made the admin Danger Zone reset safer by leaving audit-entry removal unchecked by default, adding a stronger irreversible warning, requiring backup/export acknowledgement, and styling the reset button as destructive.

0.3.8

• Added an admin-only Danger Zone reset for clearing test cash-ups, expenses, and related cash-up count data while preserving setup/configuration records.

0.3.7

• Moved Cash-Up Staff Signoff to the bottom of the form.
• Collapsed inline expense rows by default behind an Add expense button.
• Kept multiple inline expense rows inside the main Save Cash-Up flow.

0.3.6

• Added repeatable Cash-Up inline expense rows.
• Added Cash-Up same-day expenses list after the save form.
• Blank inline expense rows are ignored; partially started rows are validated.

0.3.5

• Folded Cash-Up inline expense entry into the main Save Cash-Up flow.
• Widened dashboard hover breakdown panels on desktop while preserving narrow-screen scrolling fallback.
• Added optional inline expense validation so blank fields do not create empty expenses.

0.3.4

• Added Today and Yesterday shortcuts to Cash-Up.
• Hid scoped numeric input spinner controls in the RCM app.
• Added a non-blocking all-zero denomination count warning.
• Improved dashboard hover breakdowns with low-height horizontal scrolling.

0.3.3

• Added pending expected/actual flags for cash-up channel values so blanks no longer create false zero discrepancies.
• Added an internal normalized cash-up save path for future CSV/Excel import tooling.

0.3.2

• Cleaned up the branch denomination query so the enabled-only condition is handled with explicit prepared SQL.

0.3.1

• Fixed a Cash-Up fatal error caused by an unavailable readonly helper.
• Added a QA guard to prevent the same helper call being reintroduced.

0.3.0

• Added EUR currency and denomination schema defaults.
• Added branch denomination settings and cash count mode.
• Added denomination counting to Cash-Up cash channels with live totals and saved count snapshots.
• Existing manual cash-up entry remains valid.

0.2.0

• Updated WordPress.org metadata, text domain, prefixes, and version consistency.
• Added Daily Cash-Up Breakdown, safe expense cancellation, improved notification settings, and branch-specific notification recipients.

0.1.9

• Added Expenses Yesterday shortcut, configurable email notifications, branch notification recipients, and Users tab layout polish.

0.1.8

• Added Phase 2.5 workflow polish for button contrast, staff signoff management, expense type deactivation, cash-up expense entry, and yesterday dashboard cards.
• Documented a safe CSV-first historical import pathway.

0.1.7

• Coding standards cleanup for metadata, request handling, escaping annotations, and readme structure.

0.1.6

• Added user-to-staff-signoff pathway and global accent colour reset.

0.1.5

• Phase 2 polish and dashboard/email improvements.