Product Maps, MDB Codes & PA Codes | How They Work Together

Before you can track sales, manage stock, or generate a picklist, your machine needs a product map. This overview explains what a product map contains, what PA and MDB codes do, and what breaks when either is wrong.

General

Product Maps, MDB Codes & PA Codes |
How They Work Together

A product map is the link between your physical machine and Nayax Core. Without one, every sale is just a payment amount - no product name, no stock movement, no picklist. This overview explains what a product map contains, what each code does, and what goes wrong when either is incorrect.

 
Unattended Vending
 
All operators
Real Operator Scenario
"The machine is taking payments - but every transaction in the report says Unknown Product."

Priya manages 14 machines across a hospital trust. A new machine went live on Monday. By Wednesday, the site manager calls: patients are buying drinks, payments are going through, but the Nayax Core sales report is useless - every line says "Unknown Product" and stock levels have not moved at all.

The terminal was installed and connected correctly. But nobody built the product map. The machine knows how to take a payment - Nayax Core does not know what was sold, at which slot, or how many remain.

Consequence: Priya has no inventory data for the first two days of trading. The picklist for that machine is empty. The driver over-fills two slots and misses three others entirely on the first service visit.
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What a complete, accurate product map gives you from the first sale
  • Every transaction records the correct product name and price - no manual logging
  • Stock counts reduce automatically with every vend - no manual counting between fills
  • Picklists are generated from actual slot levels - drivers bring exactly what is needed
  • Remote price changes reach the correct slot - no mis-priced positions

What is a product map? Core concept

A product map is the configuration inside Nayax Core that tells the system which product sits in which physical slot on your machine. It is the bridge between the cabinet in the field and the data in the portal.

🗺
Product Map
Also called: Price list, Planogram, Map
Concrete example first
"Hospital Drinks Standard" - a product map with 18 entries, one per slot in a cold drinks machine. Each entry names the product, its price, the customer-facing button code, and the motor code. This map is assigned to four machines across the same trust. One update to the map adjusts all four machines at once.

For each slot, a product map records six things: the product name, the product group (category), the PA code, the MDB code, the PAR (capacity), and the On-Hand count (current stock). Together these six fields tell Nayax Core what is sold from a slot, how to trigger it, and how full it is.

A product map is reusable. The same map can be assigned to multiple machines of the same type. When you update a product or price in the map, every machine using that map reflects the change at the next sync.

⚠
Without a product mapThe terminal processes payments but Nayax Core cannot attach them to a product, adjust inventory, or generate a picklist. Transactions are logged as amounts only - no product name, no stock movement.
How a product map connects your machine to Nayax Core
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Physical machine
Slots, motors, keypad
>
mapped by
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Product map
PA codes, MDB codes, products, stock
>
feeds
📊
Nayax Core
Reports, picklists, prices
>
drives
✓
Automated operations
Stock tracking, driver routes
One map can be assigned to multiple machines of the same layout. Each machine can only have one active map at a time.

What is a PA code? Reporting layer

The PA code is the selection identifier - the code the customer interacts with and the code that appears in every transaction report.

A3
PA Code
Also called: Product selection code, DEX number, Selection code
Concrete example first
A customer presses A3 on a snack machine to select a bag of crisps. That button label - A3 - is the PA code for that slot. Every time someone buys from A3, the DEX report records a transaction against A3. When Priya opens the transaction log in Nayax Core, she sees A3 against each crisp sale.

The PA code is the customer-facing button or slot label on the machine - the alphanumeric reference printed next to each selection. It is the identifier that appears in DEX transaction files and in Nayax Core's live reports. You source it from the machine's physical keypad or its documentation.

Format
Alphanumeric - can contain letters and numbers.
Examples: A3 B6 C12
Where to find it
Stand in front of the machine. The label next to each selection button is the PA code for that slot.

