Mothball can identify containers and item types with barcodes. A barcode lets you open the matching record quickly, print or display a label for a stored record, and receive more quantity for an item without searching the inventory manually.
- Assign one optional barcode to a container or item type when creating it or from its details page.
- Display an assigned barcode as a rendered label on container and item details pages.
- Share an assigned barcode as a printable PDF label.
- Scan a barcode with the device camera or select an image containing a barcode from the photo library.
- Start Scan from the app toolbar, item list, or container list to open the matching item or container.
- Scan an item barcode in the Add Item workflow to receive additional quantity for that existing item.
- Scan a container barcode while receiving or associating an item to use that container as the destination.
- Select loaded records or all matching records from an item/container list and share their labels as one PDF document.
In simple mode, EAN-8, EAN-13, and QR Code are available. In Settings, enable Barcodes extended mode to select and scan the additional formats supported by the device barcode reader. The scanner only accepts formats enabled by the current setting.
Mothball generates internal SKUs as Code 128 values in the format MB-{GUID:N}. These are application-owned inventory identifiers, not commercial EAN/GTIN values. EAN-8 and EAN-13 are intended for user-supplied or reserved external codes; Mothball does not generate EAN values. Selecting QR Code for generation produces a versioned record URI such as mothball://v1/item/{id} or mothball://v1/container/{id}.
The details pages render an assigned value using its recorded symbology, so the displayed label matches the type that was scanned or selected.
Use the Barcode field on an add form to enter a value manually or use Scan Barcode. A successful scan disables automatic barcode generation and preserves the scanned value and symbology. The Generate barcode switch and button use the selected format when the record is saved. Code 128 and QR Code can be generated; selecting EAN-8 or EAN-13 automatically exposes the manual field because commercial EAN values must be supplied by the user. On an item or container details page, select Edit beside Barcode to enter, replace, clear, scan, or enable the same format-aware generation switch.
Each barcode value belongs to at most one inventory record across the whole app. A value assigned to a container cannot also be assigned to an item, and vice versa. Reusing the same owner's current value is allowed. If a value is already in use, Mothball keeps the current record unchanged and shows a native device alert.
Values are trimmed before they are saved or looked up. Matching is case-sensitive: BOX-01 and box-01 are different values.
Select Scan Barcode from the toolbar or either inventory list, then scan with the camera or choose a source image. When Mothball finds an assigned value, it opens the matching container or item details page. Cancelling the scanner makes no changes.
If the scanned barcode is not assigned, the scan completes without opening a record. Scanner and lookup failures are shown in a native device alert.
In the Add Item workflow, entering or scanning a barcode that already belongs to an item switches the page to receipt mode. The existing item's metadata is preserved, and saving adds the requested quantity instead of creating a second item.
In simple mode, the receipt quantity defaults to one. In advanced mode, enter a positive quantity. The received quantity can remain unassigned, go to the container that opened the form, or go to a container found by scanning its barcode. A barcode owned by a container does not enter item receipt mode; it remains unavailable for a new item assignment.
Mothball stores the decoded barcode value and its symbology, not the camera image or source image used to scan it. Barcode values and symbologies are persisted by both the SQLite and JSON backends. Backup export and restore retain those fields, so an assigned barcode moves with its container or item when inventory data is restored.
For contributors, barcode ownership is enforced by the Application-layer IBarcodeAssignmentService, creation handlers, and IBarcodeRegistryService. The registry tracks reserved and assigned values and has a unique SQLite index; JSON writes are serialized by the store. Lookup uses IInventoryQueryRepository.FindBarcodeAsync. Preserve the trim-only, case-sensitive matching and global uniqueness rules when changing either persistence backend or backup/restore behavior. Camera/gallery decoding and barcode rendering are MAUI-only concerns.
Advanced Settings can reserve a batch of internal Code 128 SKUs and share them as a print-ready PDF. A reserved code can later be claimed by entering or scanning it on an add or details form; claiming does not require reprinting.
The Share action generates a PDF containing the barcode, its human-readable value, and the item or container name. The PDF is sent through the device share sheet, which may offer printing, AirDrop, Files, Mail, and other installed activities. Single-label files use a name-based filename; batch files use a timestamped filename.
List selection is limited to records currently loaded by the paged list. Select all loaded does not load additional pages. Share all filtered results queries the active search and filter without paging, so it can include matching records that are not currently visible.