SiteGround Tutorials

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Freeway Tutorial

Introduction to Freeway

 

 

Freeway Installation Tutorial

Freeway System Requirements

In order to run properly, Freeway requires the following:

• Operating System - Unix, Mac, Windows
• WebServer - Apache (Freeway is developed primarily on Apache and thus it is recommended as web server)
• PHP - version 4.3.9 or higher. PHP version 5 is recommended.
• Database - MySQL 4.1.12. MySQL version 5 is recommended.

Note that all SiteGround servers meet Freeway's system requirements. 

Installation process

First of all you will need to download the latest Freeway installation package from their official web site. You need to download the package locally to your computer and extract the archive. Then you should upload the extracted folder using cPanel -> FileManager for your hosting account or using an FTP Client.

Make sure you have placed the Freeway installation files at the exact place where you would like your online store to be accessible. If you intend to have it accessible directly via your domain name, you should place the content of the extracted directory directly under the public_html folder for your account.

You will also need to create a new database and assign a database username to it with full privileges. You can follow our detailed tutorial on Creating MySQL database and user.

In order to initiate the Freeway installation, access the folder where you have uploaded it via your web browser. Detailed video tutorial how to accomplish all Freeway installation steps can be found below. The installation itself is rather simple. Basically, all you need to do is enter the database details you already have and other options can remain the default ones.

There are a few more steps you need to accomplish in order to finalize the installation. Once it is completed, the 'install' directory remains in the directory tree for the installation. It has to be removed. Also there are 2 configuration files which need to be made read-only (the permissions have to be set to 444). The files in question are under the main installation directory:

includes/configure.php
admin/includes/configure.php

You can change the permissions via cPanel -> FileManager or using an FTP Client.

Once you have done so, the installation will be fully functional and you will be able to start building your online store.

NB: The administrator login details set by default are:

email: freeway@zac-ware.com
password: admin

You can change those right away when logged in as administrator to your Freeway installation. The URL to the administrator backend will look like this:

http://yourdomainname.com/freeway/admin

Where 'yourdomainname.com' is your actual domain name and 'freeway' is the exact directory where you performed the installation.

 

Freeway Administration Tutorial

 

In this section we will review the basics of the Freeway installation for the administrator backend.

The first thing you should take care of after completing a Freeway installation is changing the administrative login details for it. As explained in the installation section, the administrative area will be available at:

http://yourdomainname.com/freeway/admin

Where 'yourdomainname.com' is your actual domain name and 'freeway' is the exact directory where you performed the installation.

The administrator login details set by default for Freeway are:

email: freeway@zac-ware.com
password: admin

In order to change the admin details, click on 'Account Settings' right after you have logged in as administrator. Click the 'Edit' button and enter the desired details. Note that at first you will be asked for the current administrative password. Once you click 'Confirm' you will be asked to enter and confirm the new password. Then click the green button with the check sign in order to save the new password.

You can check the following video where the exact steps that should be taken are displayed:

Prior to proceeding with the changes, note that hovering with the mouse pointer over a specific option will display more information about the field. This would be particularly helpful when you are not sure what exactly to enter in the field.
 

Menus 

 

 

Shop Settings

• This 'General' tab will allow you to adjust the configuration for your online store such as store name, owner, email address etc. It is advisable to immediately change those in order to reflect the actual information for your online store.
• The 'Template' tab will allow you to make various modifications to your current template. You can edit the greeting text for visitors and clients and the various infoboxes.
• Under 'Zones' you can adjust the zones from which you would like to receive orders.
• The 'Images' tab will allow you to alter the options for the images that your Freeway online store is using. Their size, the desired extensions and the directories where you would like them saved.
• 'Languages' tab will allow you to choose between various language packs if available.
• Under the 'Files' tab you can access a fully functional file manager. You can browse, download and edit your Freeway files via it. Note that when clicking edit for a file, it will be opened in text format. In other words you can edit only text files directly via the Freeway file manager.
• The 'Admin User Groups' tab will allow you to adjust the current user groups as well as add new groups if needed. To adjust the specific permissions for a user group click on it, then choose the 'New Permissions' option from the 'Admin User Groups' drop-down menu.
• The 'Site Maintenance' has several different functionalities which one can find really helpful. You can not only set your web site as 'Down for Maintenance' but also display a notice prior to bringing it down and adjust which parts exactly are hidden when the web site is down for maintenance. You can allow access for certain IP address even when the site is not available for others. The last one is particularly helpful when you want to make modifications to your web site and you do not want anyone to have access to it in the meantime.
• The 'Advanced' tab will give you access to adjust a large number of settings for your web site. You will find various options that you can change in order to adjust your web site according to your needs. This includes but is not limited to: new user registration requirements, turning on/off the use of SEF URL and session settings. You can also run compatibility test and create backup of your Freeway online store database.
• 'Order status' will allow you to modify existing order statuses and add new statuses if needed. 

