Do I need a web server to operate the Ajax PHP Penny Auction script? Yes, you need a web server or web host like Godaddy.com to operate the script and penny auction Website.

In general, most Linux / Apache / MySQL 5 / PHP 5 (LAMP) type of servers can host the Ajax PHP Penny Auction script. Make sure that server can run cronjobs or scheduled tasks every minute.

WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU DO NOT USE A SHARED HOSTING SERVER ACCOUNT, BUT VIRTUAL DEDICATED SERVER AT THE LEAST.


We recommend a Virtual Dedicated Servers at the very least. You can use a grid / cloud server or dedicated server as well.

What Shared Hosting Account can I use? It is highly NOT recommended that script be deployed on any Shared Hosting Account. So we do not recommend any.

Why Are Shared Hosting Accounts NOT Recommended? These are the main reasons we do not recommend operating a penny auction on a shared hosting account :
Reason #1) CPU Throttling - Do a Google search on it.
Reason #2) Cannot setup or run Cronjobs / Scheduled Tasks at all.
Reason #3) Cannot setup or run Cronjobs / Scheduled Tasks every minute.
Reason #4) Database is not hosted locally (localhost) on same server.
Reason #5) Not able to correctly configure server to run optimally.

What Virtual Dedicated Server (VDS) do you recommend using? Feel free to use any VDS server you would like to as long as it meets the requirements. But we are most familiar with Godaddy.com's VDS and can provide much better support for those servers. We would recommend the "Value" Centos operating system package with the Parallel Plesk Control Panel. This currently cost $39.95 per month, plus $4.99 for the Plesk control Panel upgrade. You can get Godaddy Promo Codes for discounts. Note: We do not get any $$$ for recommending Godaddy products, we just want to be able to provide the highest level of text support that we can to you and this will help with that, making you experience better, since we are using an environment we are familiar with.

It is recommended that you deploy a penny auction site on no less than a Virtual Dedicated Server (VDS) or Dedicated Server.

What PHP version do I need to operate the Ajax PHP Penny Auction script? Ajax PHP Penny Auction can be operated on both php4 and php5 servers. But we prefer that you operate it using PHP5.

What PHP version is the demo site operating with? The demo site is operating using PHP 5.1.6.

What MySQL database version is the demo site using? The demo site is using a MySQL version 5.1.

Can we use windows based Web server with Microsoft’s Internet Information Server (IIS)? We do not recommend that you use IIS server to operate the script, only a Linux based Web server, preferably Linux Centos operating system.

What technical support do you offer after I purchase the script? We answer our phone from 10am to 5pm EST Mon-Fri and check our helpdesk @ ajaxphppennyauction.com email every time an email alert is sounded. We will be glad to assist you with script related issues, pointing you in the right direction in most script related cases. However, we cannot hold your hand and step-by-step you through doing everything to completely setup, customize and operate your penny auction site. It is assumed that you have a basic understanding of how Internet related technologies work and operate. Gladly help those who are trying to help themselves. If you get stuck on installation, off course we will help figure it out.

What if I find a bug? If you find something that you think is not functioning correctly, please email or call the helpdesk and we will make a note of it. If it is a true bug, and not just a personal preference, meaning how you think the site should operate, we will email you an update or post updated files that solve the problem to the "Support / Downloads" page of our site.

What do you consider as a bug? A bug is considered to be blatant error message or a function that will absolutely not work at all. The rest of the stuff normally falls into personal preference, and how the client thinks the site should work, versus how it does work, those are not bugs.

Is the script encrypted? The script is not encrypted or obfuscated in any way, so you are free to make changes to the script. However, there is a license number for each script related to a single domain address.

How many websites can I use the script to operate? The license for the script is for a single website domain name per script license. Additional script licenses can be purchased for $49 USD. Five licenses for $149 USD.

Do you offer tutorials and documentation for the script? We do offer a README.txt file that steps you through the install and setup process. We also have PayPal screenshots that help with configuring PayPal settings. We are working providing videos for downloads concerning installing the script on Virtual Dedicated Server. In addition, videos for the admin panel and changing the template the template are planned as well, We do offer tutorials related to internet technologies used to create the script on our homepage http://www.ajaxphppennyauction.com

README FILES

README-Shared-Hosting-Install-NOT-RECOMENDED.txt ( NOT RECOMENDED )

README-Virtual-Dedicated-Server-Install-RECOMMENDED.txt (RECOMENDED )

Will I get upgrades to future versions of the script? All clients who purchase the script prior to version 3.0 will get all upgraded features and bug fixes up to, but not including version 3.0.

