Printing & IoT Solutions for Odoo

Connect Odoo to every device on your floor, dock and counter.

Bista's own IoT device links your Odoo database, whether it runs on Odoo Online, Odoo.sh or your own servers, to the printers, scales, scanners, and equipment your teams use every day. It needs no VPN, no inbound firewall ports, and no printer drivers on user workstations.

Manufacturing floor Warehouse & labels (ZPL) Point of Sale
Odoo Online · Odoo.sh On-premise encrypted · outbound Bista IoT Device one per location paired by code no VPN · no inbound ports Manufacturing Label & traveler printers · scales Gauges · scanners · machine signals Warehouse Zebra / ZPL · PCL shipping printers Dot matrix · scales · scanners Point of Sale EPSON / Star receipts · kitchen Cash drawers · displays · scales
One device per site connects outbound to Odoo. Jobs and events flow down to local equipment over IP or USB.
At a glance

What are Bista's Printing & IoT Solutions?

In one sentence
A Bista-built IoT device plus Odoo modules that connect any Odoo database to on-site hardware (printers, scales, scanners and shop-floor equipment), so business events in Odoo trigger physical actions automatically.
Components
Bista IoT Device (Bista Cloud Server): the encrypted bridge between Odoo and local devices. Bista ZPL Designer: a drag-and-drop thermal label designer inside Odoo.
Where it's used
Manufacturing floor, warehouse and shipping, and Point of Sale.
Not the Odoo IoT Box
It's Bista's own device, designed for cloud-hosted Odoo: outbound-only connections, no VPN, no static IP, encrypted pairing and no-code event automation.
Odoo compatibility
Odoo Online, Odoo.sh and on-premise. ZPL Designer supports Odoo 17.0, 18.0 and 19.0.
Supported printers
Zebra (ZPL RAW), generic PCL, Star TSP raster, EPSON receipt, dot matrix, and any device addressable by IP and port.
Pricing
ZPL Designer: $129 one-time, perpetual license, with no per-label fees. IoT device: priced for your environment.

Provided by Bista Solutions, an Odoo Gold Partner and 8-time Odoo Best Partner for North America.

Why Bista's device

Built for Odoo in the cloud and hardware on the ground

Most Odoo companies now run in the cloud, but their printers, scales and machines stay on a local network. Our device was designed from the start to bridge that gap securely, without IT projects at every site.

Works with any Odoo hosting

Odoo Online, Odoo.sh or on-premise. You don't need to change how or where Odoo is hosted.

Online · .sh · On-prem

No VPN, no inbound ports

The device connects outbound to Odoo, so you don't need port forwarding, router changes or inbound firewall rules.

outbound-only

No static IP required

The device checks Odoo for new jobs and sends them to local devices, so it works on ordinary business internet connections.

poll & route

Encrypted by design

All traffic between Odoo and the device uses Fernet symmetric encryption. Pairing uses a code, so credentials never travel in plain text.

Fernet · pairing code

Install once, everyone prints

Set it up once per site and every Odoo user can print. You don't need to install drivers or configure each workstation.

zero workstation setup

Multi-site device pools

Run an independent device at each plant, warehouse, store or region, each with its own pool of devices, all managed from one Odoo.

per site · per building

1-click device discovery

Fetch and sync every registered printer into Odoo in one click. Odoo skips devices it already has, so you don't get duplicates.

auto-sync

No-code event automation

Print automatically when a lot is created, a transfer is validated or a sales order is confirmed. Rules are set in the Odoo interface.

events · domains · methods

Extended and supported by Bista — the team that builds the device also implements Odoo, so we can adapt workflows and device support to your operation. 8× Odoo Best Partner

Manufacturing floor integration

Connect the shop floor to Odoo Manufacturing

Operators on a busy plant floor shouldn't be retyping weights, walking to a shared printer or hunting for the right label template. Bista's IoT device connects work centers to Odoo, so production data is captured when the work happens and labels print where the part is.

