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| − | This page contains step-by-step instructions for certain common scenarios that may occur whilst running a business. There are more tips, tricks and howto's [http://forum.whmcs.com/forumdisplay.php?29-Tips-Tricks-amp-Howto-s in our forum].
| + | There are more tips, tricks and how-tos [https://whmcs.community/forum/329-share-your-best-practices-tips/ in our community]. |
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| | ==Regenerate Historical Invoices== | | ==Regenerate Historical Invoices== |
| − | When switching from a manual billing system or software for which an import script is not available it may be desirable to have a record of past invoices issued before you started using WHMCS. | + | When switching from a manual billing system or software for which an import script is not available, you may want to have a record of past invoices that you issued before you started using WHMCS. |
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| − | Once the client and their service has been added navigate to the client's Product's/Services tab set the '''Next Due Date''' on the back to the date you want the first historical invoice to be due via their Products/Services tab and Save Changes. So for example if the client has an invoice every month starting a year ago, set it to 28/06/2011.
| + | For more information, see [[Regenerating Historical Invoices]]. |
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| − | Click the '''Generate Due Invoices''' button from the summary page and last year's invoice will be created. When prompted select "No" so a notification email is not sent to the client.
| + | ==Update Domain Pricing== |
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| − | Next navigate to the Invoices tab, click the invoice and then the Add Payment tab to record the payment details per [[Transactions]]. Untick the "Send Email" option so the client is not notified of the payment.
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| − | This will cause the Next Due Date to increment forward 1 billing cycle, so in our example it will now be 28/06/2012. Once again click the "Generate Due Invoices" and the June 2011 invoice will be created, Add Payment to the invoice....
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| − | Now just repeat until the Next Due Date is showing the date the client's next payment is due.
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| | + | [[File:change.png|thumb|Bulk Price Updater]] |
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| − | ==Update Domain Pricing==
| + | Occasionally, you may need to update prices for products or domain addons in your system (for example, for wholesale price increases or to start charging for ID Protection after previously offering it for free). |
| − | [[File:change.png|thumb|Bulk Price Updater]]Occasionally it may be necessary to update the price of existing domain names or products in your system, for example in line with wholesale price increases. There may also be times where it is desirable to increase the price of specific domain addons, for example if you wish to start charging for ID Protection after previously offering it for free. This can be achieved with the [[Bulk Pricing Updater Addon]] and these instructions:
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| − | | + | For more information, see [[Bulk Pricing Updater Addon]]. |
| − | *Begin by navigating to '''Setup > Addon Modules'''
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| − | *Locate and Activate the addon named '''Bulk Pricing Updater''' (it may already be active in which case you can skip this step)
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| − | *Next you need to ensure you have access to the module by scrolling down the page following activation and ensuring your admin role group (usually Full Administator) has the checkbox ticked in the Access Control permissions for it.
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| − | *Now navigate to '''Addons > Bulk Pricing Updater''' to actually access the addon module
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| − | *This is where you can then set your criteria and perform the pricing update. This should be done as follows:
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| − | **'''Step 1''' - Choose the type of item you wish to make a pricing update to - which in this case is Domains.
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| − | **'''Step 2''' - Specify the criteria for identifying the items you wish to change the pricing on by ticking the corresponding TLD(s) checkboxes.
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| − | ***Next select the statuses you want to apply the change to, just Pending, Pending Transfer and Active statuses are what we recommend as Expired and Cancelled domains won't be billed again
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| − | ***Next it's onto selecting the Registration Period you want to apply the change to. 1 Year, 2 Years, etc... You will need to run an update for each pricing term you offer.
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| − | ***If you only wish to change the price of domains with specific addons active, tick the relevant Domain Addons checkboxes. This is useful for adjusting the price of the individual addons (eg. increasing the price of ID Protection one would tick the ID Protection checkbox).