Customers 

• 'Manage Customers' will display all customers registered to your Freeway online store. You will be able to alter the details for each customer by clicking on the customer name. Also you can create a new customer directly via the administration area. The option is available on the main page as well as at the Manage Customers drop-down menu.
• Additionally you can create orders on your own via the 'Create Order' functionality. It will allow you to chose an existing customer for the order or enter new customer details, then create an order for an existing product.
• The 'Advanced' tab allows you to alter the information fields shown for each customer account. Additionally you will be able to alter the Customer and Subscription groups, as well as add new ones and create discounts. Last but no least you are able to import users from Eudora, Outlook, Outlook Express, LDIF, TAB, CSV and Text file.
• The 'Orders' tab will allow you to browse all existing orders for your Freeway store. You will be able to search by other ID and display only orders that are in certain status. Also clicking on order in the list will bring out more options that will allow you to refund it, delete it, get printable invoice for the order etc.
• The Events, Services, Products and Subscriptions share similar functionality. Basically each will allow you to create and manage various items that are offered for sale at your Freeway online store.

Events 

• The 'Events' category will allow you to create and manage events on your online store. With Freeway you can sell events such as such as movie shows, sport classes and so on. If you would like to put an event for sale, you should define the event sessions, the attributes and specify the other required information. Note that prior to defining the event, you need to define the locations where the event will take place. Also there are 'instructors' assigned to each event. This is the person that is presenting the event in question.

Services 

• Using Freeway you can sell not only products but also a full set of services. There is no limitation what services you can provide on your Freeway store. Such services may include but are not limited to technical support, car repair or even babysitting. To put a service for sale you will need to specify required equipment, locations, resources and attributes.
• Prior to creating a service, you will have to create the resources required in order to provide that service.
• The service locations are the actual locations where you can provide this service.
• The specific attributes will vary according to the service you provide. Each different service will have its own set of attributes that are relevant to it.

Products 

• The traditional products selling is another feature that is of course provided in Freeway. There is no limitation what kind of products you will sell. The required options in order to put a product for sale are product attributes and shipping mode. Note that different type of products may have various attributes. This depends solely on the product itself. Freeway provides several shipping options. You may choose the ones you use via the Shipping tab.

Subscriptions

• Using Freeway you can also provide a variety of subscriptions for your online store. You may create subscriptions like computer maintenance or magazines. To put a subscription for sale all you need to do is create a category and specify the required information for the subscription.

CMS  The CMS functionality of Freeway will allow you to post articles, reviews and adjust the actual look and feel of your online store. It includes:

• Managing the front page.

• Managing and adding new static pages such as Privacy Notice and Terms of Use.
• Managing reviews, articles and FAQ.

Marketing 

There are several important functionalities in the Marketing section that you would probably like to us

•  Alter the default email messages and pages provided for various purposes such as creating a new customer account, sending message to all customers, customizing invoice pages and altering the contact form details for your online store. Those are all available through the 'General' tab.
• Creating and managing Surveys.
• Setting up affiliates for your Freeway online store. 
• Creating newsletters and products notifications.
• Setting up the SEO for the various pages of your Freeway online store.

Sales

The sales area for your Freeway store will allow you to manage the following:

• Create new orders with custom details according to your needs and for a specific existent customer or for a new customer.
• Setup custom discounts for Products, Events, Subscriptions or Services
• Create voucher/coupons which can be provided to existing or new customers.
• You can also create Cross Sales to other products or subscriptions provided at your Freeway online store.

Payment

Available features include:

• Managing payment gateways. You have the option to choose among several payment methods that can be available upon checkout.
• Adjust currencies. Note that Australian Dollar is the default currency in Freeway.
• Setting Up Taxes.
• Creating Tickets and ID cards for Services and Events that are for sale on your store.
• Reports - This functionality will provide you with detailed reports for all Events, Products, Subscriptions and Services provided at your Freeway online store. You will be able to check refunds, shipping and discount coupons. You can export reports to PDF and Excel files.

My Account 

• This will work the same way as Account Settings.

Tools

• Front End - This link will load the front end of your Freeway Installation.
• Report Bugs - Currently opens the Freeway official web site as they are not running any specific bug tracking software at this point. The following URL can be used instead:
• Community - Will again open the Freeway official web site.
• ZacWare - Leads to the Freeway sponsor's website. 

Freeway Version

• Under version you will find information about the current version of your Freeway installation. A link to download the latest version is also provided. You need to click the 'here' link. It will load a page with more detailed information about the version you are running, then click 'Upgrade Now' if needed. You will be directed to a download page where you can acquire the latest Freeway version. Once downloaded, you can follow the upgrade guide.

 

Freeway Backup and Restore Tutorial

In this tutorial we will show you how to back up and restore your Freeway.

Creating a Backup of your Freeway installation

Creating a backup of your Freeway installation includes 2 major steps. Backing up the Freeway installation database and the web site files for it. Both steps are reviewed in details below.

Creating Freeway Database Backup.