  • Labels and travelers print at the work centerWhen an operation is completed, a lot or serial number is created, or a transfer is validated, Odoo sends the right label or traveler to the printer at that station. No one has to press print.
  • Weights and measurements go straight into OdooProduction and packing scales and measuring gauges send readings directly to the work order or quality check, removing transcription errors and giving you a record of every reading.
  • Scan instead of typingBarcode scanners at each station identify work orders, components, lots and locations, so material consumption and output are recorded accurately.
  • Hands-free operationFootswitches and station buttons can move a work order to the next step or validate it while operators keep their gloves on and their hands on the part.
  • One device per plant, one Odoo for allEach facility runs its own device and device pool. Multi-plant manufacturers manage every station from a single Odoo database, including cloud-hosted ones.
WO/00482 · Assembly Line 2SAMPLE
STEP 3 OF 5 · FINAL WEIGH & LABEL

Pump Housing Assembly, Lot 26-0914-07

24.36kgPASS
Target 24.00 – 24.50 kg · Production scale 02
  • Production scale 02
  • Label printer (ZPL, 203 dpi)
  • Station barcode scanner
  • Footswitch
Scan → scanner Print label → auto on validate Validate → footswitch
Illustrative screen. The weight is captured from the scale, and the lot label prints automatically when the step is validated.

Shop-floor devices and what they do in Odoo

DeviceConnectionOdoo workflowReplaces
Label & traveler printersZPL RAW over IP / portAuto-print lot, serial, product and work-order labels on events such as lot creation or transfer validationPre-printed labels, batch printing at a shared office printer
Industrial dot matrixIP / portMulti-part travelers, pick tickets and production paperwork in harsh environmentsHand-filled paperwork
Production & packing scalesIP / serialCapture weights on work orders, packages and quality checksReading the display and typing the value
Measuring gaugesUSB / serialRecord measurements against tolerances on quality checksClipboard measurement logs
Barcode scannersUSB / networkIdentify work orders, components, lots and locationsManual lookup and data entry
Footswitches & station buttonsUSBHands-free validate or next step on the work orderRemoving gloves to tap a tablet
Machines, counters & sensorsNetwork (project-based)Report cycle counts, output and machine statusEnd-of-shift production sheets

Device support depends on the model and connection type. During assessment we confirm which devices on your floor connect as standard and which need a project-based integration.

Built for manufacturers in

Equipment Manufacturing Metal Fabrication Medical Devices Defense & Firearms Furniture Manufacturing Food Production
Warehouse & labels · Bista ZPL Designer

Design thermal labels without leaving Odoo

A drag-and-drop visual editor for professional ZPL labels, built natively inside Odoo. Link any field on the record to the label and see a pixel-accurate preview before you print. No ZPL coding required.

$129one-time · perpetual license
no per-label fees
  • Drag-and-drop canvas for text, barcodes, QR codes, images and borders
  • Live ZPL preview with printer-grade bitmap rendering
  • Dynamic field binding to any Odoo field
  • Multi-DPI: 152, 203, 300 and 600 dpi
  • Multiline text with wrapping; static or field-bound
  • Publish control by user group
Label recordsProducts, product variants, lot/serial numbers, stock locations, stock move lines, warehouse transfers
Odoo versions17.0, 18.0, 19.0 on Odoo Online, Odoo.sh and on-premise
Barcodes supported (1–10× magnification)
Code 128EAN-13EAN-8UPC-AUPC-ECode 39Code 93Code 49PDF417Planet CodeQR Code
RECEIVINGWH/STOCK/A-14
Stainless Hex Bolt M10 × 40
SKUHB-M10-40-SS Lot26-0914-07 Qty500 EA Received2026-09-14 POP00917
HB-M10-40-SS
^XA ^FO40,40 ^A0N,40 ^FD[product.name]^FS … ^XZ
4×6 in · 203 dpi · sample
1

Create

Choose the model, size and DPI

2

Design

Drag in text & barcodes

3

Bind

Link Odoo fields

4

Preview

See the exact bitmap

5

Publish

Print from Odoo or events

How it works

Direct printing from Odoo to any printer

The device is an encrypted bridge between Odoo and your local hardware. Odoo decides what should happen and the device makes it happen on the right equipment at the right site.

1

Odoo, in the cloud or on-premise

Starts a print job or device action from any record (product, lot, transfer, work order) or from an automation rule.

→ encrypted job, outbound
2

Bista IoT Device

Receives the encrypted job, authenticates it and routes it to the correct device in the site's pool.

→ local network, IP / port or USB
3

Printer or device

Receives the job and prints or acts immediately.

✓ done, no user action required
Zebra / ZPL RAWThermal labels for warehouse and production
Generic PCLStandard office and shipping printers
Star TSP RasterPOS receipts and tickets
EPSON ReceiptCompact point-of-sale printers
Dot MatrixHigh-durability industrial printing
Network IP / PortAny device addressable on the local network

Automatic print triggers include lot creation, transfer validation and sales order confirmation, as well as custom Odoo events, method calls and domain conditions.