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| − | ***The next 2 fields are optional - they are currency and current price. If you run multiple currencies then you would need to do a separate update request for each currency, and if you have certain clients on older or special pricing, you can use the current price field to restrict a change to only users with a specific current price, thus allowing you to keep the users on different pricing
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| − | ***Finally you will also be asked to provide either a New Price to assign matching items to, or an amount to Increase Existing Prices By. You should only ever specify one or the other of these - never both.
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| − | **'''Step 3''' - Review - This step provides a summary of your criteria and the change that will be made and asks you to confirm everything is correct.
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| − | *** Once you proceed, the action cannot be undone, so be sure to check the proposed changes and criteria.
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| − | **'''Step 4''' - Perform Update - The updates will be performed and the addon will tell you the number of items that were adjusted.
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| − | *** Upon completion of an update, if you find it didn't apply to as many items as you had expected, you will be given the option to go back and refine your criteria further should you wish to edit the choices you made and try again.
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| | ==Change Tax Rate== | | ==Change Tax Rate== |
| − | From time-to-time governments change the sales tax rates, this is significant as you must also update your rates accordingly.
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| − | For the purposes of this example the UK sales tax - called VAT - is being increased from 17.5% to 20% on 4th January.
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| − | This means that at midnight on Monday 3rd January, or at the latest before the cron run on the 4th for generating new invoices, you will want to update the tax rules in your WHMCS installation so that new orders and invoices use the higher rate. This is possible through the WHMCS admin interface under '''Setup > Tax Rules''':
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| − | *Delete the original tax rule by clicking the corresponding red delete icon,
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| − | *Create a new tax rule with exactly the same country and state but enter the new tax rate.
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| − | That's all there is to it, any invoices generated after this change will have the new tax rate applied, but any existing invoices will keep the old tax rate.
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| − | If you have '''multiple separate rules''' this method can be time-consuming, so this can be done in-bulk by running an SQL update query as follows on your WHMCS database via a tool such as phpMyAdmin:
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| − | <source lang="php">UPDATE tbltax SET taxrate=20 WHERE taxrate=17.5;</source>
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| − | Existing invoices will not be affected by this and will keep the 17.5% tax rates they were originally generated with. This will just mean that for any invoices generated after the change, use the new higher 20% tax rate.
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| − | If you also wish to update existing but unpaid invoices generated before the 4th but due on or after it, then you can use this query to do that:
| + | Sales tax rates generally change over time. When this occurs, you must update the tax rates in WHMCS. |
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| − | <source lang="php">UPDATE tblinvoices SET taxrate=20,tax=subtotal*0.2,total=subtotal+tax-credit WHERE status='Unpaid'
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| − | AND taxrate=17.5 AND duedate>='2011-01-04'; </source>
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| | + | For more information, see [https://help.whmcs.com/m/payments/l/1271960-changing-tax-rates Changing Tax Rates]. |
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| | ==Migrate Payment Gateways== | | ==Migrate Payment Gateways== |
| − | On occasion it may be desirable to stop using one payment gateway and switch to another. This is a general guide to the process:
| + | Sometimes, you may want to stop using one payment gateway and switch to another. |
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| − | #Enable the new payment gateway module under '''Setup > Payments > Payment Gateways''' and configure it per our [[Payment_Gateways|documentation]]
| + | For more information, see [[Migrating Payment Gateways]]. |
| − | #Deactivate the old module by clicking '''Deactivate''' on the Payment Gateways page
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| − | #You will then be prompted to choose the payment gateway you wish to re-assign all existing services and invoices to - just select the new payment gateway when prompted. More info @ [[Payment_Gateways#Deactivating_Gateway_Modules|Deactivating Gateway Modules]]
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| − | #Depending upon the type of payment gateway module you're switching two there may be a third step involved:
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| − | ##If switching between merchant gateways or third party gateway modules then you are now finished.
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| − | ##If switching to a merchant gateway for the first time the client will need to login and enter their card details to the "My Details" page in the client area. The card will then be charged when the next invoice is due.