There are 2 possible ways to create the backup. First of all you need to know which is the database used by your installation. This information can be acquired by checking the Freeway configuration file. Note that there are 2 separate files where database information is stored. One for the Freeway front end and one for the administration backend. By default the database used for both is the same and we will review this case. The files where database information is stored are directly under the Freeway installation folder respectively:

• includes/configure.php
• admin/includes/configure.php

The information that we need is at the end of the files. We are looking for the DB_DATABASE variable. Here is a sample line that shows the needed information:

• define('DB_DATABASE', 'user_freeway');

In the particular case the database is 'user_freeway'. Note that user will be your cPanel username (all databases for your account will have this prefix) and freeway is the actual name you specified for the database. So in the particular case we need to create a backup for the user_freeway database. As mentioned there are 2 ways to create the backup.

• Use the cPanel backup functionality. To do so, log in to cPanel for your account -> Backups. Under Download a MySQL Database Backup all databases for your hosting account will be listed. Click on the freeway database name and a download window will pop up. Use it to download and save the backup locally to your computer. This is the preferred option for creating the backup.
• You can also use cPanel -> phpMyAdmin in order to create the backup of the database. Detailed tutorial how to do so you can find here. Note that this option is relatively less reliable and you might experience issues downloading larger databases via phpMyAdmin.

Creating Freeway Website Files Backup.

Prior to downloading the web site files backup it is advisable to create an archive of the files. It is not a mandatory step but it helps for easier upload/download. Downloading a single archive file will be always faster than downloading all the files one by one.

To create an archive of your Freeway installation files follow these steps:

• Log in to cPanel for your account.
• Choose File Manager.
• Navigate to the Freeway installation directory (note that if Freeway is accessible directly via your domain name the installation directory is public_html).
• You can use the 'Select all' button to select all files in the directory.
• Click the 'Compress' button. You will be asked for the directory where you would like the archive saved.

To download the backup of your Freeway store locally to your computer you can use either FTP client or cPanel -> File Manager. 

Restoring Freeway from a previously created backup

Freeway Database Restore

The Database Restore can be accomplished using the same tools you have used for exporting it.

Again the preferred option is the cPanel -> Backup tool. You will see the 'Restore a MySQL Database' option. All you need to do is browse to the database backup you have downloaded and once you have selected it, click the Upload button.

The other option is to use phpMyAdmin. How to restore the database from phpMyAdmin you can check here.

Freeway Website Files Restore

Restoring the web site files is a relatively simple task. What needs to be done is upload the web site files you have downloaded to their initial location, overwriting any existing files if needed. Again, this can be accomplished via an FTP client or cPanel -> File Manager.

Freeway Upgrade Tutorial

The Freeway upgrade process is relatively simple. Generally all you need to do is overwrite the existing files with the new version installation package. Then you need to rerun the installation process, this time choosing the upgrade option.

IMPORTANT: You should always make sure you have a working full backup of your Freeway installation (files and database) prior to performing an upgrade. This is absolutely necessary and in case the upgrade fails for some reason, you will be able to restore your online store to a fully functional state from the created backup.

Freeway - Joomla Integration Tutorial

In this tutorial we will show you how to integrate Freeway with Joomla.

Summary

The functionality that this integration provides is the sale of the various Freeway commerce items in Joomla, one for each of products, events, services and subscriptions.

Users registering to each of the systems are automatically replicated to the other one.

Display Freeway menu items inside Joomla

Compatibility The extension is developed for Joomla 1.5 and Freeway 1.5. 

Linking Freeway and Joomla

Freeway requirements:

 

The Freeway installation must be inside the root of the Joomla directory. For example, if the Joomla installation is a /home/user/public_html/joomla15, Freeway must be installed to /home/user/public_html/joomla15/freeway

The Joomla can either use it's own database or share the same database as Freeway without any changes because Joomla uses a different database table prefix.

The only setting you need to check is that Shop Setting -> Advanced -> Use Search-Engine Safe URLs is set to true.

Create a directory “tmp” in the root of your Freeway installation and set it's permissions so the web server can write to it.

Joomla requirements:

Install the Freeway component and all modules that come with it in the installation package.

The Freeway Admin Module is under the Administrator link. All other modules are available under Site. In order to make the Freeway Admin link visible the position should be set as Menu.

Linking Freeway and Joomla is accomplished by copying the link_index.php file from the integration package to the root directory of the Joomla installation.

 

Freeway Joomla SEF/SEO

The existing Joolma .htaccess file in the root of the Joomla installation should be replaced with the .htaccess file from the integration archive file. If the file was previously altered, make sure you keep all custom modifications you have made. Note that it is possible certain rewrite rules you have added to interfere with the Joomla/Freeway integration functionality.

In case the Joomla installation is not at the web root for your domain name for example, under directory 'joomla', you should uncomment and update the line for RewriteBase. In case the installation is under Joomla the option should look like this:

RewriteBase /joomla

Note that Freeway admin backend -> Shop Setting -> Advanced -> Use Search-Engine Safe URLs should be set to true.

Freeway Security Tutorial

First and most important of all - it is imperative to always keep your Freeway installation up to date. Having the latest version installed will reduce the risk of your web site being compromised.

You might consider a good practice to additionally password protect the 'admin' directory or even allow access from your IP address only. You can find detailed instructions how to do so following these links:

• Password Protect Directories
• Deny/Allow IP addresses