Point of Sale

Checkout hardware that just works with Odoo POS

Receipts, kitchen tickets, cash drawers and scales need to respond instantly at the counter. With a Bista IoT device at each store, Odoo POS reaches every device in that location, even when Odoo runs in the cloud.

🖨

Receipt printers

Print receipts and tickets on EPSON and Star TSP printers.

EPSON · Star TSP raster
🍳

Kitchen & order printers

Send orders to prep stations as soon as they're placed.

IP / port
🗄

Cash drawers

Open the drawer automatically when a cash payment is taken.

via receipt printer
🖥

Customer displays

Show line items and totals to customers as the order is built.

per register

Scales

Weigh priced-by-weight goods at checkout, straight into the order line.

deli · produce · bulk
📷

Barcode scanners & shelf labels

Scan at checkout and print price and shelf labels from ZPL Designer templates.

ZPL labels
Compare options

Bista IoT Device vs. Odoo IoT Box vs. a CUPS print server

There's more than one way to connect Odoo to hardware. Here's how the common approaches compare, so you can pick the right one for your sites.

Bista IoT DeviceOdoo IoT BoxSelf-managed CUPS server
Built and supported byBista SolutionsOdoo S.A.Your IT team (open-source CUPS + OCA module)
Odoo hostingOdoo Online, Odoo.sh, on-premiseRequires Odoo EnterpriseBest suited to on-premise or hybrid
Network setupOutbound only. No VPN, inbound ports or static IP.IoT system on the local network, paired with the databaseOdoo, CUPS and printers must reach each other. Cloud CUPS needs a forwarded port per printer.
SecurityFernet-encrypted jobs; code-based pairingManaged by OdooDepends on your configuration
Event-based auto printingNo-code rules on events, methods and domainsPrinter assigned per report or operationPrinter assigned per report
Multi-siteIndependent device pool per site, building or regionOne IoT system per locationOne server per network
Workstation setupNone. Install once per site.NoneDriver and PPD management on the server
Label designZPL Designer, drag and drop inside OdooStandard Odoo report templatesStandard Odoo report templates
Custom workflowsExtended by Bista for your devices and processesStandard supported devicesDIY

Already using Odoo IoT Boxes? Bista can run alongside them, for example adding event-based ZPL printing or connecting sites where you can't change network or firewall settings.

Deployment architectures

Three ways to connect cloud Odoo to local printers

The rule is simple: Odoo, the print service and the printer must be able to reach each other. How you arrange that decides how much network work each site needs.

OPTION A

Cloud Odoo + cloud CUPS

Both Odoo and the CUPS print server run in the cloud and send jobs over the internet to printers on site.

ProNo local device to maintain
ConA port must be opened per printer, and router port forwarding is hard to manage
OPTION B

Cloud Odoo + local CUPS

Odoo runs in the cloud and a CUPS server runs on the local network next to the printers.

ProNo extra ports to open
ConYou maintain another server on the premises
Recommended
OPTION C

Bista IoT Device

The device checks the Odoo server for new jobs, fetches them and sends them to the right printer or device.

ProNo open ports and no static IP; encrypted, automated and multi-site
Best forCloud-hosted Odoo, multiple sites, locked-down networks
Technical reference

Setup guides for IT teams

Reference steps for the self-managed CUPS approach (Options A and B). The Bista IoT Device doesn't need these steps; our team handles pairing and device discovery.

1. Install a CUPS print server on Ubuntu Install, allow remote access, share printers
  1. Install CUPS. The service starts automatically.
    sudo apt update sudo apt install cups
  2. Add your user to the lpadmin group, then log out and back in.
    sudo usermod -aG lpadmin $USER
  3. Edit /etc/cups/cupsd.conf: add Listen 0.0.0.0:631, and allow access in <Location /> and <Location /admin>. Prefer a specific range such as Allow 192.168.1.0/24 over Allow all. Set DefaultAuthType Basic, DefaultEncryption IfRequested and Browsing On.
  4. Restart CUPS and enable sharing.
    sudo systemctl restart cups sudo cupsctl --share-printers
  5. Open http://<server-ip>:631 and sign in with administrator credentials. Install specific drivers if needed with sudo apt install printer-driver-<name>.
  6. Test with lpstat -p or lp -d <printer-name> <file>.
2. Add a printer to CUPS Network, USB and Windows print server printers

Prerequisites: CUPS is running on a static IP with the web interface enabled, you have admin credentials, and the printer is reachable by IP or hostname.

