Installing ShopSite on a Windows Server

It's easy to install ShopSite shopping cart software on a Windows server; all you need is administrative access and an FTP program.

Overview

The process of installing a new ShopSite store on a Windows server includes the following phases:

1. Preparing to Install
2. Obtaining Installation Files
3. Uploading Installation Files
4. Running the ShopSite Installer
5. Troubleshooting

Preparing to Install

If you are running a typically configured web server, ShopSite only requires minor configuration changes in order to run. Before you get started, you should be aware of the following requirements:

• ShopSite runs on a variety of Operating Systems and web servers. See the ShopSite System Requirements to make sure you have a compatible web server.
• Your Web server must be using NCSA compatible user authentication. Most Web servers, including Apache and Microsoft IIS, should already be configured to do this.
• In order to view store reports in ShopSite, you must have your server configured to store the web logs in NCSA Common Log file format. See Enabling NCSA Common Log Format for IIS to learn how you can do this.
• In order to comply with PCI Security Requirements, you Must have SSL (secure connections) configured and working on your Web server, and you must configure ShopSite to use SSL.

Before you begin the installation process, you should plan out where you want to place the various files and folders ShopSite uses. You do not need to create any of these folders at this time, but you should decide where they will be and make sure they will have the required access. ShopSite will let you put the folders wherever you want, and you can name them however you wish, as long as the folders have the appropriate access rights for the web server. There are three types of folders that you will need to plan for:

• CGI Folders
  ShopSite uses numerous CGI programs, which must be allowed to run from a web browser. The ShopSite install utility will automatically place these folders underneath your store document root directory:
  • Shopping Cart Folder - this is the folder where the shopping cart CGIs will be stored.

    Example File System Path: C:\Program Files\ShopSite\mystore\sc
    Example URL: http://www.mystore.com/sc/

  • ShopSite Back Office Folder - this is the folder where the back office CGIs will be stored.

    Example File System Path: C:\Program Files\ShopSite\mystore\ss
    Example URL: http://www.mystore.com/sc/

• HTML Folders
  ShopSite stores static content in HTML folders, which must be viewable from a web browser. The ShopSite install utility will automatically place these folders underneath your store document root directory:
  • Store Pages Folder - this is the location where your store pages will be placed. This is usually the same as your site document root directory, and must match the store URL in your Auth file.

    Example File System Path: C:\Program Files\ShopSite\mystore
    Example URL: http://www.mystore.com/

  • Store Media Folder - this is where your store images will be placed.

    Example File System Path: C:\Program Files\ShopSite\mystore\media
    Example URL: http://www.mystore.com/media/

  • ShopSite Images Folder - this is where the ShopSite back office images will be placed.

    Example File System Path: C:\Program Files\ShopSite\mystore\images
    Example URL: http://www.mystore.com/images/

• Data Folder
  The store data folder is where the databases and store configuration files are located. This folder must be accessible to the web server, but it should not be accessible from a Web browser. This is an essential requirement for PCI Security Requirements.

  Example File System Path: C:\Program Files\ShopSite\data\mystore
  Not accessible using a URL.

Obtaining Installation Files

Once you are ready to install ShopSite, you need to obtain the installation files. Each ShopSite store requires a unique Auth file in order to run. See the Auth File Help for information about what an Auth file is and how to obtain one. When you get the Auth file, you should save it on your local computer in a place where you will be able to find it later. Be sure to use ASCII (text file) format any time you use FTP to transfer your Auth file.

ShopSite partners can obtain the program installation files directly from ShopSite by following the instructions below. You will need the partner ftp username and password you were given when you signed the partner agreement. Make sure you have them ready before you start.

FTP to the ShopSite Support FTP server and download the installation files using one of the following methods:

• Using an FTP client on your local computer:
  1. Open your FTP client program and open the Connect dialog.
  2. Enter support.shopsite.com as the Hostname.
  3. When you are prompted, enter the username and password you were provided.
  4. On the Server, change to the folder that correlates to your Web server operating system, then the folder for the version of ShopSite you want to download (this will usually be the current folder).
  5. On your local computer, change to the folder where you want to put the installation files. You may want to use the same location where you put your Auth file.
  6. Use Binary (BIN) mode to copy the installation file to your local computer. The file to download will be named setup.exe.
  7. If there is a patch folder in the version folder, you will also need to copy any files in that folder to your local computer using Binary (BIN) transfer mode.
• Using a Web browser on your local computer:
  1. Open your Web browser and enter the following URL into the location bar. You will need to replace MyUserName and MyPassword with the username and password you were provided:
     ftp://MyUserName:MyPassword@support.shopsite.com/
  2. Click on the name of the folder that correlates to your Web server operating system, then click the name of the version of ShopSite you wish to download (this will usually be the current folder).
  3. Click on the file named setup.exe.
  4. When prompted, select a location to save the file on your local computer. You may want to use the same location where you put your Auth file.
  5. If there is a patch folder in the version folder, you will also need to save any files in that folder to your local computer.

