How to Install ShopSite Manager
If you are comfortable with UNIX and know your way around your own server, the install process is pretty routine, and you can probably just stop reading right here. Otherwise, read on. Remember that the examples given here may not be entirely accurate for your server. We have used directory structures that are common, but by no means universal.
First, you will need the latest FTP URL in order to download the latest version of ShopSite Manager. Information on downloading should be emailed to you after you have provided payment information. If you have not received this email, contact the vendor who sold you the software. If you haven't bought the software yet, you won't be able to do any of this.
The file that you download will be in zipped, and should be unzipped in the directory that your ShopSite-generated web pages will be kept in. When unzipped, the following files will appear:
README
shopsite_install
store.auth
data.tar
html.tar
bocgis.tar
sbcgis.tar
testmm.cgi
You should also have received instructions on how to download a file named "store.auth" either via email or from the person that sold you ShopSite Manager. This file should be transferred to the same directory as the above files before trying to install. The store.auth file is a "key." Though you will be able to install the software, you will not be able to use it unless you have the store.auth file in the same directory as the shopsite_install application before installing. Please make sure you have all the files before installing.
Before you install:
Make sure you are installing the correct version of ShopSite Manager for your server's operating system. Currently, ShopSite Manager will run on the Linux or BSDI incarnations of UNIX. Make sure you downloaded the correct version. Also make sure that you are not running some other OS. (ShopSite for Windows NT and other flavors of UNIX is in the works)
Make sure your web server software is working correctly. If your web server is not working, ShopSite Manager will not work, and there will be no way for us to help you. If you do not have a web server, we recommend Apache. It is free.
Make sure you have at least version 5.003 of Perl. If you do not, the install will probably not work. You can download the latest version at Perl's web site. You will have to compile Perl for your server. It seems complicated, buy just keep hitting "return" to accept the default configurations, and the whole process will be so easy a monkey could do it. Perl is also free.
Make sure that before you attempt to install you are logged into your system as the web server. If you do not, owners and permissions for the directories and files may not be correct. Going back and changing permissions is a big pain and will take ten times longer than a proper install.
Installation
To begin installation, run the 'install_shopsite' program:
./install_shopsite
The install program will ask you a series of 10 questions. You need to
provide valid answers for all of them. The first three questions ask you where you want various parts of ShopSite Manager installed on your hard disk. Specifically, the program will prompt you for the directory where you want to keep the data for your store, the directory where you want to keep your Back Office CGIs, and the directory where you want to keep the Shopping Basket CGIs. The install program will create any directories that don't exist for you, but it's sometimes easier to prepare the territory first by creating the directories by hand.
The next three questions ask you for the URL of the output directory (where the ShopSite-generated pages will appear), the back office and the shopping basket; these should be in the form "http://host.com/path". Notice that there is no trailing slash. The final two questions ask you for a username and a password.
If you decide to create the directories first, rather than let the install program create them for you, here are some recommendations for where to put them. Let's assume that the store you are creating will sell power converters, and you have chosen the storeID "converters." (If you don't know what a storeID is, you will be asked to choose one before you receive your store.auth file.) You have the domain name "converters.com" and your current web documents are stored in the htdocs directory. This will be your ShopSite output directory (/usr/local/etc/httpd/htdocs) and the output URL will be http://www.converters.com.
You create a new directory at /usr/local/etc/httpd/data called "converters" so at the install, you specify that your store's data directory is /usr/local/etc/httpd/data/converters. This is where your ShopSite store's databases will be kept. Next, we need to make a place for your ShopSite CGIs. There are two types of CGIs: Back office and Shopping Basket. We'll keep them separate. You create two directories at /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin, one called "bocgi" and another called "sbcgi". Therefore, the path to the back office CGIs that you give at install is /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/bocgi and the URL is http://www.converters.com/cgi-bin/bocgi.
