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iUser Ecommerce installation and usage

Special introductory offer!

To celebrate the launch of iUser Ecommerce, you can Buy Now a copy of the software for only $49.95, with 3 months of free software updates - but be quick! At this price, it's one of the most economical software delivery systems/shopping carts around!

iUser Ecommerce version 2.2

Thank you for purchasing the iUser Management System. This file contains:

» Software Installation and configuration instructions
» Client interface section descriptions
» Admin interface section descriptions
» Uploading software products instructions
» Editing templates and email messages
» LinkPoint installation procedure
» Troubleshooting
» Support information
» Instructions for updating your old existed iUser version to new one
» Revision history

Installation and configuration

• Please ensure you review the license before using iUser.

• You will need to have an empty MySQL database ready or you can allow it to share an existing database. Ensure you record the name and access details for your database as this information is necessary during setup. Note: If you have an existing iUser installation and you are upgrading, please ensure you back up your database before proceeding with the upgrade.

• Create a folder *outside* of your public documents folders for storing uploaded software products in. It should be outside the public documents folder so that it is not accessible by browsers. Ensure that the permissions on this folder are set to 777 using chmod. The chmod (change mode) feature can be found on most popular FTP software packages.

• Upload the iuserV2.tar file to the root of the folder where your publicly viewable web pages are stored. (Note: if you can't use Telnet for unpacking, see below)

• Using Telnet or SSH, navigate to the folder where the install package is located and issue this command:  
   
  tar -p -xf iuserV2.tar
   
  This command will not only unpack the files in appropriate directories, but it will also set the correct permissions.
  
• If you don't have Telnet access, you'll need to apply the following permissions to the relevant files/folders after extracting the contents of the .tar archive (Winzip and similar programs can handle .tar format) and then uploading via  ftp:

• View http://www.yourdomain.com/iuser/ in your browser to complete setup. 
  

• Once on the setup page; complete the form fields - the setup process would have attempted to auto detect some settings such as paths and your database server name, but you should check these for accuracy. If you need an explanation of any of the fields on the form, you can also click on the "Instructions" link on the setup page. If you need to change any of this information after setup is complete, you can do so via the Admin interface (Globals section):
   
  1. Site Name: This will appear in the browser title bar and also at the top of each iUser page
       
  2. iUser folder URL: The URL of the iUser folder *including* the trailing slash; e.g. http://www.domain.com/iuser/
      
  3. iUser Secure folder URL: If you will be using SSL, the secure URL of the iUser folder *including* the trailing slash; e.g https://www.domain.com/iuser/. If you are not using SSL, then use the same details as for the iUser folder URL above; e.g. http://www.domain.com/iuser/.
      
  4. Admin login: specify an Administrator login name.
      
  5. Admin password: specify an Administrator password.
      
  6. MySQL Host: usually localhost, but check with your hosting service.
      
  7. MySQL Username: the username you specified for the database.
      
  8. MySQL Password: the password you specified for the empty database.
      
  9. MySQL Database: the name of the database to be used for iUser.
      
  10. iUser Tables Prefix: Optional, but recommended - the installer can add a prefix to each table it creates in your database. This is useful if you will be using a database that is shared with another application and also valuable when upgrading to newer versions of iUser.
       
  11. Server path to uploads folder: - the full server path to the folder you created to store uploaded software products. It will look something like this; /usr/home/your_account_name/folder/ . If you're not sure of the full server path to your account, consult your host - Note: the upload folder should be outside your public documents folder to prevent unauthorized access and folder permissions should be set to 777. Remember to including the preceding and trailing "/" in the path statement.
       
  12. Use LinkPoint gateway: Read the LinkPoint installation procedures for Connect or API account types
       
  13. Authorize.net username: If you wish to use Authorize.net, enter you merchant username.
       
  14. PayPal email: Email address used for Paypal payments 
       
  15. 2checkout vendor id: For 2checkout merchants; usually a numerical ID.
       
  16. 2checkout secret word: You must set up the Secret Word in your 2checkout Admin area first - this feature can be found under "Account Details", "Return". The Secret Word field is towards the bottom of the page. 
       
