Use the real configuration
Connect the actual workstations, accounts, printers, microphones, cameras, switches, access points and backup services intended for the sale.
REFERENCE 01PRE-SALE SYSTEMS TEST
Auction Day Technical Checklist: Pre-Sale Systems Test
Use this field sequence to prove that the live auction can accept and clerk bids, carry clear audio, keep remote bidders synchronized, produce records, complete checkout and recover from a primary-path failure.
This pre-auction checklist combines venue setup, simulcast, transaction and recovery checks in one end-to-end auction systems test. The order follows dependencies rather than departments: power, local networking and platform access are proved before bidder-facing systems, transaction workflow and controlled failure tests.
BUILT FORAuctioneersOperations managersSimulcast teamsMobile auction crewsClerks & cashiers
OPERATING PRINCIPLE
Prove complete auction tasks, not isolated devices.
A powered laptop, a green router light or a successful speed test does not prove that a bidder can register, place a bid, be acknowledged by the clerk and receive a correct invoice. The useful test follows the same path that staff and bidders will use when the sale is live.
Assign one technical lead to call the sequence and one named owner for each critical task. Record outcomes as pass, limited but usable or no-go until corrected. Every limited result needs an owner, a temporary control and a clear trigger for moving to the backup path.
Complete the full task
Run a test bidder through approval, bid entry, clerking, sold result, invoice, receipt or label, checkout handoff and release record.
Prove recovery
Test loss of the primary WAN and the approved UPS transition separately. Confirm who makes the switch and how the team knows recovery succeeded.
Record the result
Keep the measured value, operator, time, station role, limitation and fallback actually tested. A bare check mark is not enough for the next crew.
Published August 1, 2026 · Prepared by Jasper Auction’s small volunteer community
BEFORE THE CLOCK STARTS
Freeze a known baseline and remove avoidable ambiguity.
These controls prevent the final test from turning into an unstructured search across every device, account and cable in the room.
Known-good configuration
Keep the last working device roles, cable paths, network settings, audio routing, camera names, printer assignments and platform profiles available for restoration.
Recent-change log
List firmware, software, account, catalog, venue, carrier, cabling or power changes made since the last successful sale. Recent changes are high-value diagnostic clues.
Named recovery owner
Identify who may move to backup internet, replace a primary workstation, simplify the audio chain, restrict a zone or delay bidder entry.
Agreed no-go conditions
Define the failures that prevent opening: no reliable bid path, unusable audio, inconsistent clerking, unsafe lighting, uncontrolled custody or an unproved critical fallback.
CONTROL DESK
Give every critical result an owner and a communication path.
One person may hold several roles at a small sale, but no critical test should rely on an unnamed “someone” fixing it after bidders arrive.
| Role | Owns | Must confirm before opening | Failure call |
|---|---|---|---|
| Technical lead | Sequence, shared infrastructure, recovery decisions | The production baseline is frozen; limitations and backup triggers are documented. | Declares technical go, conditional go or no-go and names the active workaround. |
| Auctioneer / ring lead | Room communication and bid acknowledgement | Floor, phone and online bid handoffs are understandable and the auctioneer knows the recovery script. | Pauses the lot or sale when bid visibility or communication is uncertain. |
| Clerk / simulcast operator | Lot state, bid source, increments and sold result | A complete test lot reaches the correct record and all active rings or platforms show the intended state. | Stops accepting bids when the ledger or bidder source cannot be trusted. |
| Registration / cashier | Bidder approval, invoice, checkout handoff and release documents | A test bidder can be approved and the checkout path produces the expected invoice, receipt or pickup record. | Moves to the approved spare station or continuity procedure. |
| Security / pickup lead | Access, recording, custody and release control | Critical zones are observable or have a documented physical control; timestamps and exports are usable. | Restricts the affected zone until coverage or a temporary control is in place. |
MASTER RUNBOOK
Run the final systems test in dependency order.
The times are working targets. Multi-ring, large simulcast and temporary-venue sales may begin earlier, but the order should remain: shared infrastructure, platform state, bidder-facing paths, transaction records, deliberate failure and team briefing.
Start with shared power and network dependencies before testing operator software. A downstream pass is not reliable when the infrastructure beneath it has not been proved under the real production load.