What is an MDB code? Physical layer

The MDB code works at the hardware level - it is the command sent to the machine to fire a specific motor. It is invisible to the customer but essential to every sale.

14
MDB Code
Also called: Machine bin code, Motor code, Vend code
Concrete example first
A payment is approved for slot A3. The Nayax terminal sends the number 14 to the machine over the MDB protocol. The machine reads 14, recognises it as the motor for that specific bin, and the spiral turns. The product drops. If the code entered in Nayax Core is 15 instead of 14, the wrong motor fires - and the customer receives the wrong product, or nothing at all.

The MDB code is the numeric command the Nayax terminal sends to the vending machine controller to trigger a specific physical bin during a sale. It comes from the machine itself - from its technical documentation or the manufacturer - not from Nayax Core. It is the hardware instruction; the PA code is the reporting reference.

Format
Numeric only - no letters.
Examples: 1 14 23
Where to find it
The machine's technical documentation or the manufacturer's bin map. Not visible on the machine exterior.
MDB codes are machine-specific. The same code number on two different machines - even two identical models - can refer to two different physical bins. Never copy MDB codes from one machine to another without verifying them against that specific machine's documentation.

PA and MDB codes both identify the same physical slot, but at completely different layers. Confusing them is the most common product map error Nayax support fields.

  PA Code MDB Code
Layer Reporting - how the sale appears in data Physical - which motor fires during the vend
Format Alphanumeric (letters + numbers) - e.g. A3, B6 Numeric only - e.g. 14, 23
Source Keypad fascia or machine documentation - visible to the customer Machine technical documentation or manufacturer - internal only
Same across machines? Often consistent between same-model machines Machine-specific - never assume two machines share the same codes
Wrong code effect Transaction logs against the wrong product in reports Wrong motor fires - wrong product dispensed to the customer

Stock fields: PAR, On-Hand, and Missing Inventory

These three values are how Nayax Core knows what needs restocking - and how your driver's picklist is generated without anyone counting a single slot manually.

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PAR
Slot capacity - the ceiling
Example
A spiral holds 12 bags of crisps when completely full. PAR = 12.

The maximum number of items this slot can hold. It does not change unless the slot is refitted. Set it once - it is the reference point for all stock calculations.

🔢
On-Hand
Current stock - the live count
Example
At setup, you count 7 bags in the slot. On-Hand = 7. After two more sales, it becomes 5 - automatically.

The actual number of items in this slot right now. Entered once at setup, then reduced automatically by every sale. You never update it manually between fills.

How Nayax Core drives your picklist
PAR
−
On-Hand
=
Missing
Example: PAR is 13. On-Hand is 7. Missing = 6. Your driver's picklist shows "bring 6 units of Walkers Ready Salted to fill slot B4." Missing updates automatically as sales reduce On-Hand - no manual counting needed between service visits.
Quick Reference - All six product map fields at a glance
One row per field - what it is, what it does, and where to find the value
Field Layer What it records Source
Product Catalogue The named item sold from this slot - links to your product catalogue Your Nayax Core product catalogue
Product Group Reporting The category this product belongs to - used for report grouping and filtering Your Nayax Core product catalogue
PA Code Reporting The customer-facing selection code - appears in DEX files and transaction logs Machine keypad fascia or documentation
MDB Code Physical The motor command code - triggers the correct bin during a vend. Machine-specific Machine technical docs - verify per unit
PAR Stock Maximum slot capacity - the ceiling for stock calculations and picklist targets Physical count or machine spec sheet
On-Hand Stock Current items in slot - entered once at setup, auto-decrements with every sale Physical count at time of setup
 

 

 

FAQ

FAQ

What is the difference between a PA code and an MDB code? They both seem to refer to the same slot.

Can I copy MDB codes from another machine to save time, even if it is the same model?

Can one product map be used on multiple machines? 

What happens if a slot in the product map has no product assigned? 

Do I need to update On-Hand every time the machine is refilled? 

 

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