      The secret word should be a single or compound word or group of letters and numbers with no spaces. Examples: Monkey1mouse, 4smal3phone, gooblyWbubze. Further special instructions for 2checkout settings and testing are in the "Global" section of this document.
       
  17. Use binary cURL: Set "No" if your php has built-in cURL extension or "Yes" if you want to use cURL binaries
       
  18. Support name: The name of the person handling support issue or just "YourSite Support"
       
  19. Support email: The email address of the person/team handling support issues.
       
  20. Notification email: Notification of orders
       
  21. Emails Sig: Signature lines to be added to the bottom of each email

• Click "Install". After setup is completed, please remember to remove, rename or move the install.php and install2.php files in the admin folder. If you need to change details after installation, or if you are using 2checkout, you can add/change information via the Admin interface (Globals section).

Congratulations! You've installed iUser! Now for an overview of the various sections and instructions for use..

Client interface

1. Public area 

On the home page of the client interface (once the client is logged in) are listed the available products. Clients can download free products or order premium products and services from this point. If a client selects a bundled item, an extra stage in the order process will allow them to purchase individual items from the bundle.

1.1 Registration 

Registration is required for new users who wish to download either free or premium products. By forcing the creation of a profile before downloading free items, this helps you build a marketing database. 

1.2 Order 

Users simply select products they wish to purchase and agree to the terms of use associated with each product or service. If logged in, their profile details will already be filled in and they will only need to enter credit card information or complete PayPal details if that option is offered. If they aren't yet a member, then a profile will be created for them as part of the order process.

1.3 Order bundle items

Users can view a page that only displays bundle products and elect to purchase the entire bundle or single items from the bundle.

1.3 Download

The download area contains a list of free products and services available to the user, plus also a list of premium products they have purchased that they can download at their convenience, either via http request or the client can opt to have the product sent to their email address.

1.4 Invoice

The invoices section lists all the previous purchases the client has made.

1.5 Profile

Allows the user to keep their contact details up to date (Name, address and etc.)

1.6 Support

This feature is for users who have purchased or have access to a product that you've made support available for.

Admin interface

2.1 Members

In this section you can control (add, edit, delete) clients and also search for particular clients. Beneath the profile is a listing of all your products and which ones the client has purchased. You can allow/disallow access to any product via this section.

A button at the very bottom of each profile also allows you to monitor a members' download activity, including the IP address from where the file was requested. Download stats only display download numbers via browser request, not those sent to the client via email.

2.2 Products

In this section you can manage your products and services.

iUser supports 3 types of products:

1. Billable - premium downloadable products
2. Free - free products available to all registered users
3. License - products with updates and time sensitive items

The BSU column indicates whether a product is Billable | has Support | has Updates

How to add a billable product 

• Click the "add billable product" button and then complete the form fields.

1. provides support - whether clients will be able to use the iUser support form for this product
2. name of the product - the title of the software
3. related product - allows you to "bundle" products for the same price. Note: The "Exclude already bundled products" is useful if you are selling a large number of products as it shortens the list. To display all products in the database, untick this option and the page will reload. Also see further notes on bundling below.
4. product description - appears on client home page only if client has already purchased the item
5. advertisement - promotion blurb that appears on client home page before purchase. HTML code can be used in this field, allowing you flexibility in presentation, e.g. displaying images etc.  
6. license URL - page where the client will be able to read the associated license/terms of use
7. available flag - if turned off, product will be not viewable on the home page.
8. display on iUser home page - by default (ticked box), iUser will display on the home page a billable product that has been bundled to another billable product. By unticking this option, the product will not be displayed on the home page. Unticking can be useful if you create bundles but don't wish for every item in the bundle to be displayed separately on the home page.

Each product (except licenses) allows for versions, which will all be viewable from the client home page. You need to have at least one version of each product for it to appear on the client home page.

• Click "Proceed"

You will now need to add a version for this product

• Click on "Products" on the menu
• Select product from the list and click "edit" button
• At the bottom of the page, you will see a list of the product's versions - click to the "add new version" button.
• Complete the form fields 

1. version - name of the version; usually numeric, but we also advise that you add the available file formats e.g: 1.1 (zip,exe). This will act as a flag to clients as to what format/s they can select from when downloading the product after purchase.
2. price - without the $ sign
3. filename - name of the file archive that will be assigned for this version *without* the file extension included. Please note: iUser is compatible with many file formats, but they need to be added via the "Globals" section (see below).
4. available flag - if turned off, product will be not viewable on the home page.
5. latest flag - if ticked, this version will be latest from the list of the versions for this product. 

