Inventory
Archive, restore & delete products
Why we archive instead of deleting, and how re-adding an SKU works.
PharmaPOS archives products by default instead of deleting them. This is deliberate.
Why archive, not delete
- Compliance — if a drug inspector or GSTR-1 audit asks for a sale from six months ago, the product on that invoice must still exist. Deletion breaks history.
- Ledgers — customer credit against a deleted product would orphan the transaction.
- Analytics — historical trends need continuous data.
Archive a product
From the product page, click Archive. The product disappears from search, billing, and the catalog list. Its batches remain queryable for reports and returns. Sales and purchases that reference it still work.
Smart restore on re-add
If you archive an SKU (say SKU-55) and later add a product with the same SKU or barcode — either manually or through a bulk import — PharmaPOS detects the match and offers Restore. Choosing Restore reactivates the original with all its history and links; choosing Add new creates a fresh product with a new SKU.
When you actually need to delete
You almost never do. But if you added a garbage row during import and it has zero movement, you can Delete permanently from the archived list. Owner role required; the button is gated behind a confirm dialog.
Still stuck?
Email us at support@pharmapos.org — we usually reply within a business day.