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| − | ##If switching between tokanisation modules the client will then need to login and pay their first invoice manually which will store their card details on your processor's servers and then subsequent payments will be attempted automatically. Regrettably there isn't an way for the migration to be done without client's intervention as their CVV number is required for the first payment.
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| − | ##If switching from a merchant gateway to a tokanisation gateway, typically clients will need to manually pay their next invoice via the client area. If card details or a token are stored for the client you may wish to delete them via the "Credit Card Information" link on each client's summary page beforehand. There are some exceptions though, some payment gateways have card number migration paths:<br/>- [[Stripe#Migrating_to_Stripe|Stripe]]
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| − | ##If switching from a merchant or tokanisation gateway to a third party gateway, clients will need to manually pay their next invoice via the client area. If card details or a token are stored for the client you may wish to delete them via the "Credit Card Information" link on each client's summary page beforehand.
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| − | And that's it!
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| | ==Advanced Billing Scenarios== | | ==Advanced Billing Scenarios== |
| − | [[File:Videotutorial.png|center|link=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glZv8iZU0mU&hd=1|Watch Video Tutorial]]
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| − | The above video tutorial shows and explains how to handle two advanced billing scenarios:
| + | For a tutorial on changing billing cycles for generated invoices and consolidating renewal dates, see the following video: |
| − | #Change a billing cycle from annual to monthly, with the added complication that an annual renewal invoice has already been generated.
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| − | #Consolidate the renewal date of several services onto the same day on a single invoice in future, even if some services have already been renewed this month.
| + | <html><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glZv8iZU0mU&hd=1" class="docs-video-tutorial"><em>Watch the video tutorial for this feature</em><span> <img src="https://assets.whmcs.com/icons/youtube.png"> </span></a></html> |
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| | ==Switching Domain Registrars== | | ==Switching Domain Registrars== |
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| − | Domain prices change frequently, so if one finds one's chosen registrar is no longer competitively priced it may be desirable to transfer existing domains to a different registrar without the client's knowledge. WHMCS can make the process easier, saving the need to log into both provider's control panels: | + | Domain prices change frequently. If a registrar's price is no longer competitive, you may want to transfer existing domains to a different registrar without the client's knowledge. |
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| − | # Begin by navigating to '''Clients > Domain Registrations''' and select the domain in question.
| + | For more information, see [[Transferring Domains to a New Registrar]]. |
| − | # Untick the '''Registrar Lock''' checkbox and click Save Changes
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| − | # Click the '''Modify Contact Details''' button.
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| − | # Change the registrant email address to your own and click Save Changes.
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| − | # Return to the client's Domains tab and click the '''Get EPP Code''' button
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| − | # Note down the EPP Code provided on-screen
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| − | # Select the new domain registrar from the Registrar dropdown menu
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| − | # Click the '''Transfer''' Module Command button.
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| − | You should see a confirmation message stating the transfer was initiated successfully. It is likely that the client's Domains tab will display an error message from the new registrar, but this will disappear once the transfer process is complete.
| + | ==Convert invoice amounts into a different currency== |
| | + | It is possible that not every gateway you use will accept all the currencies you offer on your site. Many gateway modules support a '''Convert To For Processing''' option so WHMCS can transparently convert the payment amount into a different currency before sending the client to the payment gateway. |
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| − | <div class="docs-alert-info">
| + | For more information, see [[Converting Invoices to a New Currency]]. |
| − | <span class="title">Note</span><br />
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| − | Once the transfer process has been completed, be sure to use the Modify Contact Details button to change the registrant email address back to the client's own.
