What hardware does a clinic need to run clinic software? Computer, browser, A4 or A5 printer, an 80 mm token printer, internet backup and a UPS: what each one is for.

To run browser-based clinic software, a small Indian clinic needs a computer at the front desk with a current browser, a printer for prescriptions and receipts in the paper size the doctor uses (A4 or A5), an internet connection plus a backup on a different mobile carrier, and a UPS or inverter line that keeps the router, computer and printer running through a power cut. A computer in the doctor's cabin and an 80 mm thermal printer for token slips are useful additions, not requirements.

Below is what each item is for, what to check before you buy, and what to ask the software vendor. Nothing here is a product recommendation. If you are moving from paper, read how to move a paper clinic to software first; it sets the order in which these items are needed.

What is the full list, and what is optional?

What kind of computer does the front desk need?

Any desktop or laptop that runs a current, supported operating system and an up-to-date browser is usually enough for browser-based clinic software. Ask the vendor for its minimum requirements in writing, and test the software on the actual computer that will sit at the desk before you sign.

• Operating system still getting security updates. Microsoft's end-of-support page says Windows 10 support ended on 14 October 2025 and that Microsoft "no longer provides software updates, security fixes, or technical assistance to Windows 10 PCs". Devices enrolled in Extended Security Updates "will continue to receive critical and important security updates through 12 October, 2027". A computer that holds patient data should be on one or the other.
• Screen size that shows the queue without endless scrolling. Ask the vendor which screen resolution its screens are designed for, and open the busiest screen during the demo on your own monitor.
• A keyboard and mouse the receptionist is comfortable with. Most registration time goes into typing names and phone numbers.
• A separate login on the computer for the clinic, a screen lock, and no personal email or downloads on it. Rule 6(1)(b) of the DPDP Rules, 2025 asks a clinic to control access to "the computer resources used" for patient data; a shared, unlocked desk computer is the most common gap.

A laptop has its own battery, which covers short power cuts at the desk. A desktop needs to be on the UPS. Either works.

Which browser should the clinic use?

Use whichever current browser the vendor supports and tests, kept on automatic updates. Ask the vendor which browsers it supports, and whether offline features depend on one. Then keep a few habits:

• One browser profile for the clinic on the desk computer, separate from anyone's personal profile.
• Do not let the browser save the clinic's sign-in on a shared computer.
• No browser extensions on the clinic profile beyond what the vendor asks for. Extensions can read the pages you open.
• Bookmark the software's address so staff do not search for it each morning and click a look-alike link.

A4 or A5: which printer for prescriptions and receipts?

Decide the paper size first, then buy a printer that feeds it reliably. A5 is half of A4 and is the size of many traditional prescription pads; A4 gives room for longer prescriptions, investigations and advice, and is the size for reports, the day book and a printed rate list. Many clinics print prescriptions on A5 and everything else on A4.

• Check that the printer's tray takes A5 if you will print A5. Some printers accept A5 only through a manual feed slot, which is slow at the desk.
• Decide whether the letterhead will be pre-printed on the paper or printed by the software. If pre-printed, test that the software's margins leave the letterhead clear.
• Print the full prescription in the demo. Regulation 1.4.1 of the 2002 conduct regulations asks every doctor to display the registration number "in all his prescriptions, certificates, money receipts given to his patients"; regulation 7.13 says the prescription paper should carry the same contents as the signboard. Our prescription software guide covers what the print should show.
• Connect the printer by USB to the computer that prints, unless more than one computer must use it. A printer shared over Wi-Fi stops when the router loses power.
• Keep a spare toner or ink cartridge and a ream of paper at the clinic. The printer runs out on the busiest morning.

If the clinic is registered under the Clinical Establishments Act, 2010 in a state that applies the central rules, rule 9(i) of the 2012 rules asks it to display the rates for each service "in the local as well as in english language". An A4 printer prints that board too; see signboard and fee display rules.

Do you need an 80 mm thermal token printer?

Only if you want printed token slips or short receipts at the counter. An 80 mm thermal printer prints on a roll of heat-sensitive paper with no ink, which makes it quick for slips. Check four things before buying one:

1. Roll width. Thermal printers come in more than one width; 80 mm and 58 mm are both common. Buy the width your software's slip is designed for.
2. Connection and driver. The printer must show up as a printer on the desk computer so the browser can print to it. Ask the vendor whether it has tested its slip with a USB thermal printer on your operating system.
3. Auto-cut. A cutter saves the receptionist tearing each slip.
4. Paper life. Thermal print can fade with heat, light and time. Use it for tokens and counter slips, and print anything the clinic must keep, such as prescriptions or the day book, on plain paper.

If you do not want a token printer, a pre-numbered paper slip works; our free OPD token slip maker prints a numbered run on 80 mm thermal paper or A6. The choice between paper, a display board and phone tokens is covered in OPD token systems.

What internet connection and backup does a clinic need?

One main connection and one backup from a different company. A broadband line plus a prepaid SIM from another carrier in a spare phone or a portable hotspot, kept charged and recharged, covers most outages at a small OPD. A backup on the same carrier as the main line often fails at the same time.

Ask the software vendor exactly what keeps working without the internet, and test it in the demo with the Wi-Fi switched off. Our internet-down plan covers the paper fallback, the backup kit and how to enter visits once the connection returns.

What should the UPS or inverter cover?

The router, the front-desk computer and the printer, at minimum. At many clinics the inverter covers fans and lights and not the socket the router is plugged into, so a power cut looks like an internet failure. Ask your electrician to put these on backed-up sockets, and to check the backup can carry the printer, since printers differ a lot in how much power they draw. Laptops ride through short cuts on their own battery; desktops and monitors do not.

What about patient data on the clinic's own devices?

Software that works offline keeps some patient data on the computer, and phones used for WhatsApp hold reports and photos. Rule 6(1) of the DPDP Rules, 2025, which commences on 13 May 2027, asks for safeguards including encryption or masking (6(1)(a)), access control (6(1)(b)) and backups (6(1)(d)). For a small clinic that means:

• A screen lock and a password on every computer and phone that opens patient data.
• Device encryption switched on where the operating system offers it.
• Ask the vendor what it stores on the device for offline use and how that is cleared on sign-out.
• Wipe or remove the storage before an old computer is sold, given away or sent for repair.

The vendor side of the same question is in security questions to ask clinic software vendors.

A hardware check before the first day on software

1. Sign in on the desk computer and the doctor's computer with each person's own login.
2. Print one prescription and one receipt on the real paper, with the letterhead, and read the registration number on both.
3. Print a token slip, if you use one.
4. Pull the router's plug and switch the desk to the backup connection. Time how long it takes.
5. Switch off the mains and check the router, computer and printer stay on.
6. Turn off the Wi-Fi and run one patient through the steps your software says work offline.
7. Write the broadband account number, complaint line, hotspot password and the vendor's support number on one card at the desk.