Run deliberate WAN and UPS failure tests only after the normal path passes. That separates a recovery problem from a basic configuration fault and gives the team a known state to return to.
| Time before sale | Test | Pass evidence | Fallback / owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 120–105 minutes | Venue, power and cable route. Inspect distribution, protected circuits, charging state, temporary cable paths, trip exposure, heat and weather exposure. Confirm the production stack connected to each UPS. | No damaged, overloaded or improvised connection; critical loads are identified; measured UPS load and tested runtime cover the defined interruption and transfer plan. | Technical lead removes noncritical loads, replaces suspect distribution or relocates equipment before dependent tests continue. |
| 105–90 minutes | Local network and internet path. Verify modem, router, switches, VLAN or SSID assignment, wired stations, DHCP or fixed addressing, DNS and time synchronization. Run sustained upload under representative traffic. | Required local services remain reachable; the bidding or streaming path is stable for the planned test period; measured latency, loss and upload behavior meet the platform and house baseline. | Network owner moves to the approved secondary WAN or known-good local path and records any reduced capacity. |
| 90–80 minutes | Platform and sale configuration. Confirm sale date, time zone, lot order, ring assignment, bid increments, bidder permissions, terms, buyer’s premium, tax rules, reserve and sold/no-sale behavior, accepted payment methods, pickup or shipping instructions, operator accounts, licenses and support details. | The production sale opens in the intended operator view; test accounts have the correct permissions; each ring shows the expected lot, increment, fee, tax and payment state. The support pack lists the platform contact, account or customer ID, sale or event ID, authorized caller and an alternate contact route. | Operations owner corrects configuration before live testing. If platform help is required, the named owner opens the case with the prepared identifiers. Do not work around a wrong sale, ring, fee, tax or account profile. |
| 80–65 minutes | Auctioneer audio and online feed. Test the primary and backup microphone through the actual mixer, receiver, amplifier, speakers, encoder and online bidder feed. Confirm the selected microphone and camera inputs, browser permissions, production browser profile, charger connection, disabled sleep and muted system notifications. Listen from bidder positions and a remote device. | Speech is intelligible in the room and online; gain is stable; the backup microphone works; the browser retains camera and microphone access; no notification, sleep event, intermittent connector, RF, power or routing fault interrupts the path. | Audio or simulcast operator restores the approved browser profile, swaps the microphone, removes the failed stage or moves to the rehearsed simplified signal path. |
| 65–55 minutes | Video, lot view and lighting. Check auctioneer, lot and room views where used. Review rostrum, clerk, preview and pickup lighting in the operating state, including glare on screens and camera exposure. | Remote bidders can identify the active lot and follow the sale; staff can read required information; cameras retain useful detail; no fixture creates a trip, heat or power problem. | Venue or video lead uses the documented minimum-view configuration and removes unsafe or distracting equipment. |
| 55–43 minutes | Simulcast bid round trip. From an external test device, join the live interface, submit an approved test bid, acknowledge it at the clerk station, advance the lot and confirm the sold or passed result. | The correct lot, bid amount, bidder source and clerk action stay synchronized. Floor, phone and online bid handoffs are visible and understood by the auctioneer and operator. | Simulcast operator isolates the failed platform, ring or station and activates the documented alternate bid intake or pause procedure. |
| 43–34 minutes | Registration and bidder approval. Use a test profile to verify registration questions, terms acceptance, approval status, paddle or bidder number assignment and communication to the operator view. | The bidder receives the intended permissions and identifier; staff can find the profile quickly; rejected or pending states are visible and understandable. | Registration lead moves to the spare station or approved manual intake and prevents duplicate identifiers. |
| 34–25 minutes | Clerking, invoice, payment and checkout. Clerk a test lot, correct it once, generate the invoice and verify buyer’s premium, tax and approved fees. Use the platform-approved test mode or documented low-value authorization procedure; confirm accepted payment methods, a declined-payment path, void or refund handling, cashier handoff, receipt output and pickup or release status. Do not create an unapproved live charge. | The correct charges reach the ledger and invoice; approved, declined and voided states are visible where required; the receipt is produced; release remains blocked until the approved payment or continuity status is recorded; no duplicate entry or manual reconstruction is needed. | Cashier or operations lead moves to the approved spare station or documented payment continuity process, records the active limitation and prevents release against an uncertain payment state. |
| 25–18 minutes | Security, timestamps and custody. Record and retrieve an event at entrances, cashier, preview and pickup. Confirm camera names, time alignment, retention state and export access. | Staff can locate the event, identify the zone and preserve the required time range. Any uncovered zone has a named temporary control. | Security lead restores recording, restricts access or assigns documented physical custody for the affected zone. |
| 18–12 minutes | Primary WAN failure. Disconnect or disable the primary path using the approved method. Observe local operation, stream or bid interruption, failover, staff notification and recovery. | The secondary path activates within the operation's accepted interruption; critical local records remain available; staff can state what changed and what capacity is reduced. | Technical lead keeps the verified backup active or declares the affected online service no-go. |
| 12–8 minutes | Utility-power interruption. Simulate loss of utility power through the approved UPS test procedure. Do not improvise electrical isolation. Observe alarms, protected loads, runtime and orderly recovery. | Critical devices remain powered for the planned response window; the team can shed noncritical loads and restore service without losing the sale record. | Technical lead removes nonessential loads, replaces the UPS path or delays opening until continuity is credible. |
| 8–0 minutes | Final brief and configuration freeze. Brief auctioneer, clerk, cashier, registration, floor, security and pickup staff on the active path, known limitations, pause words and recovery trigger. | Each owner can state the first action, contact and fallback for their task. No unapproved software, account, cable or routing change remains in progress. | Operations lead delays bidder entry or simplifies the workflow until roles and limits are clear. |
SIMULCAST PROOF TEST
Test from the remote bidder's side, not only from the control desk.