How many users can the script support at one time? First of all, I am not going to over exaggerate in any way the capacity of this script, it is not worth making you mad at me, just to make $149 USD. Saying that, your penny auction site will never have hundreds of users pressing the bid button at one time, this just does not happen. Sorry to burst your bubble. Bidcactus.com, Swoopo.com, Beezid.com, etc. do not even have that occurring at one time. These large and successful penny auction sites have less than a hundred users pressing the bid button at once, even at peak times. Go watch them, see how many people are actually bidding on them at once, very few compared to their user membership. Also, these previously mentions penny auction sites likely have less than 1,000 users on the site at one-time as well, watching auctions, registering, buying bids, etc.

Saying that, the Ajax PHP Penny Auction script has been alpha tested to handled around four-dozen (48) users users bidding at once on VDS server, not exactly pressing the bid button at once, but actively bidding on multiple items at the same time. The script can have several hundreds of viewers who are just watching the auctions, or using the site. NOTE: In order to have four-dozen users bidding and several hundred people watching the auctions, you will need to have around 10,000 registered users.
Also, the script is designed to only have 6 cronjobs make contact to the database at a time. By doing this, the server or script does not know if there are 5 users on the site or 500. Additional users put very little load on the server, and only on the apache web server, which is design to handle many thousands of connections at once and the backbone of most websites.

What kind of auctions can I offer using the script? You can offer these following auction types:

Penny Auction - This is the normal penny auction that increments the bid price by one cent each time a bidder clicks the bid button or Activate the Autobidder to bid for them.

Nail-Biter Auction - This auction type does not allow the use of the Autobidder and requires the bidder to manually click the bid button.

Reserve Auction - This can either be a Penny Auction or Mail-Biter Auction with a reserve price set and reaches in order for the bidder to win the item.

Bid Pack Only Auctions - This auction allows you to auction only bid packs. The bids will be automatically added to the winning bidders user account upon payment being completed.

Bid Pack / Item Auction - This auction allows you to auction both a bid pack and item. The bids will be automatically added to the winning bidders user account upon payment being completed.

Premium Auctions - This type of allows you to charge more bid credits per bid. So, instead of a single bid credit, it can be setup to charge any amount of bid credits per bid. In addition, the bid increment can be set to increment in larger amounts up to $1.

Beginner Auctions – To help new users win there first auction, the script has beginner auction option that will allow only users that have won less than 2 auction bid on the item. This blocks the more experienced bidders from placing bids.

Does the script offer a "Reserve Price" feature? Yes, the script allows you setup a reserve price on a per item basis during the auction setup process. If the reserve is not met, a winner email is not sent and the payment link is not displayed.

Does the script have an autobidder or bidbutler feature? Yes, the script has a bidbutler / autobidder feature for user to set their maximum target price and number of bids to use.

Does the script have the ability to limit the number of wins a user can have for a week or monthly basis? Yes, the script has a win limit feature that can be setup in the admin panel. These win limits can be set on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.

Is there a Buy Now feature that allows bidders to buy the auction item minus the bids they have already used? Yes, the script has a Buy Now feature that lets the bidder buy the item minus the bid credits they have already used.

Does the script offer Bid Bots or Automated bidder / users? The script does not exactly offer bid bots or automated users that will win an auction or bid the price up to a certain set price. The script does provide test bidders that function for testing of the site. It highly recommended that you do not use these automated test users to try and win auctions or operate while the site is live. They were not designed for that purpose and a human bidder can beat them.

What payment gateways come with the script? Currently the script only offers the PayPal payment gateway for free in the script for accepting and transacting payments on the site.

In addition to Paypal the following payment gateways are available.
- Authorize.net
- First Data / LinkPoint
- CCBill
- Gpal
- Meritus Payment Solutions


How many currencies are currently available? There are currently 23 currencies offered by the script that work with PayPal. Here is a list of current currencies. USD United States of America, Dollars
AUD Australia, Dollars
EUR Europe, Euro
BRL Brazil, Real
GBP United Kingdom, Pounds
CAD Canada, Dollars
CNY China, Yuan Renminbi
CZK Czech Republic, Koruny
DKK Denmark, Kroner
HKD Hong Kong, Dollars
ILS Israel, New Shekels
JPY Japan, Yen
MYR Malaysia, Ringgits
MXN Mexico, Pesos
NZD New Zealand, Dollars
NOK Norway, Kroner
PHP Philippines, Pesos
PLN Poland, Zlotych
SGD Singapore, Dollars
SEK Sweden, Kronor
CHF Switzerland, Francs
TWD Taiwan, New Dollars
THB Thailand, Baht
INR Indian Rupee
CNY Chinese Yuan
RUB Russian Ruble

NOTE: Russian Ruble, Indian Rupees and Chinese Yuan are currently not supported by the PayPal or other payment gateways

Can additional currencies be added to the script? Yes, additional currencies can be added to the script. They Can jus added to the database and admin panel will been for selecting the currency will require changing.