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| − | </div>
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| − | ==Convert invoice amounts into a different currency== | + | ==Credit a client for money received== |
| − | It is possible that not every gateway you use will accept all the currencies you offer on your site. For those that don’t, WHMCS can transparently convert the payment amount into a different currency before sending the client to the payment gateway.
| + | When you receive money from a client, you should record it in WHMCS as a transaction. |
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| − | For example: Gateway A only operates in USD, but you have multi-currency configured in WHMCS offering prices in USD, GBP and EUR. When a client places an order for 10GBP and chooses to pay via Gateway A, the amount will be automatically converted to 15USD before the payment is processed. The client is able to make payment via Gateway A where they otherwise would not be able to do so. | + | For more information, see [[Adding and Working With Credit]]. |
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| − | To configure this feature:
| + | ==Cancel and regenerate invoice== |
| − | # Begin by navigating to '''Setup > Payments > Payment Gateways > Manage Existing Gateways'''
| + | Sometimes, you may wish to cancel an unpaid invoice and later need to regenerate an invoice covering the same time period for the service. |
| − | # Under the payment gateway in question, locate the '''Convert to For Processing''' setting
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| − | # From the dropdown list, select your desired currency.
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| − | # Click Save Changes
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| − | To continue the example from above; one would choose the USD currency from the Gateway A section.
| + | For more information, see [[Canceling and Regenerating Invoices]]. |
| − | And that's all there is to it! All payments will be sent to this gateway in the chosen currency, regardless of which currency the client selected on the order form.
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| − | <div class="docs-alert-info">
| + | ==Skip an invoice== |
| − | <span class="title">Note</span><br />
| + | Occasionally you may wish to skip an invoice, giving the customer the invoiced period at no charge, but resume charging on the next due date. |
| − | The Convert to For Processing option will appear once a second currency is configured.
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| − | </div>
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| − | <div class="docs-alert-info">
| + | For more information, see [[Skipping Invoices]]. |
| − | <span class="title">Note</span><br />
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| − | The conversion is based upon the currency Base Conversion Rate in your WHMCS installation at the time of payment.
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| − | </div>
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| − | ==Credit a client for money received==
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| − | When you receive money from a client it should be recorded in WHMCS as a transaction. But if the payment is not for a specific invoice or the client has accidentally overpaid, the client's credit balance should be increased accordingly. Adding credits via the "Manage Credits" popup would not appear on the transaction record as they are not transactions. So to credit a client and create a transaction:
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| − | * Navigate to '''Billing > Transactions List > Add Transaction''' tab.
| + | ==Migrating Clients to another cPanel Server== |
| − | * Enter the details of the credit,
| + | Occasionally, you may perform a [https://docs.cpanel.net/knowledge-base/transfers-and-restores/how-to-move-all-cpanel-accounts-from-one-server-to-another/ mass transfer of cPanel accounts] between servers. You must also update the records in WHMCS to reflect the new server. |
| − | * Tick the '''Credit''' checkbox
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| − | * Click Add Transaction.
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| − | This will ensure your accounting records are accurate and the Account Statement report is balanced.
| + | For more information, see [https://help.whmcs.com/m/provisioning/l/1464305-migrating-your-clients-to-another-cpanel-server-cpanel-to-cpanel Migrating your Clients to another cPanel Server (cPanel to cPanel)]. |
When switching from a manual billing system or software for which an import script is not available, you may want to have a record of past invoices that you issued before you started using WHMCS.
Occasionally, you may need to update prices for products or domain addons in your system (for example, for wholesale price increases or to start charging for ID Protection after previously offering it for free).
Sales tax rates generally change over time. When this occurs, you must update the tax rates in WHMCS.
Sometimes, you may want to stop using one payment gateway and switch to another.
For a tutorial on changing billing cycles for generated invoices and consolidating renewal dates, see the following video:
Domain prices change frequently. If a registrar's price is no longer competitive, you may want to transfer existing domains to a different registrar without the client's knowledge.
It is possible that not every gateway you use will accept all the currencies you offer on your site. Many gateway modules support a Convert To For Processing option so WHMCS can transparently convert the payment amount into a different currency before sending the client to the payment gateway.
When you receive money from a client, you should record it in WHMCS as a transaction.
Sometimes, you may wish to cancel an unpaid invoice and later need to regenerate an invoice covering the same time period for the service.
Occasionally you may wish to skip an invoice, giving the customer the invoiced period at no charge, but resume charging on the next due date.