A local operator view can look healthy while a remote bidder sees the wrong lot, delayed audio, a pending registration or a bid that never reaches the clerk. Use a device and connection outside the production LAN where practical.
Use the production sale, intended operator accounts and a controlled external connection. A test performed only inside the venue can miss registration, routing, audio and synchronization failures visible to remote bidders.
The pass condition is one complete bid round trip: the correct lot is visible, the bid reaches the clerk, the auctioneer can identify the source and the final result reaches every required record.
- 01
Confirm the public sale state
Check the published start time, time zone, active ring, lot order, images, terms, bid increments, buyer’s premium, taxes or fees, accepted payment methods, pickup or shipping instructions, soft-close or extension behavior where used, and bidder registration state from the same interface remote bidders will use.
- 02
Join through an independent connection
Use a controlled external connection, such as a separate cellular path, so the test does not prove only that devices on the venue network can see one another.
- 03
Verify audio, video and lot identity together
Confirm that the auctioneer call, visible lot, catalog record and clerk console refer to the same item. Check the selected camera and microphone, browser permissions, production browser profile, charger, sleep settings and notification state. Audio must remain intelligible when the auctioneer moves and the room becomes active.
- 04
Run competing bid sources
Rehearse a floor bid, an online bid and—when used—a phone or absentee bid. The auctioneer and clerk must agree who sees each source and how an uncertain handoff pauses the lot.
- 05
Advance, correct and close a test lot
Change the active lot, correct one clerk action and complete a sold or passed result. Verify that the expected state reaches every operator view and downstream record.
- 06
Clean the test data
Remove or clearly mark test bidders, bids, lots, invoices and messages using the platform's approved workflow. Reopen the production view and confirm that no test state remains.
COMMERCIAL PATH
Prove the financial and release path, not only the invoice.
A correct sold result is incomplete when fees, tax, payment state or release control can still fail after the hammer falls.
Buyer’s premium, tax and sale rules
Confirm the correct buyer’s premium, taxes, approved fees, reserve behavior, sold/no-sale result and any ring-specific rule against a controlled test lot.
Production payment path
Verify the intended live merchant or gateway account, accepted payment methods and the platform-approved test mode or documented low-value authorization procedure. Never create an unapproved live charge.
Decline, void and refund handling
Make sure staff know how a declined payment is shown, who may retry or change the method, how a test authorization is voided and how a refund or offline continuity record is documented.
Paid status and custody handoff
Confirm that pickup, shipping or release documents use the expected payment status and that staff cannot release property against an uncertain, duplicated or incomplete transaction record.
FIELD EVIDENCE
Record enough detail to rebuild the successful setup.
A pass mark without context is weak evidence. Keep the venue or sale identifier, test time, operator, station role, software or firmware version where relevant, measured result, active network path and fallback actually tested.
Do not turn the record into a full engineering report. The useful baseline is short: what was connected, what was measured, what passed, what remained limited, who accepted the limitation and what configuration must not change before opening.
FAILURE ISOLATION
When a test fails, move backward through the path.
Start with the failed task, then isolate the lowest shared layer that can explain it. Change one variable at a time and stop experimenting when the rehearsed fallback threshold is reached.
- 01
State the failed task and exact symptom
Use operational language: no online bid received, clerk result delayed, auctioneer audio unintelligible, invoice not produced, recording unavailable or pickup record missing.
- 02
Check shared power and physical connection
Verify power, charging state, cable seating, link indicators, adapters, the intended port and obvious damage before changing application settings.
- 03
Confirm device, role, browser and account assignment
Check that the correct workstation, printer, audio input, camera, browser profile, camera and microphone permissions, ring, user account and software profile are assigned to the task.
- 04
Separate the local path from the external service
Prove local switching, Wi-Fi, audio routing, USB or printer communication before blaming the carrier, cloud platform or remote bidding provider.
- 05
Compare against the known-good baseline
Restore the last working route or station role and review recent changes. Avoid updating firmware, drivers or applications during the final window unless the approved recovery depends on it.
