FAQ

General

Security

Functionality

Design changes

Trial version

Purchase & Support

General

• What is CS-Cart?
  CS-Cart is a turnkey e-commerce shopping cart software solution, which includes all the features necessary to build a successful and competitive online business.

  Built using open source technologies, PHP/MySQL, Smarty, CS-Cart is flexible and highly customizable software. That makes it easy to modify the program and extend its functionality according to your needs.

  CS-Cart is software that is installed only on your website (hosting server) and both its storefront and admin panel are managed via a web browser allowing you to run it whether at home, at the office or any place with internet connection.

  To learn more about CS-Cart shopping cart software, look through the list of its main features, comprehensive documentation and Knowledge Base. Also you can try the software by downloading our 45-day free trial and see how it is to buy easy, sell easier.

  Should you have any questions, we will be glad to answer them. Please contact us through our contact form. If you are a CS-Cart license owner, please submit tickets via our Customer Help Desk system.
  
  
• On what operating systems does CS-Cart run?
  CS-Cart shopping cart software works well on Windows and Unix-like operating systems (Linux, FreeBSD). Yet we recommend installing CS-Cart on Linux or FreeBSD operating systems, as they are more secure and allow more flexible control of file and directory permissions.
  
  
• What browsers does CS-Cart work with?
  CS-Cart works with all major web browsers such as FireFox, Internet Explorer, Netscape, Opera, Safari and others.
  
  
• Can I use CS-Cart with an existing website or it should be used on its own?
  CS-Cart shopping cart software can be equally used as a stand-alone website and as a part of the existing website and is extremely powerful in both cases.
  

  If you want to use CS-Cart as a part of your website, just make a link from your static pages to the shopping cart home page. For example, "Our online shop" with the hyperlink something like www.your-shop.com/shop/. You also have the ability to change the CS-Cart design so that it will match your existing website.
  
  

• Is the license fee a one-time charge or is it annual?
  License fee is a single payment. Once you purchased a CS-Cart license, you got the lifetime right to use it. Along with it you will get full access to new versions of CS-Cart free of charge for a period of one year from the date of purchase. In order to extend this period, license owners can purchase a one-year maintenance plan. For more information about upgrade policy refer to the Upgrade policy page.
  
  
• Are there any discounts on CS-Cart shopping cart software?
  Yes. At the moment we offer a $100 discount on each additional CS-Cart license bought after the first one. So the first license costs $265, whereas all subsequent licenses will cost $165 each. Also, we provide special wholesale pricing for our resellers. For more information about the reseller pricing refer to the Reseller program page.
  
  
• How often are CS-Cart updates released?
  New versions of CS-Cart, each including new add-ons, skins, etc., are released 2-3 times a year.
  
  
• Will I be able to make code modifications in the full version of CS-Cart by myself?
  Yes. CS-Cart is highly customizable due to the fact that it is 100% open source code software. You can make any changes in the source code of the program and extend the standard functionality. But please keep in mind that all responsibility for possible consequences rests with you. In case of a problem our support engineers will not be able to help you, as they do not analyze the code added by CS-Cart owners or third parties.

  Also, our engineers would be happy to help you customize your store at your request on a paid basis so that it satisfies all your business needs.
  
  

• Does CS-Cart work with PayPal or Google Checkout?
  Yes. PayPal and Google Checkout payment gateways are supported by CS-Cart. Besides these two payment systems CS-Cart is fully integrated with more than 50 payment service providers. Their full list can be found on the Payment systems page. If the necessary payment provider is not on the list, you can always make a request and we will develop a custom payment module for you.
  
  
• Does your cart provide live and accurate shipping quotes?
  Yes. Real-time shipping can be provided via world's most trusted shipping carriers such as FedEx, UPS, USPS, Canada Post, Australia Post, DHL and Intershipper. Manual shipping methods are also available in CS-Cart Shopping Cart software. And a great array of settings enables you to make the shipping quotes as accurate as you would like.
  
  
• Can I prevent order and other sensitive information from being accessed by staff?
  Yes, sure. CS-Cart shopping cart features multiple levels of administrative access. You can create as many administrator memberships as you wish and assign different administrative rights to them. Thus some employees will be allowed to manage only products, while others - only affiliate system, etc.
  
  

Security

• Does CS-Cart support SSL?
  Yes. All you need is an SSL enabled server and your own or a shared certificate installed on the server.
  