• Click "proceed" button and new version will be added. Your clients will be able to see this product from their iUser members area home page. You will need to upload the file via FTP to the uploads folder you specified during setup. Ensure that the filename of the uploaded file matches what you named it when you added the version details. 

How to add a free product 

The process is basically the same, go to "Products" on the menu, click "Add free product" and complete the fields, then add version/s. The only difference in the process is that there won't be a price field to complete. Remember that you need to have at least one version of each product in order for it to appear in the client interface.

How to add a license (time sensitive and/or product with updates) item

• Click on "Products" on the menu
• Click "Add license"
• Complete the fields:

1. provide support checkbox - during time of license, user will be able to access support
2. provide updates checkbox - select the product that the client will be able to download the latest version of the item for free throughout the duration of the license after purchase
3. name of the license 
4. related product - adds the product associated with the license and also allows you to "bundle" other products for the same price - Important: see further notes on bundling
5. price - without the $ sign
6. product description - appears on client home page only if client has already purchased the item
7. advertisement - promotion blurb that appears on client home page before purchase. HTML code can be used in this field, allowing you flexibility in presentation, e.g. displaying images etc.  
8. license URL - where the client will be able to read the associated terms of use before purchase 
9. available flag - if turned off, product will be not viewable on the home page.
10. display on iUser home page - by default (ticked box), iUser will display on the home page a billable product that has been bundled to another billable product. By unticking this option, the product will not be displayed on the home page. Unticking can be useful if you create bundles but don't wish for every item in the bundle to be displayed separately on the home page.
11. expires - duration of license

• Click "proceed" button and new license item will be added. Your clients will be able to see this product from their home page

Bundling (related products) - important notes

Bundling products together is a great way to create special offers and bonuses for your clients. It's pretty simple to do, and bundling billable products together is straightforward:

1. create your billable products first.
2. edit one of the *existing* billable products - one you wish to bundle items to.
3. bundle items to it by highlighting them in the "related products" selector.
4. click "Proceed".
5. the product should now be bundled with those items. 
6. if you don't wish for particular products within a bundle to appear as separate items on the iUser home page, edit the items you've bundled to the main item and untick "display on iUser home page"

You need to follow the following instructions carefully when bundling software products with license items; license products being time sensitive/update options etc. for billable products such as premium software. 

1. create your billable products first and then create the associated license (time sensitive/updates included) items.
   
   Further explanatory notes: If you wish to have different license (time sensitive/updates) items, for example:
   • a time sensitive version of the product
   • a product with updates included
   • a product with updates and is time sensitive

   Then these should be created as separate billable (not license) products first (e.g. X Standard, X Gold, X Premium) and the various associated license product combinations you will bundle to these should also be created as separate license items (e.g. X Gold license, X Premium license). Always create the billable product types first. Once the license item has been created, the related product will "disappear" from the iUser home as a billable product - only the license item version will be displayed.
    

2. when adding the license products, remember to select the associated billable product in the "provide updates" dropdown menu if you also wish to provide updates as part of your bundle. Don't forget to select the relevant "related product" as well.

If you try to take a shortcut by just creating a license product with updates thinking that this will supply the original product as well, when the customer goes to purchase they will get an error message as the system detects that they haven't purchased the original product as yet. By following the above steps, it will ensure the transaction for the entire bundle (billable product, time sensitive options and updates) is successful. 

2.3 Invoices

View or delete invoices.

2.4 Stats

Displays the numbers of http requests for downloads of each file. For more detailed information regarding individual members, refer to the members profile. This will also contain information regarding the IP address requesting a download - useful in tracking abuse. Download stats only display numbers of files downloaded via browser request, not those sent to the client via the email address specified in their profile.

2.5 Manual orders

Allows you to manually add an order - especially useful for phone/mail orders. This feature also allows you to send a notification to the client when the order has been processed.

