ShopSite

ShopSite SC 4.2 Installation Instructions


To install ShopSite on your UNIX server, all you need is your favorite Web browser and ftp or telnet access to your server.

Table of Contents

I. Pre-Installation Considerations
II. Planning ShopSite Directories
III. Run the Install Program
IV. Installing on a Virtual Server
V. Configure the Web Server
VI. Upgrading
VII. Troubleshooting
VIII. Build Your Store!

  1. Pre-Installation Considerations
  2. Planning ShopSite Directories
  3. The ShopSite SC install program will prompt you for the locations of five directories:

    Plan the directory locations before starting the installation. An example directory structure might look like this:

    home
    httpd
    cgi-bin
    ss = ShopSite Directory,
    aliased to URL of ShopSite CGIs, such as
    http://www.xyz.com/cgi-bin/ss
    sc = Shopping Cart Directory,
    aliased to URL of Shopping Cart CGIs, such as
    http://www.xyz.com/cgi-bin/sc
    html
    shopsite-images
    StoreName = HTML Output Directory, aliased to
    Store Front URL defined in store.auth file
    Store pages
    media - you may need FTP access
    Store images
    data
    StoreName = Data Directory

  4. Run the Install Program
  5. Once you have downloaded the compressed installation program, you can easily install ShopSite using just your browser.

    1. If you have not already done so, download the compressed installation file and your store.auth file to the directory from which you will run the install. This must be a directory where CGI programs can execute and write. If you use FTP to retrieve the files, be sure to use a binary mode transfer.

    2. Unzip the install file.

    3. Set permissions on the files and the directory and in your Web server so that you can execute the wwwinstall.cgi and info.cgi programs from your Web browser.

    4. Point your browser to the wwwinstall.cgi file in the installation directory.

    5. On the first screen, click Install a Store if this is the first installation of ShopSite on this server. Click Upgrade if you have an existing installation of a previous version of ShopSite.

    6. On the next screen, enter values in the various fields and click OK. You must fill in all of the fields or the installation program will not work.

    7. The installation program begins installing ShopSite and shows you the results of the install. If there were any errors, change the appropriate fields and click the OK button again.

  6. Installing on a Virtual Server
  7. On most virtual servers, the directory paths that you can see from a telnet session are not the same as when viewed from a Web browser. Keep this in mind when specifying the paths used by the browser-based install program.

    Iserver (Verio) Install Issues

  8. Configure the Web Server
  9. Configure the Web server to recognize the new directories:

  10. Upgrading from a Previous Release
  11. The browser-based upgrade is very similar to the install, but much simpler. The process begins the same way as the install.

    1. FTP the newest zipped version of ShopSite for your operating system into your CGI directory (or a directory where CGI's can be executed) and unzip them. Or, if you don't have telnet access, unzip them on your PC and FTP the components up separately.

    2. Point your browser to http://yourURL/yourCGIdirectory/wwwinstall.cgi.

    3. On the first screen, click the Upgrade button. The installation program will automatically determine the paths to your ShopSite and shopping cart CGI directories.

    4. Unless you have made some very strange changes to your server configuration, you should not need to change anything; just click OK and your store will be upgraded.

    The installation program will not only upgrade the CGI's, it will update your store's databases. If you have more than one store sharing CGI's, it will update databases for each one, and report the results to you. If you have a lot of stores, the upgrade process may take a while.

  12. Troubleshooting
  13. 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:

    If you still can't solve the problem, search our Technical Support Knowledgebase to see if the problem you're having has been previously reported and if a solution has been posted or suggested.

  14. Build Your Store!
  15. Once you've installed the software, you're ready to build your store! Point your browser to start.cgi in the directory where you installed the CGIs. After entering your username and password, you'll see the first page of the ShopSite Store Setup Wizard, which will guide you through the process of building a store.

    You can click the "?" in the upper right-hand corner of any screen to get help on that screen, and to access the searchable ShopSite help system and knowledgebase.