Preload is for anyone who buys TRMNL devices in bulk, whether for internal use or distribution to end users and clients.
Just import your storefront order, select a few plugins (published or unlisted), and you're done. When each device is claimed by an actual user, the plugin will be preconfigured on their account.
Prerequisites
A TRMNL account
The order number (e.g. #1234) and purchase email for each batch of devices
Step 1 - Install the Preload app
Visit Apps and click Install next to Preload. You can also get there from Account > Preferences > Explore Apps.
Step 2 - Import your orders
Input the order number from your checkout confirmation email and the email address associated with that order, then click Import order. The # is optional. Import each order to aggregate all the devices you want to preconfigure with plugins.
Each imported order will show three numbers:
Shipped, devices from the order that have left our warehouse
Claimed, devices someone has added to their account
Waiting, devices that will preload your plugins when someone claims them
You can import an order before it ships, we'll listen for status updates.
Just be sure to import your orders before distributing the devices. Once a device is claimed, you cannot preload it.
Step 3 - Choose your plugins
A "Plugins to preload" section will appear once you've imported your first order. Paste a link to a plugin from the Integrations directory, or a recipe from Recipes, or a private+unlisted plugin, then click Add plugin.
Recipes install ready to go. The list shows any fields the new owner fills in.
Plugins such as Google Calendar arrive in the playlist waiting for setup. The new owner connects their own account.
Only published plugins, and published or unlisted recipes, can preload. To preload a private plugin of your own, publish it as an unlisted recipe and add the recipe link.
Step 4 - You're done!
Distribute the devices. When each one is claimed (set up / unboxed) for the first time, your plugins appear in the new owner's playlist. If the plugin(s) you linked require additional setup steps, for example inputting an API key or password, those will be made clear to the end-user in their dashboard and playlist.
You can change the plugin list at any time. Changes reach every device nobody has claimed yet. A device preloads only once, so devices already claimed keep what they got.
To stop preloading an order's devices, click Remove next to that order row. To stop preloading everything, uninstall the app at the bottom of the page. Both leave claimed devices as they are.
Troubleshooting
"We couldn't match that order number and email."
Use the email address the order was placed with. It is the one your confirmation email went to.
"This order is linked to another account."
An order can be imported by one account at a time. If a colleague imported it, they can remove it from their Preload app. Otherwise, contact support.
An order says "No devices from this order have shipped yet."
It may not have shipped yet. If we combined it with another of your orders when it shipped, import that order instead.
"Too many attempts. Try again later."
You get 10 import attempts an hour. Wait an hour and try again.
"We couldn't reach our store."
Try again in a few minutes.
"Preloading is paused for this account."
Contact support, we're available via live chat if you click the bubble in the bottom corner of this screen.
"We couldn't find a published plugin or recipe with that link."
Check that the link goes to a published plugin, or to a published or unlisted recipe.
A row says a recipe or plugin "is not available".
Its author unpublished it, so devices skip it. Remove it and add a replacement.
A device did not get my plugins.
It was claimed before you imported its order, or it shipped on an order you have not imported. Import the order, then any device from it that nobody has claimed yet will preload.