  
• Is CS-Cart PCI Compliant?
  Yes. We consider it a must for up-to-date shopping cart software. Please read more to see how CS-Cart can help you to meet the latest security requirements.
  
  

Functionality

• Is CS-Cart search engine friendly?
  Yes. CS-Cart is completely search engine friendly software and designed to get optimum results in the major search engines. The SEO addon, which allows to automatically change dynamic URLs into static ones, is integrated with CS-Cart. The enabled addon may elevate the ranking of your website in a search engine listing. What is also important is that metatags and keywords can be added to all pages of the store.
  
  
• Can I sell digital downloads, ebooks, software, etc with CS-Cart?
  Yes. CS-Cart has a comprehensive digital delivery system. After purchasing such a product your customer will receive an e-mail with link to the file (immediately or only after you approve the order manually). You will also have the ability to define a period of time within which the file can be downloaded. This period can be prolonged for a certain order by the store administrator on the order details page.
  
  
• As we deal with customers throughout the world, we need to have the site in a number of languages. Is it possible?
  Yes. CS-Cart is completely multilingual software. The standard CS-Cart distribution package includes 7 languages: English, German, Spanish, French, Greek, Italian and Dutch (some translations are partial). You can select the necessary language or languages when installing the store.

  Moreover, the content of any CS-Cart pages both in the storefront and admin panel can be easily translated into any language. That means you can easily add a new language in the CS-Cart admin panel by yourself. You can learn more about how to translate CS-Cart by visiting our Knowledge Base.
  
  

• From time to time I will need to close my store for public. Can that be done?
  Yes. By using a special option in the admin panel you can close the store for public, but you will be able to enter the store at any time.
  
  
• I am going to sell lots of products, will I have to add each one individually?
  No. CS-Cart import feature allows you to upload the whole product database at once in a CSV format (supported by MS Excel). Also, you are able to import the entire user, order and translation databases.
  
  
• Is it possible to add options (e.g. color) to each individual product?
  Yes. Options can be added on a per-product basis. The added product option will be displayed on the product list and product details pages in the customer front-end.

  You can add a wide range of options and various settings will help to ajust them in the way you need. You are able to select a display type of the option: a select or a check box, a radio group, a text input text or a text area. Some options may have different variants (color - black, white, green, etc.) and it is possible to specify a separate price for each of these option variants. Moreover, you have the ability to create a global option and apply it to all selected products with one click.
  
  

• Does your cart offer an application to chat with the visitors of my CS-Cart-based online store?
  Yes. CS-Cart provides the ability to chat with customers one-to-one online. The customers do not have to download any plug-in application to chat with your operators. All they need to do is to click on the banner and start chatting. Also, if online chatting is disabled, they are able to leave a message.

  For detailed information refer to the Knowledge Base article.
  
  

• Does your cart have the drop shipping feature?
  Yes. This feature is available in the standard version of CS-Cart. It allows retailers to demonstrate goods in the store but not keep them in stock. When such products are bought, CS-Cart emails wholesalers (suppliers) order and shipping details. And it is suppliers who ship products directly to the customer, that is why shipping cost is calculated on the basis of the supplier's address. And the difference between wholesale and retail prices makes the retailer's profit.
  
  
• Does your cart collect any statistical data?
  Yes, it does. A wide range of statistics covering various aspects of store attendance is collected by the software and available for the administrator. Analyzing this information will help you make necessary improvements and maximize your store efficiency.
  
  
• Is there a limit to the number of products I can have in my store?
  No. With CS-Cart you can have an unlimited number of products as well as categories. Thanks to the use of the world's most famous MySQL databases and other contemporary technologies, CS-Cart does not limit you here in any way.
  
  

Design changes

• Can I replace the CS-Cart logo to my own?
  Yes. In order to change the standard CS-Cart logo to your own one, you just need to upload it via the CS-Cart admin panel. CS-Cart also enables you to change logos for the administrator and affiliate areas as well as for the invoice.
  
  
• Is it allowed to edit the 'Powered by CS-Cart - shopping cart software' link at the footer?
  Yes. It is allowed to edit the 'Powered by CS-Cart – shopping cart software' link from the storefront of your CS-Cart web store. Refer to the CS-Cart Knowledge Base to learn how to do this.
  
  

Trial version

• I have downloaded the trial version of CS-Cart. How can I install it?
  Please refer to the CS-Cart User Manual (the Installation chapter). You can find it on the Documentation page. If you want to install your trial version on your local computer, download the guide about installation on a local computer.
  
