How do I generate and print a QR code?

Requires Basic

Quick answer

Every asset automatically gets a QR code when it’s created — there’s nothing to configure. In the detail view, you’ll find the QR Code section with the “Download QR Code” button: print the PNG as a label and stick it on the device. Via the API, GET /api/v1/assets/{id}/qr returns the same image.

Prerequisites

Required role Any logged-in user

— viewing and downloading only requires read access to assets. Programmatically, the API token needs the read scope.

QR codes are part of the Assets module and available on all plans.

Instructions

GUI (web interface)

1. Open the asset. Select Assets and click the asset you want. In the detail view, the QR Code card with the image is on the right.

   Screenshot pending assets-qr-01 Detail view of an asset with the QR code card and the 'Download QR Code' button

   The QR code card in the asset detail view.

2. Download it. Click “Download QR Code”. You’ll get a print-quality PNG.

3. Print and attach it. Print the PNG on a label printer (or on label sheets) and attach the label somewhere clearly visible on the device. Sizes from 25 × 25 mm upward have proven reliable — codes printed smaller than that are harder for smartphone cameras to pick up.

API (curl)

The QR image sits behind the endpoint given in the asset’s qr_code_url field:

Fetch QR code as PNG

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer inv_dein_token" \
  https://demo.notory.io/api/v1/assets/a2f1c9e4-7b3d-4a11-9c2e-8f6b1d0a7e55/qr \
  --output asset-qr.png

The response is a binary image (HTTP 200, Content-Type: image/png) — ideal for automating labels for many assets at once, e.g. in a loop over the asset list:

Download QR codes for all active assets (example using jq)

for id in $(curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer inv_dein_token" \
  "https://demo.notory.io/api/v1/assets?status=active&page_size=100" \
  | jq -r '.items[].id'); do
  curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer inv_dein_token" \
    "https://demo.notory.io/api/v1/assets/$id/qr" --output "qr-$id.png"
done

Possible errors: 401 (missing or invalid token), 404 (the asset doesn’t exist, is in the recycle bin, or belongs to another tenant).

What happens behind the scenes?

• Generated on demand: The PNG is freshly generated on each request — no image is stored on the server. You can fetch it as many times as you like.
• Contents of the code: The QR code contains the asset’s core data as JSON — id, name, type, and serial (serial number). This means it also works offline: any scanner app displays the data directly, without needing an internet connection or a Notory login.
• Snapshot in time: The name and serial number in the code reflect the state at the time it was fetched. The id is permanently stable — after renaming the asset, printing a new label is worthwhile but not strictly necessary.
• Tenant isolation: Fetching the code is authenticated and restricted to your tenant; asset IDs from other tenants return 404.
• No gating: QR codes are available on every plan.

Related topics

• Scan an asset QR code — what happens during the scan
• Create an asset — the QR code is created automatically
• Scan & Stocktake — count inventory on the go (Pro+)
• API Getting Started — authentication, base URL, error codes