Device Return
End-of-year collection, graduation check-in, device refresh: scan each Chromebook back in, record charger and condition at the scan, and see the roster reconcile live, who has returned and who has not. A scan-only role for the people doing the work.
What it does
Collection week on a spreadsheet ends the same way every year: a pile of devices nobody can tie to a student, a column for chargers that was never filled in, and a “lost” count that is really an unreconciled one. Device Return replaces the spreadsheet with a scan. Each device is matched to the student it was assigned to as it comes in, charger and condition are recorded at that moment, and the roster shows who has returned and who has not while the carts are still being wheeled in.
How it works
Create a collection and choose what to capture
Pick the school, name the drive (“EOY Return 2026”), and turn on what you want recorded per device: charger returned, condition (Good, Damaged, Broken), accessories, and optionally a charger fee.
Scan devices in
Scan the barcode or type the serial or asset tag. The scanner prompts only for the things you turned on. Any USB or Bluetooth barcode scanner works; none is required.
Each scan is matched to its student
The device’s assignment tells the collection which student returned it. Devices that are not on this school’s roster (loaners, transfers, strays) are listed separately so they are not lost in the pile.
The roster reconciles live
The by-student view lists every student at the school as Returned or Not Returned with the device expected back, and filters to the group you need: not returned, charger missing, damaged, broken.
Invoice and export
Where a charger fee is on, devices returned without one carry an Invoice action, singly or for the whole list. The collection exports to CSV or Google Sheets for finance and the board report.
What your team sees
These are screenshots of the product during a collection.
The dashboard: every school you cover and its open collections.
Inside a collection: scan a device in, and the tallies for chargers, condition and accessories update.
The by-student view: who has returned, who has not, and the condition of every device that came back.
Capture what you need, per collection
Each collection has its own switches. The scanner prompts, the table columns and the filters follow them.
Record whether each device came back with its charger, and get a live count of chargers missing and a list of who owes one.
Mark each return Good, Damaged or Broken. The damaged and broken lists are what goes to the repair bench.
Track cases and styluses as a set, and flag anything returned without them.
Set a fee per collection. Devices returned without a charger carry an Invoice action, singly or in bulk.
Give it to the people doing the work
A scan-only Device Return role
Collection week is run by aides, librarians and seasonal staff. The Device Return role is assigned to specific schools and does one thing: open those schools’ collections and scan devices in. No tickets, no settings, no student data beyond the roster being reconciled.
Spreadsheet versus scan
| During collection week | Spreadsheet and boxes | UserAuthGuard |
|---|---|---|
| Match each device to its student | By hand, after | At the scan |
| Know who has not returned, now | Sort and cross-reference later | Live, filterable |
| Charger and condition per device | Columns that stay empty | Prompted at the scan |
| Loaners and non-roster devices | Lost in the pile | Listed separately |
| Invoice for missing chargers | A separate chase | From the list |
| Staff it with non-technical people | Share the whole sheet | Scan-only role |
- ✓ A reconciled roster, not a lost countLeave collection week knowing which devices are out and who has each one.
- ✓ Condition and chargers recorded at the momentNot reconstructed in September from a box. Damage is tied to the student who returned the device.
- ✓ Fees with a list behind themCharger invoicing turns “a lot of chargers went missing” into named, itemized invoices.
- ✓ Staffed safelyThe scan-only role lets aides and volunteers run a building’s collection without access to anything else.
Requires
- The Enterprise plan with the Device Return module.
- Devices assigned to students in UserAuthGuard, so a scan can be matched to a student. Unassigned devices are listed as non-roster.
- Any barcode scanner, or a keyboard. No special hardware.
Does not
- Email or text the students who have not returned. The not-returned list exports; the chasing is yours.
- Collect money. An invoice is a record with an amount; payment is handled by your business office.
- Unassign devices in Google by itself. Returned devices are released to the Unassigned OU through the normal unassignment step, in bulk if you like.
Where it fits
End-of-year 1:1 collection
Bring the fleet back in June. Reconcile each grade against the roster, work the not-returned list by name, and hand finance a condition-and-charger report that was recorded at the scan.
Graduation checkout
Clear seniors device by device and see which still owe a Chromebook before clearance is signed.
Summer refresh
Collect and assess condition in one pass. The damaged and broken filters are the intake list for the repair bench and the retirement list for the planner.
Frequently asked questions
How does device return work?
Create a collection for a school, choose what to capture (charger, condition, accessories, charger fee), then scan each Chromebook’s barcode or type its serial as it comes back. Each scan is matched to the student the device was assigned to, and the by-student view shows who has returned and who has not.
Can I see which students still have a device out?
Yes. The by-student view lists every student at the school as Returned or Not Returned with the device expected back, with filters for not returned, charger missing, damaged and broken. The list exports to CSV or Google Sheets.
Can we charge for missing chargers?
Yes. Turn on the charger fee for a collection and set the amount. Any device returned without its charger carries an Invoice action, and you can invoice the whole charger-missing list at once. Collecting the money is your business office’s process.
Do we need a barcode scanner?
No. Any USB or Bluetooth scanner works, and you can type the serial or asset tag. Devices that are not on the school’s roster (loaners, transfers, strays) are listed separately.
Can non-technical staff run collection without full admin access?
Yes. The Device Return role is assigned to specific schools and can only open those schools’ collections and scan devices in. No tickets, settings or other student data.
Is device return free?
No. Device Return is part of the Enterprise plan, priced à la carte. The Free plan gives read-only visibility of every device, user and OU plus assignment-gap reporting, with no device cap, which is the list you want before collection starts.
Collect by scan, reconcile as you go
Device Return is part of the Enterprise plan, priced à la carte. Start free first: the gap report lists every device with no owner and every student with no device, before collection week.