  
• The following error message "Site error: the file /host/path/install.php requires the ionCube PHP Loader ioncube_loader_lin_5.2.so to be installed by the site administrator." appears when running the installation script.
  The trial version of CS-Cart software (the full one is not) is encoded with ionCube, but ionCube loader is not installed on your web server or the server does not support dynamic library loading.

  In order to identify the cause, run the ioncube-loader-helper.php file in your browser. It is located in the "ioncube" subdirectory in the CS-Cart installation directory (ionCube loaders are included with the trial package). The URL will be similiar to www.your_site.com/ioncube/ioncube-loader-helper.php. This will test whether encoded files are already working, and give a link for getting php.ini installation help for dedicated server users and runtime install help for shared server users.

  If the problem is still there and you are installing CS-Cart on a hosting server, please contact your hosting provider for further assistance. In case of installation on a local computer, please refer to chapter 6 of the "Installation on a local computer" guide.
  
  

• I see a lot of skins on demo.cs-cart.com, but there are no additional skins in my trial version. Will I have to pay to have them in the full version?
  No. All these designs are free and included with the default distribution package. We try to create designs which suit different preferences and provide a wide range of colors and thematic designs. It is very easy to switch to one of these design skins just in several clicks. The skin can be changed not only for the customer front-end, but also for the administrator and affiliate areas.
  
  
• The trial period of my CS-Cart installation is over, can I extend it a little?
  Yes. You should download the trial version from our website again, unpack it somewhere on your server or local computer and copy all its PHP files to the directory where the trial version of CS-Cart is installed. Only the config.php file (located in the CS-Cart root directory) must not be overwritten, as it is not encoded but contains the database access information and other settings.
  
  
• I've bought the full CS-Cart version. Where should I enter my license key in order to update the trial version to the full one?
  The license key is not used to activate the trial version. The license key is a unique code identifying your CS-Cart license. It is allowed to install and use the full version of CS-Cart software only if a license has been purchased for the domain and the license key has been acquired. To find out how to update the trial version to the full one refer to the article in our Knowledge Base.
  
  
• Is it possible to transfer all the entered data and performed changes from the trial version to the full one?
  Yes, it is possible to update the trial version to the full one without losing any data or changes. Please refer to the article in our Knowledge Base to learn more on how to perform such an upgrade.
  
  

Purchase & Support

• I'm going to buy the full version of CS-Cart. How long does it take to get the software?
  Usually the order processing takes several hours (not more than one business day). More details about the purchase can be found on the page How will I get CS-Cart?.
  
  
• I want to buy 3 CS-Cart licenses at once. What should I do?
  First you need to purchase your first CS-Cart license on the Buy now page of this website. As a result of the purchase, you will be provided with the access to our Customer Help Desk, where you can download the program and buy the other two (or more) licenses at a discounted price as soon as your order is verified and completed.
  
  
• I currently don't know on what website I will install CS-Cart. Can I buy the software in this case?
  Yes, sure. You can buy a CS-Cart license even if you don't know your future domain name so far. Just enter «localhost» into the «License URL» field at checkout, it will mean installation on a local computer or network. Before installing CS-Cart on a website, it will be required to inform us of the domain name, so that we can update our license database.
  
  
• Can the domain name of my CS-Cart license be changed after the purchase?
  Yes, sure. If you decide to use CS-Cart on the site with a new domain name, you must inform us of the change in the license domain name in advance. You can do it by sending the corresponding request to our Customer Help Desk system, specifying the new domain name of the site.
  
  
• May I install a test copy of CS-Cart or a development copy?
  CS-Cart license allows to install an additional copy of CS-Cart for development or testing purposes. This copy must be unavailable for public access on the Internet. That can be done either by installing CS-Cart on a local computer or defining an access password to it.
  
  
• Your payment system does not accept my credit card. Are there any alternative ways to buy CS-Cart?
  Yes. Please contact us and our specialist will offer you another way to pay for the software or our services.
  
  
• When does my free support period begin?
  A 30-day support period provided as a part of your purchase starts with your first support request. More detailed information about technical support services is given on the Support page.
  
  
• How can I renew my technical support subscription?
  After your free support period is expired, it is possible to renew it via our Customer Help Desk system. Support periods are available at the following pricing:

  1 month - USD 45.00
  3 months - USD 120.00
  6 months - USD 220.00
  1 year - USD 405.00