Configure biometric attendance devices

1. Overview & Business Value#

This comprehensive operational guide details the architecture, business workflows, configuration parameters, and execution steps for Configure biometric attendance devices within SmartERP.

This guide is for IT Systems Administrators and Attendance Supervisors connecting physical biometric terminals.

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2. Prerequisites & Security Access Groups#

• Required Modules: hr, hr_payroll, hr_holidays, smarterp_ethiopian_payroll
• Security Groups:
  • Officer: Manage all employees (Technical ID: hr.group_hr_user)
  • Payroll Officer (Technical ID: hr_payroll.group_hr_payroll_user)
  • HR Administrator (Technical ID: hr.group_hr_manager)
• Master Data Dependencies: Company departments, job positions, salary structures, 7-tier Ethiopian income tax brackets, POESSA/PSSPA pension rates, and employee contracts.

3. Step-by-Step Configuration & Execution#

Step 1: Navigating to the Module Interface#

1. Log into your SmartERP instance at https://smarterp.et/odoo.
2. Open the main App Switcher (grid icon in the top-left corner).
3. Select the Employees app icon.
4. From the top navigation bar, open Human Resources → Employees / Contracts / Attendance / Time Off / Payroll.

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Step 2: Creating and Parameterizing Records#

1. Click the New button in the top-left control panel.
2. Complete the mandatory fields in the record form:
   • Employee Name (Mandatory): Legal employee name matching national identity card or passport
   • Department & Job Position (Mandatory): Assigned administrative unit and official role title
   • Contract / Salary Structure (Mandatory): Active employment contract defining basic salary and statutory allowances
   • Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) (Mandatory): Mandatory 10-digit MOR tax identifier for payroll declaration
3. Configure optional operational parameters and localized tags as required:
   • Pension Scheme Number (Optional): POESSA private or PSSPA public pension account number
   • Bank Account Details (Optional): Commercial bank account number for direct net pay credit transfers
   • Work Mobile & Email (Optional): Internal enterprise communication coordinates
4. Click the Save icon in the control bar to commit the record.

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Step 3: Validating and Processing Transactions#

• State Transitions: Execute operational state progression (Draft → Pending Review → Verified → Approved / Running → Closed).
• Ledger & System Impact: Payroll batch confirmation automatically generates composite salary expense, pension payable, and tax withholding journal entries in the General Ledger.
• Audit Verification: Automated recording of author ID, timestamp, and immutable revision history.

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Configure a biometric terminal#

1. Open Attendance → Configuration → Biometric Devices and press New.
2. In Device Name, enter terminal title: e.g. Headquarters Main Gate ZKTeco.
3. In IP Address, enter the local static IP: e.g. 192.168.10.45.
4. In Port, enter standard port (e.g. 4370).
5. In Device Protocol, select ZKTeco Standalone SDK / TCP.
6. Press Test Connection. A green banner confirms communication with the terminal.

Automated punch synchronization#

1. Set Auto Sync to Active.
2. Set Sync Interval to Every 15 Minutes.
3. The background cron connects to the terminal, downloads new timestamped biometric punches (fingerprint, facial, RFID card), maps the biometric user ID to hr.employee, and inserts records into hr.attendance.

4. Advanced Configuration Points#

• Automated Actions & Scheduled Tasks (Crons):
  • HR: Compute scheduled leave accruals (hr_holidays.ir_cron_leave_accruals): Runs bi-weekly to accrue annual leave balances per Ethiopian labor law
  • Payroll: Auto-generate monthly payslip batches (hr_payroll.ir_cron_generate_payslips): Runs on the 25th of each calendar month
  • Attendance: Validate biometric clock-in logs (hr_attendance.ir_cron_sync_attendance): Runs hourly to sync biometric terminal events
• Custom Print Templates & Reports:
  • Official Ethiopian Monthly Payslip
  • POESSA / PSSPA Statutory Pension Contribution Schedule
  • MOR Employment Income Tax (PAYE) Monthly Summary
  • Employee Service & Severance Certificate
• Multi-Company Rules: Record-level security isolation under Company 1 (Ashewa Technology Solutions S.C.), preventing cross-company ledger leakage across parent and subsidiary legal entities.

5. Comprehensive Troubleshooting Matrix#

Next#

• Reconcile attendance: Reconcile attendance and timesheets.
• Compute overtime: Approve and compute overtime.