Hello! Today I have a very important news which I know will affect many of you: starting from February 1st 2022 I am going to retire the oldest version of my vendor system, MD Vendor System 4.0.1 and 4.0.2; but before panic please keep reading!

MD Vendor System 4.0.1 & 4.0.2 are two of the oldest versions running without need of any subscription, but they aren’t the only ones:

MD Vendor System 4.0.3 is the latest non-subscription version of my system and will keep working as usual.

Maintaining old versions require a lot of work, efforts and energies because for each new feature I want to introduce in the latest versions I need to make sure it won’t break anything on the older (and not supported) ones, slowing down my work and increasing the chance of making mistake; for these reasons – and since I am keeping the latest non-subscription version alive – I feel it’s time to say goodbye to those very old iterations of my vendor system.

At this point, users who are still using those old versions have mainly two options, which I am going to cover now:

1. Update all vendors running 4.0.1 and 4.0.2. For doing this the user will have to click on any vendor, go in “owner menu” and hit the “update” button to receive the update pack which will contain:
   • the latest non-subscription version 4.0.3: this version does not require any subscription to work but also it will not receive any update or new features. To update to this version users can use the auto-updater (called [Auto Updater] MD Vendor System (Full Pack) 4.0.3) which is included in the pack and will take care to automatically replace the old scripts with the chosen ones. Instructions about the update process for this version can be found here.
   • the latest subscription version 4.1.2: this version requires a subscription fee to work and it is the one which will receive support and new features. To update to this version users can use the auto-updater (called [Auto Updater] MD Vendor System (Full Pack) 4.1.2) which is included in the pack and will take care to automatically replace the old scripts with the chosen ones. Instructions about the update process for this version can be found here.
2. Export their data and prepare to migrate to another vending solution: you can easily access the MD Labs Online Services website and use the “export sales” function to save a full copy of all their sale data to be imported into any other vending solution. More information about this feature can be found in the user manual.

I know this will be a major step for many of you but I am also sure you will understand it’s a very much needed one and also appreciate the various options you are given, as well as the 2.5 months of forewarning for you to figure out which option will better fit your needs.

Lastly, I report here my usual recap about this retirement:

• Which products are going to be retired?
  • MD Vendor System
• Which versions of the above products are going to be retired?
  • version 4.0.1, released on 2017-12-01
  • version 4.0.2, released on 2018-02-21
• When this will happen? 
  • the old versions retirement will start on February 1st, 2022
• Why are you doing this?
  • the versions listed above are old: they use ‘old’ code, which relies on obsolete technology. For this reason and in order to keep improving the quality of my work, I cannot afford anymore to maintain the back-compatibility with those versions using such an old technology.
• What will happen from the retirement day?
  • all the vendors– new and existing – running one of the above versions will stop processing transactions.
• What should I do to avoid all this?
  • Consult the options explained above.

For any question or support request don’t hesitate to contact me in-world or through the MD Labs discord server.