SuperInvoice Installation Instructions

Thank you for purchasing SuperInvoice! Should you need any help with the installation, feel free to contact us through any of our support channels.

Kindest Regards,
The nCubed.com Development Team

 

Non US Formatting

If you are setting up SuperInvoice in a Non US environment, i.e., UK, Netherlands, Germany, etc... then please see our FAQ's for some minor changes you'll need to make after you follow the installation instructions below. (really, the modifications only take a few minutes)

 

Requirements

You must be hosted on a server that supports ASP/VBScript and allows Database interaction. Any standard Windows NT or Windows 2000/2003 server will meet this requirement. If you are unsure your server supports ASP, then contact your host.

Note: SuperInvoice has not been tested on Unix/Linux systems and we will not support the application if you choose to install it on said environment.

Server Requirements

  1. One of the following Operating Systems:
    1. Windows NT 4 with IIS 4, Service Pack 4+, VB Scripting Engine 5+, Microsoft MDAC 2.6+
    2. Windows 2000 with IIS 5, Microsoft MDAC 2.6+
    3. Windows XP Pro with IIS 5.1
    4. Windows Server 2003 with IIS 6
  2. The Server will be required to allow Virtual includes.
  3. You will also need to use a DSN-less connection to the Microsoft Access database and have read/write permissions enabled for the database directory.
  4. Access 2000 Database (There is not a SQL Server version, yet)

Note: Most any Windows host will meet the above requirements; it is rare that you are unable to run SuperInvoice on a Windows server.

 

Client Side Requirements

At least one of the following browsers are required for SuperInvoice:

 

Installing SuperInvoice

Installation of SuperInvoice should be relatively painless if you follow these instructions :-)

Big Note: Do not open yourself to hackers and kiddie scripters. It is highly recommended that the SuperInvoice database is kept in a directory above the root of your website. This ensures the database will not be accessible by a web browser.

Any web host worth their salt will have this - if yours doesn't, then you're leaving yourself wide open to hackers!

 

Back up your files

Before doing anything else, stop what you are doing and make a permanent back-up file of your n3_superinvoice_v1_0.zip file. This will ensure that you do not lose your files due to an unforeseen problem. Use your favorite external storage device (zip disk, CD, floppy disk, etc.) and burn an archived copy now.

 

Unzip the SuperInvoice files

Unzip the n3_superinvoice_v1_0.zip file to a directory on your computer where you'll be able to upload the files to your web server with your favorite FTP program.

You must unzip the files to the root of your site. Unzipping them to any other location may cause SuperInvoice to run improperly since Virtual Includes play a vital role in its functionality.

Example of good vs. bad unzipping:

Good (SuperInvoice files are emphasized):

C:\www
	\YourSite
		\database
		\html
			\Connections
			\database (you will move the database later)
			\n3
			\someFolder
			\someOtherFolder
			\Templates
			\default.asp (aka, Your Site's Home Page)
			\someFile.asp 
			\SuperInvoice.asp

Bad (SuperInvoice files are emphasized):

C:\www
	\YourSite
		\database
		\html
			\someFolder
				\Connections
				\database (you will move the database later)
				\n3
				\Templates
				\SuperInvoice.asp 
			\someOtherFolder
			\default.asp (aka, Your Site's Home Page)
			\someFile.asp

Dreamweaver Users Note: When you unzip the files, there may be a conflict unzipping the Connections and Templates folders - do not click OK if you are prompted to overwrite either of these folders as you may lose your existing files. Instead, unzip SuperInvoice to a neutral location and then just copy the files to the locations above (the Good location smarty pants).

 

Updating the Database Connection String

Using your favorite code editor* such as Dreamweaver, HomeSite, note pad or similar, open the connSuperInvoice.asp file in the Connections folder:

C:\www
	\YourSite
		\database
		\html
			\Connections\connSuperInvoice.asp
			\database (you will move the database later)
			\n3
			\someFolder
			\someOtherFolder
			\Templates
			\default.asp (aka, Your Site's Home Page)
			\someFile.asp 
			\SuperInvoice.asp

*FrontPage is not considered a valid editor for any of the SuperInvoice files. So, don't even think of using it! :-)

Edit the following lines in connSuperInvoice.asp (line 13 is optional):

  1. Line 13 (optional):
    1. n3_connDBName = "SuperInvoice.mdb"
      1. Change the name of the database from SuperInvoice.mdb to some other name if you want, but be sure to change the name of the actual database as well located in the \database\ folder.
      2. You don't have to change the database name, but some folks may want this option. Feel free to leave line 13 alone.
  2. Line 16 (mandatory):
    1. n3_connDBBasePath = "C:\www\YourSite\database\"
      1. Modify line 16 to the actual physical path of your database folder*.
      2. You may need to ask your host to provide you with this path if you are unsure of its location.

        *Some common names for folders your host may have for databases: 'database', 'db', 'cgi-bin', 'fpdb'.

Save your changes and close connSuperInvoice.asp.