2.6 Mail users

Newsletter engine (requires cron) - send out newsletters to specific groups or to all clients. Once a mailout is added, it will be placed in a queue and then sent. Mailouts that are sent are archived. 

Once you have submitted a mailout, it will be set to "pending" according to the time interval you set in a cron job. If you're not sure how to set up cron jobs, ask your web host; or this tutorial may also be of assistance. Some hosts provide a graphical crontab manager, or you may need to create a cron job manually. 

Here's an example cron job:

# iUser news sending 
# News will be sent each day at 3 am 
0 3 * * * /usr/local/bin/php -d max_execution_time= -f /path_to_iuser/admin/news_process.php  

2.7 Global

Configuration values for the site that you entered on the original setup form - be very careful not to make changes in here unless you're sure of what you are doing. If you are using Authorize.net or 2checkout, you can also set testmode to "on" to test out your installation. You can also configure acceptable file extensions for uploaded files via this section.

Special 2checkout gateway instructions: In order for the 2checkout gateway to work correctly, aside from selecting it in the iUser Globals interface, you'll also need to:

• Set testmode for 2checkout in the iUser admin interface (Global Settings) to "on"
• Log in to your 2checkout account
• Select "shopping cart" from the menu
• Put your account in cart test payment mode for testing.
• Set "Return to a routine on your site after credit card processed" to NO.
• Leave Return URL blank.
• You must set also up the Secret Word in your 2checkout Admin area - this feature can be found under "Account Details", "Return". The Secret Word field is towards the bottom of the page. 
  The secret word should be a single or compound word or group of letters and numbers with no spaces. Examples: Monkey1mouse, 4smal3phone, gooblyWbubze.
• Enter the Secret Word to the iUser admin interface - global settings.
• Test your installation
• When you are ready to go live; log back into your 2checkout Admin area, take your account out of cart test payment mode also switch testmode off in iUser admin interface - global settings.

2.8 Supervise

Allows you to add and edit other administrators for the software. There are 2 levels of permissions that can be granted to other administrators - basic and advanced. The basic level allows the administrator to only view records, while the advanced level permits viewing and editing of records and settings.

Uploading software products

All downloads you wish to make available should be uploaded to the archives folder you specified in the setup - you need to name the files exactly the same as you did in the Admin "add version" interface (case sensitive). This folder should be located outside of the folders where your publicly viewable documents are stored, so they cannot be accessed without the administrators password. The folder permissions should be set to 777. Clients will only have access via their personal downloads area to items they have purchased or free items you offer.

Editing templates and email messages

Header and footer templates are stored in the /template/ folder and can be easily edited to suit the look of your own site. Always ensure you back up these templates before making edits. The file names are:

• header.tpl

• footer.tpl

Please note: there is javascript coding in the Admin header template <head> section that should not be removed for functionality reasons.

Please note: It is a condition of use that the "Powered by iUser Management Software" text and link remains viewable in the footer. If you wish to remove this text and link, please contact us for details.

The style sheet can be located in the top level of the iUser folder

• style.css

*Please note*: instances of {$config.SITEURL} in the header and footer are defined in the Admin interface under "Globals". You can use this code instead of needing to put full paths in the header and footer.

Email templates are stored in the /template/msg/ folder. Please note: be very careful when altering email templates that you do not affect their intended functionality by altering the special codes.

• confirm.msg - note to user after profile is created, includes confirmation code to finalize registration
• download.msg - sent to a client with purchased software attached.
• invoice.msg - invoice template sent to clients
• news.msg - newsletter template
• password.msg - password reminder
• support.msg - support request template sent to administrator.

