How to Manually Install osCommerce

Database Setup:

1. Use the MySQL database wizard in cPanel to create the database, database user, and add the user to the database. Be sure to write down the database name, username, and password you created as we will use this later in this tutorial.

Downloading osCommerce:

1. Navigate to the official osCommerce website.
2. Click the Products button on top.
3. From the drop-down menu select the latest full package (in my tests it was titled v2.3.3 Full Package), and click the green Download button.
   The file will pop up, download it to your local computer. At the time this guide was written, the file I downloaded was titled
   oscommerce-2.3.3.zip

Extract & Upload:

1. Extract the file you downloaded to your local computer. At the time this guide was written the folder is called: oscommerce-2.3.3
2. Using FTP upload the contents of the catalog folder, and the other files to the location you want your osCommerce website to exist. For example if you want the website to show up on your main website address mydomain.com, you would upload the files to the public_html folder directly.
   If you want the site in a subfolder such as: mydomain.com/eshop, you would create a folder in the public_html folder titled eshop and upload the files directly to that folder.

Installing osCommerce:

1. Navigate to the web address where you uploaded the files. For example if you uploaded the file to the public_html folder you would navigate to:
   mydomain.com
   The New Installation menu will come up, and check your server's capabilities. Click the Continue button to proceed.
   
2. The Database Server menu will come up and ask for specific settings. Fill in the fields with the requested information. Remember, these are the database settings you created earlier in this tutorial.
   

   Option	Description	Example
   Database Server	Since the database is on the same server as the install you will use localhost. If you are connecting to a database remotely, you will typically use the domain name.	localhost
   Username	Enter the username you setup previously.	userna29_oscom
   Password	Enter the password you setup previously.	h19H9~=+%f
   Database name	Enter the name of the database you setup previously.	userna29_dbnam

   
   After filling in the fields select the Continue button.
   
3. The Web Server menu will come up, and request some specific information.
   

   Option	Description
   WWW Address	Enter the address of your oscommerce website, include the http:// Example: http://mydomain.com, or http://mydomain.com/eshop
   Webserver Root Directory	Enter the root directory of the osCommerce install. Example: If it is in your public_html folder, the location will be: /home/userna29/public_html  If it is within the public_html folder, it will be: /home/userna29/public_html/folder1/folder2

   
   After filling in the fields click the Continue button.
4. The online store menu will come up and request information, fill in the required fields.
   

   Option	Info Requested	Example
   Store Name	The name of the online store that is presented to the public.	John's Eshop
   Store Owner Name	The name of the store owner that is presented to the public.	John Doe
   Store Owner E-Mail Address	The e-mail address of the store owner that is presented to the public.	This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
   Administrator Username	The administrator username to use for the administration tool.	admin
   Administrator Password	The password to use for the administrator account.	K^38H@B*(2r
   Time Zone	The time zone to base the date and time on.	New York

   
   After filling in the fields, click the Continue button. You will see a notification stating "The installation and configuration was successful!" and a list of Post-installation notes.

Post-installation Steps:

1. Using FTP locate and delete the install folder, then rename the admin folder for security purposes. For example rename it: osadmin, or admin-login
2. In the includes folder locate the configure.php file and change the file permissions to 4-4-4 or read-only.
   

Congratulations, now you know how to perform a manual installation of osCommerce! Next, login to the Admin panel to begin working on your osCommerce eshop.