Can I refund bids to users? Yes, you can refund bids to users on a per user basis or for all user who bid on a certain auction using the admin panel. You can also set a percentage of bids to refund as well.

Is the script multi-language capable? Yes, the script is capable of multiple languages. You can add your language files to change to the language you prefer to use. Currently, we offer 7 translated languages for the following languages:
- Englsh
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- Italian
- German
- Chinese
- French

Will you install the script on my server? Yes, we will install the script your server. We charge $195 USD for godaddy servers, and $295 USD for non-godaddy servers. NOTE: Script price not included.

Does the install fee cover the script price? No, the script price is not included in the installation fee; you will still need to buy the script for $149 USD.

How can I pay for the installation services? We will gladly accept PayPal for payment of installation services. Payment is required prior to us rendering the installation service.

How do I create a MySQL database? Most hosting companies have a help section that you can access. Because MySQL databases are so popular, the help area of your hosting company's Web site should tell you how to create a MySQL database. Remember, the install program included with the script will populate the database with table and information during the install process.

Why do I get errors while running the install script? You are most likely getting errors during script install due to allow_url_fopen not being set "on" Also, it is a good idea on php5 servers to turn off display errors. Add display_errors = off

The install program says that is cannot connect to the database, how can I fix this. Most likely the first reason why this occurred is the information is not correct, in most cases this information is case and requires you input the data exactly as you did while creating the database. Another reason is that you left a space at the end of one of the fields, because of coppy and pasting. Make sure there are no additional spaces in the fields that shouldn't be there. Also, on a locally hosted MySQL database, the database needs to be "localhost" and the username needs to be "root" and the password needs needs to be the password for the "root" user.

What are the php.ini settings suppose to be? The php.ini files that the script needs to operate correctly are as follows:

register_globals = Off
allow_url_fopen = On
magic_quotes_gpc = On
mysql.allow_persistent = Off
mysql.max_persistent = 0
mysql.max_links = -1
mysql.connect_timeout = 5
max_input_time = 10
max_execution_time = 120
session.cookie_lifetime = 86400
display_errors = Off
safe_mode = Off
short_open_tag = On


My php.ini file is not working, when using php5, what is wrong? On some servers the php.ini for php version 5 should be named php5.ini and that will most likely work.

The install script telling me that my license has failed, why did occur and how can it be fixed? There are three major reason why the license # fails. First, you have copy and pasted the license into the field and there is added space before or after the license number text. Make sure there are no spaces before and after the license #. Second, the license number is case sensitive; make sure the letters are all capitalized. Third, allow_url_fopen is not set to "on" in the php.ini file. The install script is very sound and there absolutely no issue with it, there is another reason the script license is failing, and these three things have caused 99% of them.

Do I need to setup cron jobs to run? If you are installing a the script on Virtual Dedicated Server, you will need to setup the following cron jobs to run every minute. NOTE: these are cron jobs we know work on most virtual dedicated servers, and specifically Godaddy.com servers.

sleep 10; /usr/bin/wget -O - -q -t 1 http://www.replacewithyoudomainname.com/cron.php>/dev/null 2>&1
sleep 10; /usr/bin/wget -O - -q -t 1 http://www.replacewithyoudomainname.com/get_time2cron.php>/dev/null 2>&1
sleep 10; /usr/bin/wget -O - -q -t 1 http://www.replacewithyoudomainname.com/get_time3cron.php>/dev/null 2>&1
sleep 10; /usr/bin/wget -O - -q -t 1 http://www.replacewithyoudomainname.com/item_page_ajaxcron2.php>/dev/null 2>&1
sleep 10; /usr/bin/wget -O - -q -t 1 http://www.replacewithyoudomainname.com/uniquecron.php>/dev/null 2>&1
sleep 10; /usr/bin/wget -O - -q -t 1 http://www.replacewithyoudomainname.com/autobidder2cron.php>/dev/null 2>&1

NOTE: an * = every so every minute would require and * to be placed in all time / date fields while setting up the cronjob.

Also, cronjobs should be setup as the “root” user for best results.

I am trying to setup PayPal, but my email in the admin panel's seller account is not working, why isn't it? The reason that your email is most likely not working is one of two things. First, the email has to exactly match the email that is in your PayPal account, it is case sensitive. Second, the email in PayPal account needs to be set as your "Primary Email" account.