This is what the install question will ask you ,and what you would fill in. Right before this display, the program asks if it should try to autodetect settings. You should select yes. A lot of this data should already be displayed, especially if you created data and cgi directories before beginning the install program. This is how the install for our hypothetical converters store would look:
Please correct any invalid or blank settings below by entering the setting number.
When finished select 15 to complete installation.
1) Back office CGI directory: [/usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/bocgi]
2) Back office CGI URL: [http://www.converters.com/cgi-bin/bocgi]
3) Shopping Basket CGI directory: [/usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/sbcgi]
4) Shopping Basket CGI URL: [http://www.converters.com/cgi-bin/sbcgi]
5) HTML Output directory: [/usr/local/etc/httpd/htdocs]
6) HTML Output URL: [http://www.converters.com]
7) Store Data directory: [/usr/local/etc/httpd/data/converters]
8) PERL path: [/usr/bin/perl]
9) sendmail path: [/usr/sbin/sendmail]
10) StoreID: [converters]
11) Username: [converters]
12) Password: [!!! *** no value set *** !!!]
14) Re-detect settings
15) Use these values and install
16) Quit
Enter your choice:
When you get to this point, before you type in "15" and install, it's a good idea to copy this information to another document. That way, if your install doesn't work, you won't have to try to figure out what you had entered the last time. You can fix whatever problem may have come up and simply copy the rest.
Troubleshooting
If your install doesn't work, ay attention to the error message you receive. They may point you in the right direction. If that fails you, try checking the following:
Is your web server configured correctly?
Was the "store.auth" file in the same directory as the install_shopsite program? If so, it should have created a new file called "yourstoreid.auth" in your store's data directory. In our example, at /usr/local/etc/httpd/data/converters there would be a file called converters.auth. Is the URL and store ID the same one you told the salesperson when your original store.auth file was generated? If you changed your mind, you'll need a new store.auth file.
Are file permissions are set correctly for all of the directories that you specified? Not having file permissions and ownership correctly set is the number one problem developers run into. Specifically, the user under which CGIs are executed needs to be able to write in those
directories. One way to ensure that rights are correctly set is to install as the same
user that the http server runs under. To do this first create the appropriate
cgi, data, and HTML output directories. Then assign the http server ownership
and read, write, and execute rights to these directories. Finally, login as
the http server and run the install program.
Installing on a Virtual Server
Installation on a virtual server adds another level of complexity. A virtual server shows the complete file system and paths when you install but only shows a part of the file system when you browse from the web. Keep in mind that all virtual servers are not alike. If these instructions do not work for you, contact your virtual server provider.
For example the install program will place the back office cgis in the
directory /usr/home/MYACCOUNT/usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/bo but the Web server and browser only sees /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/bo. Thus the ShopSite cgis will now be configured wrong. To solve the problem, place a relative symbolic link under /usr/home/MYACCOUNT/usr/home
Create the link by doing the following:
- from the home directory (/usr/home/MYACCOUNT)
"cd usr/home"
- create the symbolic relative link
"ln -s ../../ MYACCOUNT"
Note: substitute your home directory name for MYACCOUNT in the examples above. Also, do not select the option to autodetect settings during install.
Quickstart
Once ShopSite is installed run the software from your browser by going to the URL that you installed the back office CGIs into and execute the start.cgi. After entering your username and password, you will see the main Back Office page. Click on the "?" in the upper right hand corner of the screen. A new browser window should appear with the ShopSite online help page. This is your launch pad for learning to use ShopSite Manager. Select the Quickstart Guide link and read the guide for a broad overview of the software and a walk-through of setting up a new store. After that, look through the other help documents. If you have a specific question, type it into the search field, using natural language. For example, if you are wondering how to make pull down menus in the shopping basket, type in "how do I make pull down menus?" into the search field.
Also, you can click on the question mark icon on any page in the back office for specific help for that page. If you have questions or problems, at the very least, click on the question mark and try the search before contacting the person who sold you the software for technical support.