  1. Go to http://<cups-server-ip>:631 → Administration → Add Printer.
  2. Network printers: select a detected printer, or enter socket://<printer-ip>:9100.
  3. USB printers: detected automatically. If one isn't listed, check the cable and power.
  4. Windows print server: use http://<username>:<password>@print_server_url/printer_path with Active Directory credentials.
  5. Select a driver or upload the manufacturer's PPD file. Set paper size, resolution and duplex defaults.
  6. Tick "Share this printer," otherwise it won't appear in Odoo. Print a test page from the Printers tab.
3. Connect CUPS printers to Odoo OCA report-print-send, fetch printers, map reports
  1. Install the OCA report-print-send modules in Odoo.
  2. Go to Settings → Printers → CUPS Servers and create a server with its name, IP address, port (default 631), username, password and authentication method.
  3. Under Settings → Printers, click "Fetch Printers."
  4. Under Settings → Technical → Reports, open a report and assign the printer.
How we deliver

From device survey to a connected site

01

Survey

We list the printers, scales, scanners and equipment at each site, along with the Odoo workflows each one should support.

02

Pilot

We connect one work center, dock or register first: pair the device, discover equipment, design labels and set up event rules.

03

Roll out

We extend to every station and site, each with its own device pool, managed from your Odoo database.

04

Support

We add devices, adjust labels and automations, and keep integrations working through Odoo upgrades.

FAQ

Printing & IoT questions

What are Bista's Printing & IoT Solutions for Odoo?

They combine Bista's own IoT device (Bista Cloud Server) with Odoo modules such as Bista ZPL Designer. Together they connect Odoo to on-site hardware, including label and receipt printers, scales, barcode scanners and manufacturing equipment, so events in Odoo trigger printing and device actions automatically on the manufacturing floor, in the warehouse and at the point of sale.

Is the Bista IoT Device the same as the Odoo IoT Box?

No. Bista's device is designed and supported by Bista Solutions. It connects outbound to Odoo using Fernet encryption and code-based pairing, so it needs no VPN, no inbound firewall ports and no static IP. It works with Odoo Online, Odoo.sh and on-premise, and it supports no-code event-based printing and separate device pools per site.

Can Bista's IoT device connect equipment on the manufacturing floor?

Yes. Manufacturing is one of its main uses. It connects work-center label and traveler printers, production and packing scales, measuring gauges, barcode scanners and footswitches to Odoo Manufacturing. Networked machines, counters and sensors can be connected as project-based integrations to report output and status.

Can I print from Odoo Online to a local printer without a VPN?

Yes. The Bista IoT Device sits on your local network and connects outbound to Odoo. It fetches print jobs and sends them to local printers over IP and port, so you don't need a VPN, port forwarding, a static IP or drivers on each workstation.

Which printers are supported?

Zebra and other ZPL thermal printers (ZPL RAW), generic PCL office and shipping printers, Star TSP raster and EPSON receipt printers, dot matrix printers, and any printer addressable by IP address and port on the local network.

Can Odoo print labels automatically?

Yes. Using no-code rules in Odoo, print jobs can run automatically on events such as lot creation, transfer validation and sales order confirmation, or on custom Odoo events, method calls and domain conditions.

What is Bista ZPL Designer and how much does it cost?

Bista ZPL Designer is a drag-and-drop thermal label designer built inside Odoo. It supports dynamic Odoo field binding, live ZPL preview, 152–600 dpi, and barcodes including Code 128, EAN-13, UPC-A, PDF417 and QR Code. It costs $129 as a one-time purchase with a perpetual license and no per-label fees, and supports Odoo 17.0, 18.0 and 19.0 on Odoo Online, Odoo.sh and on-premise.

Which Point of Sale devices can connect?

EPSON and Star receipt printers, kitchen and order printers, cash drawers, customer displays, scales and barcode scanners, with one device per store serving that location's hardware.

Is the connection secure?

Yes. All communication between Odoo and the device uses Fernet symmetric encryption, and the device pairs with Odoo using a pairing code, so credentials are never transmitted in plain text. Because the connection is outbound-only, no inbound ports are exposed on your network.

Can we use it across multiple plants, warehouses or stores?

Yes. Each site, building or region runs its own device with its own device pool, and all of them are managed from a single Odoo database.

Get started

Connect your first work center, dock or register.

Tell us what equipment you run and where Odoo is hosted. We'll show you how Bista's IoT device connects it, starting with a live demo.

sales@bistasolutions.com · +1 (858) 401-2332
1255 W 15th St, Suite 810, Plano, TX 75075
© 2026 Bista Solutions Inc. · Odoo is a trademark of Odoo S.A. Zebra, EPSON and Star are trademarks of their respective owners.