Installation
Requirements
Section titled “Requirements”- CS-Cart or Multi-Vendor 4.17.2 – 4.21.x.
- PHP 7.2.5 – 8.3, as supported by your CS-Cart version.
- MySQL or MariaDB with InnoDB (the add-on tables use InnoDB).
- A cron job is recommended (it ends hold periods and expires welcome coupons). Without one, the schedule runs once an hour while administrators use the admin panel.
- Optional: the Store Credit Wallet add-on (Kavio Labs) for store credit rewards and payouts; the core Reward points add-on for point rewards; the Cookie Consent Mode add-on (Kavio Labs) to set the referral cookie only with consent.
Install
Section titled “Install”- Go to Add-ons → Manage add-ons and click the upload button (+).
- Upload
kv_referral_program-1.0.0.zipand click Upload & install. - Open the add-on (Referral & Affiliate Program) and enter your license key on the License tab, or the CS-Cart Marketplace license number in the add-on’s license field.
- Create the promotions for the coupons (see Configuration) and choose them on the Refer a friend tab.
- Check the reward, hold period and affiliate settings.
- Optional: set up the cron job shown on the General tab.
The installation creates the add-on tables, six e-mail templates (Design → E-mail templates: Referral: invitation to a friend, Referral: welcome coupon, Referral: reward earned, Affiliate: application status, Affiliate: payout, Referral program: admin notice) and two privileges for administrator user groups: View referral program and Manage referral program.
Upgrade
Section titled “Upgrade”Upload the new version over the installed one (Add-ons → Manage add-ons → +, “Upload & install”). Codes, referrals, the ledger, affiliates, payouts and settings are kept; the add-on applies new tables, settings and texts automatically on the next admin page.
Disable
Section titled “Disable”Prefer the Enable the referral program setting over disabling the add-on: with the setting off, nothing new is tracked and the scheduler stops, but the ledger, affiliates and payouts stay available in the admin panel.
When the add-on itself is disabled, CS-Cart does not run any of its code: links are not tracked, pending rewards wait, and the customer pages are not available. Checkout works as usual. Enable it again and pending entries continue.
Uninstall
Section titled “Uninstall”Uninstalling deletes codes, clicks, referrals, the ledger, affiliates, payouts, invitations, category rates, settings, texts, e-mail templates and privileges. Export the ledger and payouts (CSV) first if you need them for accounting.
The promotions you created for the coupons are CS-Cart data and stay. Welcome and reward codes that were already handed out stay valid in their promotions until they are used; delete the promotions in Marketing → Promotions if you no longer need them. Orders and store credit are not changed.