Uploading Installation Files

Once you have all the files required to install ShopSite, you need to upload the files to your web server.

1. Open your FTP client and connect to your web server.
2. Navigate to the folder on your server where you want to place the installation files. This should be a location you will be able to easily locate through the administrative interface.
3. Navigate to the folder on your local computer where the installation files are located.
4. Use ASCII Format to upload your store.auth file.
5. Use Binary Format to upload the setup.exe file and any patch files.

Running the ShopSite Installer

After you have uploaded all the required files to your web server, you can run the installation program.

1. Log in to your windows server administration interface.
2. Locate the folder where you put the installation files and double-click setup.exe to launch the installation utility.
3. Click Next on the Welcome screen.
4. Click Add to create a new installation.
5. Select the option to Create a new ShopSite installation with an initial store, then click Next.
6. Click Browse... to locate the auth file in the folder you uploaded it to. After you have selected your auth file, click Next to continue.
7. Select the Web Site to install ShopSite on. This will usually be the Default Web Site. The installer should automatically display the path to the site in the Home Directory field. Click Next to continue.
8. Select the options to Set access permissions for ShopSite directories and Create virtual directories for ShopSite URLs. This will enable ShopSite to automatically create the folders and web server aliases required by ShopSite. Click Next.
9. Click Add User/Group... to create the Windows User and Group required for the ShopSite store.
   • Create a User account with the same name as the StoreID in the Auth file.
   • Create a Group account named ShopSite.
   • Assign the User account you just created to the ShopSite group.
   After you have finished, close the Computer Management window and return to the ShopSite installation utility. Click Next to continue the ShopSite installation.
10. Click Browse... to select the location where ShopSite will be installed. This should be the Store Pages Folder you decided on earlier.
11. Enter a ShopSite Name for your store. This must be a unique name, and should be a name you will associate with this store. You may want to use the StoreID. Click Next to continue.
12. Review the folder settings for your installation. These should match the folder and URL paths you decided on during your preparation. Click the name of a location (e.g. [Images]) to change the file system path or URL for that location. Click Next to continue.
13. Enter the domain name (or IP address) of the Mail Server for your store and the Merchant E-mail Address, then click Next.
14. Review the installation settings and click Next to begin installing ShopSite with the selected options. It may take several minutes to create and copy the ShopSite files to the destination folders.
15. Select the option to View Setup log and other important information to view the log file and general information about your ShopSite installation.
16. Select the option to Launch IIS Manager if you want to view or make additional changes to your web server settings after the installation is complete.
17. Click Finish to exit the ShopSite installation utility.

ShopSite is now installed on your Windows web server. To log in to the store:

1. Open a web browser and enter the URL of the ShopSite Back Office Folder followed by start.cgi in the location box (e.g. www.mystore.com/ss/start.cgi).
2. Enter the Username and Password for the Windows User Account you configured during the installation process.
3. Click OK.

The first time you log in to the store, ShopSite will automatically launch the Store Setup Wizard.

Troubleshooting

If your installation did not work, pay attention to the error messages you receive; they should point you in the right direction. If that fails, try checking the following:

• Did you get an error loading ntutil.dll when you ran setup.exe? If you get this error, download vcredist_80_x86.exe and vcredist_90_x86.exe from the ShopSite FTP site. Install these packages on your Windows server and run setup.exe again.
• Are file permissions set correctly for all the folders that you specified? Not having file permissions set correctly is the number one installation problem that users run into. Specifically, the user account under which the install program is executed needs to be able to write in the ShopSite folders.
• Do you have administrator permissions, which are required to run the install program?
• Is your Web server configured correctly?
• Did you enter the same store ID and URL that you told the salesperson when the store.auth file was originally created? If you've changed your mind, you'll need a new store.auth file.
• Try downloading a fresh copy of setup.exe from shopsite.com; sometimes the file can get corrupted in FTP transit. Be sure to use a binary-mode transfer.

ShopSite Help and Resource Center

Last updated: December 1, 2008

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