The next significant increase in functionality is to add a stock locator system. This is essentially the ability to manage an inventory of storage locations in addition to an inventory of product. With this capability a software system can do more than trigger financial transactions but can finally support warehouse operations by directing warehouse activities to/from storage locations.
    In addition, a WMS should also track the inventory of storage locations in the warehouse. A good WMS will track every place that product can be, down to and including the forks of individual forklift trucks. The ability to manage the inventory of storage locations makes possible the most fundamental capability of a WMS, which is the stock locator system, which supports directed put-away and directed picking.
    To track warehouse activities in real-time, the database must support transaction processing, which means that the database can maintain its integrity even though being updated simultaneously from multiple sources (purchasing, receiving, picking, shipping, etc.).