How to install Farmeter Buff and set up your farm

The hardest screen in any app is the first one you don't understand. With a new farm app, what stops people is often not a complicated feature but a small early question, such as "which role am I?" or "why hasn't my code arrived?".

This guide walks a first-time user through Farmeter Buff, Farmeral Technology's buffalo farm app, from the store page to a registered farm that's ready for its first animals. Button names are given as they appear in the app. Most farmers will use the Thai interface, so the Thai label comes first and the English label follows in brackets. The Thai version of this post is the main one, so if Thai is easier for you, switch the site language at the top of the page.

Before you start

A short checklist saves a lot of back-and-forth later:

• A phone. On iPhone, the App Store listing asks for iOS 13.0 or later. On Android, you need a phone that can install apps from Google Play.
• A Thai mobile number that can receive SMS. You sign in with a one-time code (OTP) sent by text message, so keep the SIM in the phone you're setting up, or keep that phone close by. The privacy policy lists the phone number and OTP among the data used to sign up and to confirm who you are.
• Your name in Thai. The sign-up form accepts Thai letters only for the first and last name (more on this under "Common snags").
• Your date of birth. You must be at least 13 years old to create an account.
• Your farm's basic details, if you are the owner: a farm name, where the farm is, and roughly how many animals you keep.
• If you work on someone else's farm: an invitation code or QR code from the farm owner.

The app is free to download. Both store listings show in-app purchases, and the product page explains the plans, including a free one. You don't need to pick a plan to work through this guide.

Step 1: Install the app

There are three ways in, and they all end at the same app:

1. Google Play on Android: search for "Farmeter Buff" or open the Google Play listing. The developer is shown as FARMERAL TECHNOLOGY COMPANY LIMITED.
2. App Store on iPhone: open the App Store listing. The seller is Farmeral Technology Co.,Ltd.
3. The official download page, farmeral.co.th/download/farmeter-buff. On a phone, the page says it sends you to the right store for your device. This is the easiest link to share in a farmers' LINE group, because one link works for everybody.

Check the developer name before you tap install. It's a good habit with any app that will hold your farm's records.

Step 2: Sign in with your phone number

Open the app and you'll see a welcome screen, "ยินดีต้อนรับสู่" (Welcome to), with a sign-in card underneath. A language button on this screen switches the app between Thai and English, and the change takes effect straight away.

1. Under "เข้าสู่ระบบ" (Log in), type your 10-digit number in "หมายเลขมือถือ" (Mobile number).
2. Tap "ส่งรหัส OTP" (Send OTP).
3. The "ยืนยันรหัส OTP" (Verify OTP) screen asks for the 6-digit code sent to your number. Type it into the six boxes.
4. When the code is accepted, you'll see "ยืนยันเรียบร้อยแล้ว" (Verified successfully). Then tap "เข้าสู่ระบบ" (Log in).

            ┌──────────────────────┐            
            │ 09:41           ▮▮▮  │            
            │──────────────────────│            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │ Verify OTP           │            
            │ 6-digit code sent to │            
            │ 08X-XXX-XX12         │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │  [ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]  │            
            │                      │            
            │   Resend code        │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │     [ VERIFY ]       │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            └──────────────────────┘            

If the text message is slow, wait. The resend button counts down first ("ส่งรหัสใหม่ได้ใน 60 วินาที", resend available in 60 s) and then changes to "ส่งรหัสใหม่" (Resend code). Tapping resend over and over doesn't make SMS arrive faster.

Just looking? At the bottom of the sign-in screen there's "ทดลองใช้งาน" (Try as guest). Guest mode lets you browse the main screens, such as the home page, the buffalo list and analytics, without an account. Anything that saves data asks you to log in first.

Step 3: Create your account (first time only)

If your number isn't registered yet, tap "สมัครสมาชิก" (Register) next to "ยังไม่มีบัญชี?" (Don't have an account?). The "สร้างบัญชี" (Create account) form has four short steps:

A few points that are easy to miss:

• The marketing box really is optional. It only asks whether Farmeral Technology may email you about promotions and events. The privacy policy says you can withdraw marketing consent at any time, including through the unsubscribe link in those emails.
• Email is optional too. You sign in with your phone number, not your email.
• The age rule. If your date of birth makes you younger than 13, the form explains that you have to be at least 13 to create an account.

When it works, you'll see "สมัครสมาชิกสำเร็จ!" (Registration successful!).

Step 4: Choose your role

Next comes "เลือกบทบาทการใช้งาน" (Select usage role). This choice sets which path the app takes you down, so it's worth a moment's thought.

                                                            
                                            ____            
                                           /    \           
                                          /______\          
                                          | FARM |          
                                          |  []  |          
                                    ///                     
                               /////     Farm owner         
             o            /////          create a farm      
             |         ///                                  
 ─────────── | ────────                                     
                       \\\               Worker / vet       
                          \\\\\          invite code / QR   
                               \\\\\      ┌─────┐           
                                    \\\   │  ┃  │           
                                          │  ┃  │           
                                          └─────┘           
 |  /  /  |  |  |  /  /  /  /  |  /  |  /  /  /  /  |  |  / 

• "เจ้าของฟาร์ม" (Farm owner): the app describes this role as creating a farm, managing farm members, viewing data and planning work. Pick it if the animals are yours, or if you're the person setting the farm up for your family.
• "พนักงานฟาร์ม / นักสัตวบาล / นักวิจัย" (Farm worker / veterinarian / researcher): this role helps record data and view farm information inside a farm that already exists. Pick it if someone else owns the farm and has invited you.

