Revision as of 19:36, 11 May 2022

This guide covers the basics of the cPanel Licensing Automation module; starting with installation and activating the module, importing existing configurable options, configuring the imported options further, and then what to do next.

This page aims to provide a brief overview and will signpost you to the relevant sections in our documentation for full details on everything covered.

For detailed information concerning all of the pages and options offered by the cPanel Licensing Automation module, see WHMCS cPanel Licensing Module.

Installation

To install the cPanel Licensing Automation addon module, follow the steps below.

1. Download the latest version of the addon module.
2. Unzip the zip file download to a directory on your computer.
3. Upload the cpanellicensing directory to the ~/modules/addons/ directory within your WHMCS installation.

For full installation documentation, see Activation & Module Permissions.

Activation & Configuration

Addon Module Configuration

To activate and configure the module:

1. Go to Configuration () > System Settings > Addon Modules or, prior to WHMCS 8.0, Setup > Addon Modules.
2. Click Activate for cPanel Licensing entry.
3. Click Configure.
4. In the Master Admin Users section, select Allow Access to Settings for Full Administrator users.
5. In the Access Control section, select Full Administrator.
6. Click Save Changes.

For more information about activation and configuration, see Activation & Module Permissions.

Manage2 Authentication

Manage2 Login Prompt

Following the initial activation and configuration of the module, you will need to authenticate into Manage2. This can be done by taking the following actions within the WHMCS Admin Area.

1. Navigate to Addons > cPanel Licensing.
2. Enter your Manage2 username and password into their respective fields.
3. Click Login.

After successful authentication, the Manage2 data will begin to be imported into WHMCS. This may take several minutes depending on the amount of licenses associated with the Manage2 account.

Once the import has completed, you will be redirected to the primary interface for the cPanel Licensing addon where you will immediately see a list of licenses associated with your Manage2 account.

For more information about authentication, see Authenticating into Manage2.

Autoscale and Other Options

The next steps will see you import existing configurable options into the cPanel Licensing module, create new options for use with the module, or both. You will likely be familiar with the majority of settings you encounter during these steps. For example, Visibility toggles whether an option is hidden and Option Name is the display name in the Client and Admin Area.

However, some settings are unique to the cPanel Licensing addon, like Autoscale throughout the product. Autoscale allows the cPanel Licensing addon module to dynamically adjust a service's configurable option based on the number of accounts associated with its cPanel license. Use this when you want WHMCS to automatically upgrade a license to the next tier based on usage.

For more information, see Option & Price Management.

Autoscale Actions

Autoscale uses the following procedure:

1. A server administrator provisions an extra cPanel account which in turn pushes the server into the next cPanel license tier.
2. cPanel's Manage2 software detects this and changes the license tier for billing purposes in the cPanel Partner account.
3. WHMCS performs a synchronisation with Manage2 at specific intervals that picks up this change.
4. The Control Panel configurable option in WHMCS changes to match the new cPanel license tier and as a result of this, the service price is auto recalculated to include the additional cost of the new license tier.
5. The next renewal invoice generated by the service (per the Next Due Date) will reflect the new cPanel license tier.

This ensures that the client is always billed appropriately for their current cPanel license tier without any manual intervention.

Import Existing cPanel License Offerings

Import Existing Option Modal

If you have an existing Configurable Option Group and Configurable Options that you would like to be used for the provisioning and billing of cPanel licenses, then these can be imported for use with the cPanel Licensing addon.

During this process you will be prevented with a list of configurable options, and be asked to associate them with a cPanel Package. If a configurable option is not related to a cPanel license, then leave the dropdown at the Not a cPanel License Option value. Options left at this value will not be used by the cPanel Licensing module, and will continue to function as a normal configurable option.

To begin this process perform the following steps from the cPanel Licensing page in the WHMCS Admin Area.

1. Click on the Pricing tab.
2. Click Import.
3. Select the existing configurable option to use from Option Name.
4. Click Continue.
5. For each selectable option, select a cPanel & WHM package that it relates to.
6. Click Import.

This will import the configurable options into the module, and make them available for further configuration via the Pricing tab.

If you have more than one set of configurable options to import, then feel free to repeat these steps as needed.

For more information about importing, see Import Existing Option.

Create a New cPanel License Offering

Create New Option Modal

If you do not have any existing Configurable Options that you would like to import, but would like to start offering cPanel Packages, then you can create a new cPanel Licensing offering. This can be done by taking the following actions from the cPanel Licensing page in the WHMCS Admin Area.

1. Click on the Pricing tab.
2. Click New.
3. Select an existing Option Group from Parent Group.
   • If there are no pre-existing Option Groups, then select Create New Group.
   • For Group Name, input the desired name for the new option group.
4. Enter a name in Option Name.
5. Configure the Option Type, Auto-Populate, Hardware Type, and Default Visibility options as desired.
6. Click Create.

After the new configuration has been created, associate it with a product or service using the Assigned Products setting when you configure the configurable option group.

For more information, see Addons and Configurable Options and Create New Option.

Review Pricing Configuration

Option & Price Management Modal

After a configurable option has been either imported or created, the next step would be to review the pricing configuration. This can be done via the cPanel Licensing page in the WHMCS Admin Area.

1. Click on the Pricing tab.
2. Locate the newly imported Configurable Option from the list.
3. Click Manage for the list entry.
4. Review the Type, Visibility, and Autoscale Option selections.
5. In the Options section, select each option and review the data displayed on the right.
6. If any data is incorrect, then alter the data, and click the Save button.
7. Click Close.

For more information, see Option & Price Management.

Link Services to Existing Licenses

Link to Existing License Modal

After any existing options have been imported and reviewed, the next step is to manually associate existing services with their existing cPanel license.

This can be accomplished in two ways, either via Assign Service in the Licenses tab on the cPanel Licensing module page or via Link to Existing License on the cPanel Licensing panel on the Services page.

Neither of these options will automatically select configurable option and autoscale settings for the service. These selections are required for automation to function. This guide recommends using Link to Existing License, because it it offers the ability to link the license, and select the options all without leaving the service's page.

With that said, you can perform the following actions from the WHMCS Admin Area to link a license to an existing service.

1. Navigate to Clients > Products/Services.
2. Locate the service that you would like to associate with an existing cPanel license.
3. Click on the service ID to be taken to the Service page.
4. Locate the imported configurable option and select the option that you would like the customer to be charged for. If you want the price of the service to be adjusted, also check Auto Recalculate on Save.
5. Enable Auto Select cPanel License if you would like the Configurable Option to dynamically adjust based on the license's user count.
6. Click Save Changes.
7. Locate cPanel Licensing panel, and click on Link to Existing License.
8. From Choose license to link with service, select the license that you would like to associate with the service.
9. Click Assign.

After successfully assigning the license to the service you will see the relevant licensing data displayed within the cPanel Licensing panel as well as buttons to manage that license as needed.

For more information, see Assign License & Link to Existing License.