- 06
Move to the rehearsed fallback
When the recovery trigger is reached, stop troubleshooting and activate the tested backup. Record the primary fault for controlled work after the sale.
GO / NO-GO
Open with controlled limitations, not unknown critical failures.
Not every imperfection stops a sale. The decision is whether every critical task can be completed safely, recorded correctly and recovered within the operation's accepted interruption.
Separate cosmetic or noncritical defects from failures that affect bidding, sale records, payment, safety or custody. A conditional go is valid only when the alternate path has already been tested and its reduced capacity is understood.
Name the person with authority to open, delay or restrict the sale. The final briefing should state every limitation, the fallback trigger, the responsible owner and the point at which the operation must stop.
| Condition | Decision | Required action | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary WAN failed; the tested secondary WAN is stable and staff know the handoff | Conditional go | Keep the verified backup active, reduce nonessential traffic and record the limitation. | The required bid path remains available through a proven independent route. |
| Remote bid round trip fails or the clerk cannot identify the active bidder source | No-go for simulcast | Restore synchronization, isolate the affected platform or use the approved pause or alternate intake procedure. | The auctioneer cannot confidently acknowledge competing bids. |
| Auctioneer audio is intermittent or unintelligible in bidder areas or online | No-go | Move to the backup microphone or simplified audio path and repeat both room and remote tests. | Bidders cannot reliably follow or respond to the sale. |
| One noncritical printer failed; invoices can be produced at the warm spare station | Conditional go | Reassign output, label the failed station and brief checkout staff. | The transaction can still be completed without manual reconstruction. |
| Clerk actions do not consistently reach the sale record | No-go | Restore the production path or activate the approved continuity process before accepting bids. | The sale record may be incomplete or unreliable. |
| A high-value preview or pickup zone lacks useful coverage and has no temporary custody control | No-go for that zone | Restore coverage, restrict access or assign a documented physical control. | The custody path cannot be verified or controlled. |
| UPS runtime is below the documented response window for the critical stack | No-go until corrected | Reduce protected load, replace the UPS path or provide the approved alternate supply. | A brief utility interruption could remove multiple critical services at once. |
| A cosmetic display, secondary monitor or nonessential light failed | Go | Remove the failed item safely and record it for post-sale repair. | The core bid, record, safety and custody tasks remain intact. |
MINIMUM FIELD RECORD
Leave the next crew a usable technical baseline.
The final record should be short enough to complete under pressure and specific enough to reproduce the working setup.
Sale and configuration
Venue, sale ID, ring, active platform, catalog version, date, test start and the production configuration label.
Observed result
Network path, sustained test result, UPS load and runtime, audio or video result, transaction result and security export result.
Known issue and control
What remains degraded, which task is affected, the temporary control, backup capacity and the trigger for stopping or switching.
Owner and approval
Name the test operator, recovery owner, person authorizing conditional opening and the time the configuration was frozen.
OPERATING QUESTIONS
Common questions before opening the auction.
These answers keep the checklist practical across permanent auction rooms, mobile crews and multi-platform simulcast sales.
- Q1
Is a speed test enough to approve the internet path?
No. Record it as one measurement, then run the actual bidding or streaming workflow under representative traffic. Stability, routing, account access and end-to-end task completion matter more than one peak number.
- Q2
Should the backup internet be tested during the live configuration?
Yes. A backup that has not carried the production task is only an assumption. Prove connection, addressing, required services, reduced capacity and the staff handoff before bidder entry.
- Q3
Can the sale open on a backup path?
Only when the backup has passed the critical workflow, staff know its limits and the go / no-go owner accepts the reduced capacity. Record that the backup is the active production path.
- Q4
How should multi-ring sales be tested?
Treat every ring as a separate production path, then test shared dependencies. Confirm ring assignment, lot range, audio or video source, clerk account, bidder view and failure impact for each ring.
- Q5
What changes should be frozen after the checklist passes?
Freeze nonessential software updates, account changes, cable moves, network changes, audio rerouting, printer reassignment and catalog edits. Any necessary change should trigger a focused retest of the affected path.
- Q6
What support information should be prepared before opening?
Keep the platform support number or chat route, account or customer ID, sale or event ID, active ring, production URL, named authorized caller and an alternate contact method together. Record the exact failed task, time, bidder or lot reference and current fallback before contacting support.
FIELD RULE
Do not open because every device is powered. Open because every critical task has passed.
The final test should show that staff can register, bid, clerk, communicate, invoice, take or record payment, release property and recover through the exact configuration they will use live. Preserve the successful baseline, freeze nonessential changes and move unresolved primary faults to controlled work after the sale.