A simple test: if nobody has given you an invitation code, you're probably the owner. If two people in one family both choose "Farm owner", you end up with two separate farms. A better setup is one owner who creates the farm and invites the others, so everyone's records land in the same herd. The product page lists team member management, with roles and data-access rights, as one of the app's main features.

Tap "ดำเนินการต่อ" (Continue).

If you chose the worker path

You'll see "เข้าร่วมฟาร์มด้วยรหัสเชิญ" (Join a farm with an invitation code). Type the "รหัสเชิญ" (Invitation code) from the owner, or scan their QR code, then tap "เข้าร่วมฟาร์ม" (Join farm). The app confirms that your request has been sent and is waiting for the owner to approve it. You can follow it on the "คำขอเข้าร่วมฟาร์ม" (Farm join requests) screen, and once the owner approves, you can start using the farm straight away.

Step 5: Register your farm (owner path)

The "ลงทะเบียนฟาร์ม" (Register farm) form asks for three things:

1. "ชื่อฟาร์ม" (Farm name), required. Use the name your family or co-op already uses, so other members recognise it.
2. "ตำแหน่งที่ตั้งฟาร์ม" (Farm location), required. Tap "แตะเพื่อเลือกตำแหน่งบนแผนที่" (Tap to select a location on the map). Drag the map to move the pin or search at the top, check the subdistrict, district and province that the app fills in, and type the house number yourself, because house numbers can't be looked up. Tap "ยืนยันตำแหน่ง" (Confirm location).
3. "จำนวนสัตว์ (โดยประมาณ)" (Number of animals, approx.). A rough figure is fine; you'll add the real animals later.

Tap "ลงทะเบียนฟาร์ม" (Register farm). When you see the "farm created successfully" message, you're on the home screen of a brand-new, empty farm.

About your location. Farm location is a required field, but your phone's GPS isn't. If you'd rather not share where you're standing, say no to location access and place the pin by hand. The privacy policy covers how farm and location details are handled and lists your rights, such as asking for a copy of your data or asking for it to be corrected.

App permissions, in plain words

At different moments, the app may ask for access to parts of your phone. This is what each one is for:

You can check what you allowed from the side menu (the ☰ button on the home screen) under "การจัดการสิทธิ์การเข้าถึง" (Access permissions). There's also an "เปิดการตั้งค่า" (Open settings) button that takes you to the phone's own settings. On Android, the same switches are in Settings > Apps > the app > Permissions (Google's guide). On iPhone, go to Settings > Privacy & Security and choose a category (Apple's guide).

What next: your first animals

An empty farm is the finish line for this guide and the starting line for the next one. The app's own help answer is simple: tap "กระบือ" (Buffalo) in the bottom bar, choose "เพิ่ม" (Add), fill in the basic details and save.

            ┌──────────────────────┐            
            │ 09:41           ▮▮▮  │            
            │──────────────────────│            
            │ BUFFALO         (0)  │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │  No buffalo yet      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │                      │            
            │     [ + ADD ]        │            
            │──────────────────────│            
            │ Home  Buffalo  More  │            
            │          •           │            
            └──────────────────────┘            

The store listings describe what the herd records are for: growth, breeding, health and pedigree, the farm's income and expenses, task reminders, and an optional link to the LINE account "เจ้าบุญมี" for notifications (Google Play). Each of those deserves its own guide.

Common snags

The OTP doesn't arrive. Check that the number has 10 digits and that the SIM is in signal range. Wait for the 60-second countdown to finish before you tap "ส่งรหัสใหม่" (Resend code). If the app says it can't find the code, request a new one; the app sometimes sends a new code by itself and asks you to type that one instead.

"หมายเลขนี้ถูกใช้งานแล้ว" (This number is already in use). An account already exists for that number, possibly one you made earlier. Go back and log in with it instead of registering again.

"ไม่พบบัญชีผู้ใช้ กรุณาสมัครสมาชิก" (Account not found. Please register). The opposite case: the number hasn't been registered yet. Tap "สมัครสมาชิก" (Register).

"กรุณากรอกชื่อเป็นภาษาไทยเท่านั้น" (Please enter first name in Thai only). Switch the keyboard to Thai, and leave out titles such as นาย, นาง or นางสาว.

A message says your number isn't on the list allowed to use Farmeter Buff. Registration was refused for that number. Contact Farmeral support (below) and tell them which number you used.

"รหัสเชิญไม่ถูกต้องหรือหมดอายุแล้ว" (Invitation code is invalid or expired). Owners can set an expiry date on an invitation, so ask the owner to create a new one.

Where to get help. In the app, open the side menu and choose "ช่วยเหลือ" (Help), where you'll find answers to common questions and a button to email the team. The support email listed on Google Play is support@farmeral.co.th. The product page gives support hours of Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 17:00 Thailand time, excluding public holidays, and a target of a first reply within one business day on every plan, including the free one.

If you want to leave. On your profile screen, "ลบบัญชีของฉัน" (Delete my account) schedules the deletion, and you can cancel it before the scheduled date. You can also email a request from the account deletion page, quoting your registered phone number. That page says requests are handled within 7 business days, personal data is permanently deleted within 30 days, and backups may be kept for up to 90 days.

That's the whole setup. If you made it to the empty farm screen, the hard part is over. From here on, every guide is about the buffalo.

Sources

• Farmeter Buff product page, Farmeral Technology
• Farmeter Buff on the App Store (Thailand)
• Farmeter Buff on Google Play
• Download Farmeter Buff, the official download page
• Farmeral Technology privacy policy
• Farmeter Buff account deletion
• Change app permissions on your Android phone, Google Help
• Control access to information in apps on iPhone, Apple Support