How can I change the sites theme or layout? You can change the look of the site a couple of ways. First, you can create new graphics that match the current theme's graphics using the same dimension. After creating these graphics, simply name them same as the active theme's graphics and upload them to the images directory on the server, overwriting the existing graphics. Second, you can also change HTML / CSS code found in the templates files located in themes/default directory. There are about two dozen templates that need to be changed in order to change the theme. These template files are as follows:

global_ie.css
global_not_ie.css

tab_menu.php - CHANGE THE TABS LINKS HERE
tab_submenu.php - THE "WELCOME" MESSAGE IS HERE
category_menu.php - THE CATEGORY DROPDOWN MENU AND SEARCH ARE HERE
themes/default/header.php.html - THE LOGO, LOGIN BOX & $99 ANNOUNCEMENT ARE HERE
themes/default/footer.php.html - THE TWITTER, FACEBOOK, PAYPAL LOGOS ARE HERE

themes/default/template_about_us_php.html
thmese/default/template_autobidder_php.html
themes/default/template_advanced_search.html
themes/default/template_empty_search.html
themes/default/template_auctions_no_cat.html
themes/default/template_auction_paypal_php.html
themes/default/template_browse_php.html
themes/default/template_buybids_paypal_php.html
themes/default/template_buybids_php.html
themes/default/template_buying_php.html
themes/default/template_change_details_php.html
themes/default/template_complete_history_php.html
themes/default/template_contact_us_php.html
themes/default/template_feedback_php.html
themes/default/template_forgotpasswd_php.html
themes/default/template_friend_confirmation_php.html
themes/default/template_friend_php.html
themes/default/template_index_php.html
themes/default/template_item_php.html
themes/default/template_item_watch_php.html
themes/default/template_live_auctions_php.html
themes/default/template_passwd_sent_php.html
themes/default/template_payments_php.html
themes/default/template_privacy_policy_php.html
themes/default/template_register_php.html
themes/default/template_terms_and_conditions_php.html
themes/default/template_upcoming_auctions_php.html
themes/default/template_user_login_php.html
themes/default/template_yourbids_php.html
themes/default/template_yourfeedback_php.html
includes/live_and_upcoming_auction.inc.php


mail_endauction_youwin_nodutch.EN.inc.php - THIS IS THE EMAIL SENT TO THE AUCTION'S WINNER
usermail.EN.inc.php - THIS IS THE EMAIL SENT TO THE NEWLY REGISTERED USER FOR EMAIL CONFIRMATION


How can I change the tab links and text? You can change the tab links and text by editing the tab_menu.php script located in the top level directory.

How do I turn on / off PayPal test mode? You can set the PayPal test mode by editing the config.inc.php script file located in "includes" directory using a text editor. Do this after install is finished.

How can I change the "Tab" links? You can change the tab links by changing the code found in the tab_menu.php located in the top-level / root directory.

I sent out a thousand newsletters and only 250 were delivered, what happened? Most hosting companies utilize what is called an email relay server. This server usually is set to only allow a certain amount emails to be sent per day, 250 to 500. They do this so companies do not setup hosting accounts just to spam people. If you sent a 1,000 email newsletters, and have relay email server setting of 250, it will take 4 days for all the emails to be sent. If you max your relay email server, contact your hosting company to have this increased.

I have the automated test users activated but nothing is happening, how can fix this? The automated test users may not work for several reasons. First, make sure you created some automated test user accounts for the system to use. Second, if you created auctions before activating the automated test users function or did not have any test user accounts active in the system prior to creating any auctions, those auctions will not work with the test user system. Third, if you only have one live auction running, the test user system will not work; two or more active auctions are required in order for the system to function. Forth, you need to have a browser open, or someone viewing the homepage or an item page in order for the automated test users to operate. NOTE: the test user were not designed to hit a specific target price, or win an auction.

I have setup the Autobidder on the item page but nothing is happening, how can I fix this? Most likely there is nothing to fix. The Autobidder is designed to begin operation within the last 30 seconds of an auction. It is recommended that the time extension setting be activated in order for this feature to function properly. Also, just like the automated test users, the Autobidder requires a browser be open, or someone viewing the homepage or item page in order for the Autobidder bidder to function.

I have the script installed, and added some auctions, but clocks are not working, continuously saying “Syncing To Server” and bid button doesn't work, how can I fix this? The most likely reason that your countdown clocks and bid buttons are not working is due to the cronjobs not being setup correctly on the virtual server. If you are operating on a shared hosting server, you may not be running cron.html in a browser. Another reason this may be occurring is that "cronfiles" directory may not have the correct file permissions set. This folder and it contents need to be set to 755 permission level minimum. NOTE: on Godaddy Virtual Dedicated Servers, the Cronfiles directory needs to be permission to 777.