LinkPoint Connect installation procedure

• Obtain your LinkPoint account information from the welcome email you received from LinkPoint. If you don't have this information please call Cardservice at 800-456-5989 ext. 4100 to obtain the information. You will need your Store Name (this is a 6 digit number), secure host name (linkpointcentral.com)if you have live account or (staging.linkpt.net)if you have a test account.
• Set "Use LinkPoint Gateway" to "Yes"
• Set "LinkPoint account type" to "LinkPoint Connect"
• Submit setting Form
• Fill in your LinkPoint details: Store Name (this is a six digit number), secure host name.
• You need to setup your LinkPoint accout for working with your iUser installation.
  1. Logon to LinkPoint ® Central
  2. Click on Customization in the Main Menu Bar
  3. Click on Settings in the Side Menu Box
  4. Fill Order Submission Form with http://yourdomain.com/whereIsYouriUserInstalled/order.php
  5. Fill Confirmation Page ("Thank You" Page URL) and Failure Page ("Sorry" Page URL) with http://yourdomain.com/whereIsYouriUserInstalled/callback/linkpointhtml.php
  6. Set checkboxes URL is a CGI script for both of them
  
  Read LinkPoint Connect documentation "Configuring the Merchant Store" -> "Configure the Connect settings".


• In order to test, you will need to switch the test mode to on. Please also make sure that the LinkPoint Gateway is also on in order to run test transactions.

LinkPoint API installation procedure

• Obtain your LinkPoint account information from the welcome email you received from LinkPoint. If you don't have this information please call Cardservice at 800-456-5989 ext. 4100 to obtain the information. You will need your Digital Certificate (key file), Store Name (this is a number), secure host name, and port number.
• Upload the Digital Certificate (key file) to somewhere on your server. This certificate should be saved as a file on your Web server with a .pem extension. It is better to place it outside of web access areas.
• Set "Use LinkPoint Gateway" to "Yes"
• Set "LinkPoint account type" to "LinkPoint API"
• Fill in your LinkPoint details: LinkPoint Gateway (on), test mode (on or off), Store Name (this is a six digit number), secure host name, port number, and path to your LinkPoint Digital Certificate key file) at your server.
• In order to test, you will need to switch the test mode to on. Please also make sure that the LinkPoint Gateway is also on in order to run test transactions.

Troubleshooting

Q: After I upload the iUser archive, I get an error message when I access the setup file.
A: You probably don't have the right file permissions set on specific files. Please see the table at the top of this page for file permission specifications.

Q. After I complete the setup form and click install, installation is successful, but the page has broken image links and styles, plus the links on the page do not work.
A. You have probably specified the wrong URL for the iUser folder URL field. Check your paths and then make the necessary adjustments to the setting via the Admin interface section "Globals". Also ensure you have trailing slashes on the end of each path.

Q. After I add a product, I can't see it listed in the client interface.
A. Each new product you create needs to have at least one version for it to appear in the client interface. Refer to the "How to add a billable product " section above. 

Q. Installation went fine, but products I've specified cannot be downloaded.
A. This is probably one of three things. First check the path you specified for uploads in the "Globals" section is correct. The path should be the *server* path, not the URL. Secondly, check that the file you have uploaded to the folder has exactly the same file name and cAsE as what you specified when adding it via the Products section.

Q: Why won't the uploads folder accept files via ftp?
A: Your uploads folder probably has the incorrect permissions. Try setting the permissions to 777 using your FTP client or via SSH chmod command.

Q: When I click "order", I get a DNS error?
A: You probably don't have SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) support or you've used the incorrect https: address. Check the "Globals" section of the admin interface. If you don't have SSL enabled for your web site, you can leave this blank.

Q: I'm using the 2checkout gateway and it's not working.
A: As well as needing to enable 2checkout in iUser, you also need to enable support for iUser in your 2checkout account interface. Please refer to the "Globals" section above for further details.

Support information

iUser is supported via our online support form. Clients who have purchased iUser with priority support options can access support via the Client Area. All questions will be answered as soon as possible, with priority support client issues having precedence. 

Patches applying instructions

January 8, 2005 - How to update your 2.1 version to V2.2

• Go IntensivePoint site client area and download V2.2 for free
• Save and Unpack at temporary place at your disk V2.2 archive
• Do full backup copy of the your existed iUser installation: most important files are setup.php, config.php & whole /template folder
• Upload from your disk common.php to your iUser installation at root folder
• Upload from your disk all *.php except config.php,setup.php,common.php to your iUser installation at root folder
• Upload from your iUser new archive folder at your disk /admin directory to your iUser installation at root folder, additionally copy folder's content /template/admin to your iUser installation too(to folder /template/admin of course)