 

Upload the SuperInvoice Database

Locate the SuperInvoice.mdb database in the \YourSite\html\database\ folder:

C:\www
	\YourSite
		\database
		\html
			\Connections
			\database\SuperInvoice.mdb (you will move the database now)
			\n3
			\someFolder
			\someOtherFolder
			\Templates
			\default.asp (aka, Your Site's Home Page)
			\someFile.asp 
			\SuperInvoice.asp

Now move the SuperInvoice.mdb database to the the \YourSite\database\ folder:

C:\www
	\YourSite
		\database\SuperInvoice.mdb (new location)
		\html
			\Connections
			\database
			\n3
			\someFolder
			\someOtherFolder
			\Templates
			\default.asp (aka, Your Site's Home Page)
			\someFile.asp 
			\SuperInvoice.asp

Using your favorite FTP program, upload the database to your server. Remember, this must be a folder having read/write permissions. Some common examples of folders with read/write permissions are:

Note: If you changed the database name and/or folder name in the previous step, make sure you change the SuperInvoice.mdb and/or folder to the same name prior to uploading the database.

 

Upload the SuperInvoice Files

You will now upload the remaining SuperInvoice files.

Using your favorite FTP program, upload the remaining highlighted folders and files to your server:

C:\www
	\YourSite
		\database\SuperInvoice.mdb (previously uploaded)
		\html
			\Connections
			\database
			\n3 (upload all folders/files in here)
			\someFolder
			\someOtherFolder
			\Templates (no need to upload)
			\default.asp (aka, Your Site's Home Page)
			\someFile.asp 
			\SuperInvoice.asp

Depending on your connection speed, uploading the above files (around 900k) may take several minutes.

 

Everything is Uploaded. Now What?

Now that you've followed the above directions, you're ready to launch SuperInvoice on your site! Point your browser to the SuperInvoice.asp page located in your site's root directory:

http://www.<YourSite.com>/SuperInvoice.asp

Once you've made it to the SuperInvoice.asp page, click the "Administrative Log-In" link to log in.

Default log in access:

If everything goes well, then you'll log in to SuperInvoice for the first time!

Important!!!

After you've logged in, be sure to change the default administrative user name and password.

Open the Help Files (click the ? icon on the top right side of the page after you log in) and navigate to the Quick Start Guide which will show you how to change the default username and password as well as have you up and running within the next 10 minutes.

Note: We highly recommend you remove the Administrative log-in link from the SuperInvoice.asp page. By removing the link, you are making it that much harder for a hacker to find your log in screen.

 

Installation FAQ's

A'ight ya bums! I've done everything you told me, but I am unable to log in and/or am receiving an error! Help!

Well, the first thing to do is stop calling us a bunch a bums ;-)

Your installation woes may be as easy to troubleshoot as a common spelling error in your connSuperInvoice.asp connections file, to something as problematic as corrupted files.

Before you try anything else:

  1. Review the instructions and make sure you followed them exactly as outlined.
  2. If you are still having problems, then try re-uploading all your files including the database. Yes, we understand this is a pain, but believe us when we say the large majority of problems occur because the FTP program used to upload the files somehow managed to mangle and corrupt the files.

Common Installation FAQ's

Why is my browser trying to download an ASP file? OR Why does my browser display the ASP code?

This usually means:

  1. Your host does not support ASP (Active Server Pages)
  2. Your server has not been configured correctly.

Contact your host and make sure they support ASP.

Why do I get an "HTTP 500 - Internal Server Error"?

An HTTP 500 error usually means that there has been a problem running the script or connecting to the database.

If you are using Internet Explorer you may have to turn off "Friendly HTTP Error Messages" before you will get any useful information. To do this:

  1. go to Tools
  2. Internet Options
  3. click the Advanced Tab
  4. Uncheck the "Show Friendly HTTP Error Messages" option.

You should now receive a more descriptive error message which will help you better troubleshoot the problem.

If you still are unable to understand the problem, feel free to contact the nCubed.com support team. Support options are found at the end of this page.

Why do I get an "Operation must use an updateable query" error when trying to use SuperInvoice?

This is a common HTTP 500 error encountered when setting up an Access Database. All it means is the folder you have uploaded the SuperInvoice database to does not have the proper read/write permissions.

Double check that you have uploaded the database your host set up specifically for databases. Sometimes hosts forget to give your database folder the proper permissions and this may be the case as well. Contact your host and verify your database folder has read/write permissions to modify the database.

For a more in depth discussion on this error, review the following Microsoft Support article:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q175168

 

Support

If problems persist due to something we instructed you to do, you may relentlessly chastise and tease us for being morons. But, please head over to nCubed.com and review other common installation errors first :)

Otherwise, look no further, support for SuperInvoice can be found through any of nCubed.com's support channels. Just drop us a line and we'll be happy to help you!

NNTP News Groups

The nCubed.com News Group is the easiest way to find support for your product if you are unable to find your answers in the support pages. You can find our NNTP News Group at:

news://news.ncubed.com/support

Need help with setting up your News Group? Windows Users Go Here - Mac Users Go Over Here

Email

Would you rather send us an email directly? No problem, you can find us at:

Phone

Heck, we'll even help you out over the phone! Send us an email and we'll set up an appointment. You'll be picking up the phone charges of course ;)