Reserve and release stock
A reservation holds stock back so it can't be sold or moved for anything else. The goods stay on the shelf (On Hand doesn't change), but they're no longer Available.
Reserve 5: On Hand 200 Reserved 0 → 5 Available 200 → 195
Release 5: On Hand 200 Reserved 5 → 0 Available 195 → 200
Confirming a sales order reserves its stock automatically, and cancelling it releases it. Use these pages only for manual holds, such as goods kept aside for a customer who hasn't ordered yet, or display stock. See What happens automatically.
Reserve stock
Where:
Who: inventory.stock.reserve, plus access to the warehouse's business unit.
- Go to .
- Fill in the form:
| Field | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Product / Product Variant | What to hold | Ceramic Mug |
| Warehouse / Location | Where it's held | Main Warehouse / A-01-02 |
| Quantity | How many to hold | 5 |
| Reference Type | What kind of thing it's for. Required; keep it to a few agreed words. | CUSTOMER_HOLD |
| Reference ID | Optional number, such as a quote number | 3381 |
| Reference Code | Which one: something people will recognise. Required. | AYESHA-K |
| Notes | Why, and until when | Customer collecting Saturday; release if not collected |
- Select Submit Reservation.
What you'll see: the Updated Stock Balance panel shows Reserved up and Available down.
Use the same few words across the team, for example CUSTOMER_HOLD, DISPLAY and QUALITY_CHECK.
It makes reservations easy to find and release later.
You can only reserve up to the Available quantity. Asking for more gives "Insufficient available stock."
Release a reservation
Where:
Who: inventory.stock.release, plus access to the warehouse's business unit.
- Go to .
- Enter the same Product, Variant, Warehouse and Location that were reserved.
- Enter the Quantity to release: part of the reservation or all of it.
- Enter the same Reference Type and Reference Code used when reserving, so the history lines up. Add Notes, for example "Customer did not collect".
- Select Release Reservation.
What you'll see: Reserved goes down, and Available goes up.
| Message | Meaning |
|---|---|
| "Release quantity is greater than reserved quantity." | You asked to release more than is reserved at that location. Check the location and quantity on Inventory Balance. |
If the reservation came from a sales order, change or cancel the order instead. Releasing it here leaves the order thinking its stock is still held, and someone else may sell it.
Example: a customer hold from start to finish
| Day | What happens | Action | Mugs at A-01-02 (On Hand / Reserved / Available) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | Ayesha asks to collect 5 mugs on Saturday | Reserve 5, CUSTOMER_HOLD / AYESHA-K | 200 / 5 / 195 |
| Wed | Omar sells 195 mugs to a café | (sales order confirmed) | 200 / 200 / 0 |
| Sat | Ayesha collects 3, doesn't want the other 2 | Release 5, then sell 3 through a sales order | 200 / 198 / 2 (after the new order) |
Because the 5 mugs were held, Omar couldn't accidentally sell them on Wednesday.