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WebCards Manual

New Installation Instructions

In addition to the instructions below, you should read the readme.html file which will give up-to-the-minute information on installing the specific version you have downloaded.

First of all, create an appropriate folder on your web server. Typical examples are webcards, ecards, in fact any name you wish.
You should then upload all of the files and folders inside the upload directory to the folder you just created. Most people you an FTP program for this. Depending on the software you use, you may be able to drag and drop the entire contents of the upload folder. Otherwise you will have to manually create each folder and upload the contents. After uploading all the required files navigate your Web browser to install.php.

The installation file will check to ensure that all essential files and folders are present to allow installation to continue. A more thorough check will be performed later. You will see the screen above if all is OK.

If the initial check fails the installation program will output the errors. See the diagram above. Fix the errors and refresh the page. The most likely source of errors is missing files or folders. This is usually caused by mistyping the names or failing to upload certain files or folders.

Click the "start installation" button.
The program will next perform a check to ensure that any files that need to be modified by the program have the correct permissions. If any files or folders have the wrong permissions the script will notify you. See the diagram below.

Refer to the readme.html file to ensure the permissions are correct.
If all the checks succeed click the "next stage" button to proceed.

The first box to complete in this stage of the installation process needs to contain the absolute path to your WebCards installation. The folder should be the active folder that the installation file is in.
Typical, common examples include:

These are just examples and your path may be very different. Windows servers tend to use back slashes between folders and *nix servers use a forward slash. Your system may be different however.

VERY IMPORTANT - the path must end with a trailing slash.

The next box requires the base URL to the folder WebCards is in. It is the URL of the installation script without install.php at the end.
For example,

VERY IMPORTANT - the URL must end with a trailing slash.

The next section requires your database information.

In the first drop-down box, choose which database driver you wish to use. This must be installed, set-up and ready to use on your system. At the time of writing only MySQL is available.

The next box requires your database host. Most servers have the database on the same machine so "localhost" is usually sufficient. If you do not know this information you must contact your webhost.

The final section requires the base administrator information. This information is used to log into the administration centre

Note that while you can add and remove other administrator accounts as you wish, this administrator account cannot be removed. Enter a username, your choice of password and the administrator's email address. You will need to enter the password twice to confirm it.

When you have filled in all the required information, click the continue button at the bottom of the page.

Many error messages can be shown on the next page. Use the following checklist to solve most of the possible errors.

If installation was successful you will see a success message. Click the admin centre link to proceed.

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