TimeVault Lite. Your machine, your data.
A self-hosted attendance server you install on any machine you control: an office PC, a Mac, a Linux box, or a virtual machine in your own data centre or cloud account. Terminals talk to it, punches never leave your network, and payroll pulls one clean export at the end of the period.
The same build on every platform · one licence moves with you
Runs wherever you already run things.
One codebase, one build, three operating systems. The same licence works on all of them: move between platforms without re-buying or re-enrolling a single worker.
Windows
Windows 10 and 11. Runs in the system tray and starts with the machine. The path most office PCs take.
- Tray supervisor, starts with Windows
- Live board in your browser
macOS
Apple silicon and Intel. A Mac mini on the site shelf makes a quiet, dependable attendance server.
- Native on Apple silicon
- Live board in your browser
Linux
Ubuntu and Debian-based servers. Installs as a system service under its own account: the hardened option for a server room.
- Database and keys readable by its own user only
- Headless, no desktop needed
Your own VM
Any of the above on a virtual machine you own: VMware, Hyper-V, Proxmox, or a VM in your own Azure, AWS or DigitalOcean account. Your IT team keeps the keys, the backups and the firewall.
- Snapshot the VM, and attendance comes with it
- No TimeVault account or internet access needed
Office PC, server room, or your cloud account.
Lite doesn't mind where it runs, only that the terminals can reach it. Pick the pattern that matches who owns the machine and how far the terminals are from it.
The site's own PC
Lite on the timekeeper's Windows PC or a Mac mini on the shelf. Terminals on the same network. Nothing else to buy.
- Best for
- One site, 1–4 terminals
- Network
- Local only
- Database
- SQLite
- Set-up
- Under an hour
A VM in your server room
Lite on Linux inside your hypervisor, next to the rest of your systems. Several sites on one VM if they share a WAN. IT backs it up like everything else.
- Best for
- Companies with an IT team
- Network
- Corporate LAN / WAN
- Database
- PostgreSQL
- Set-up
- An afternoon
A VM in your own cloud account
Lite on a VM you rent from Azure, AWS, DigitalOcean or a local provider. Sites reach it over a VPN your network team controls: cloud convenience without handing anyone your data.
- Best for
- Multi-site, data-residency rules
- Network
- VPN from each site
- Database
- PostgreSQL
- Set-up
- A day, VPN included
Whichever pattern you choose, terminals must reach Lite over a network you trust, never across the open internet. If you want terminals to connect directly over the internet with no VPN at all, that is what TimeVault Cloud is for.
Everything a site needs. Nothing it doesn't.
Live board
Every punch as it happens: worker, terminal, how they matched, and whether it was accepted, late, or a duplicate.
Derived sessions
Work sessions built from the punch stream per worker, per work date, and rebuilt on demand when a rule changes.
Locked pay periods
Close the month. Anything that arrives late is listed as an exception for the next run; the paid figure never shifts underneath you.
Corrections that stick
Fix a missed punch once. The correction is recorded with who and when, and survives every recompute after it.
Projects & sites
Group terminals by site or project, and see headcount against expected at every gate.
Payroll export
One table of locked sessions, exported to CSV or Excel for whatever payroll you run today.
PostgreSQL, installed for you.
Lite 1.1 adds a second database engine. The installer sets PostgreSQL up itself, so your IT team installs nothing by hand.
SQLite for a single office PC. PostgreSQL when the site grows, or when IT wants a database they already know how to back up.
A terminal that appears on the network does nothing until an administrator adds it. No surprise devices feeding payroll.
Specifications
| Platforms | Windows 10 and 11 · macOS on Apple silicon and Intel · Ubuntu and Debian-based Linux · any of these on a VM you own, on-premises or in your cloud account |
|---|---|
| Runtime | Bundled. Nothing to install first. |
| Machine | A desktop PC or a small VM is enough for a site of several terminals |
| Database | SQLite, with PostgreSQL as a choice at install from Lite 1.1 |
| Terminals | Face Smart+, Face Smart, Palm Pro, FaceSlim · compare models |
| Network | Terminals reach the Lite machine over a network you trust: the same LAN, a corporate WAN, or a VPN to your VM. No inbound internet access needed. A separate network for terminals is recommended. |
| Interface | A browser console on your network: live board, workers, terminals, sessions, periods, exports, audit |
| Exports | CSV and Excel of locked sessions, per period, per site |
| Licence | Free for up to 2 terminals; a paid licence beyond that · pricing |
| Your data | Punches, photos, templates and PINs stay on the machine you chose. Lite makes no connection to TimeVault. |
Install it this afternoon.
Two terminals free, for good, on whichever machine you choose. Tell us your platform and we'll send the installer and the set-up guide.