Shopping Carts and websites

[Bubzeebub]

If someone creates an e-commerce site for you w/ shopping cart and you want host that site somewhere else other than with the person that created it. Are there issues you need to consider in terms of hosting it with someone else? I am just not sure if the shopping cart is part of the website files and can be moved anywhere or how exactly it works.

[lorax]

The answer really depends upon how the site as a whole was built. Technically, it is possible. The question is really more about how much work has to be done to accommodate the seperation. Which leads to the question of "is it worth it?"

[Robino]

I would think that a site, if designed properly, should be able to run on any server (configured correctly).

If someone created a site that only they can host, they're either, A)lying, or B)not a good programmer/designer.

[bunltd]

It depends on the cart. If it's a cart that's used server-wide and shared (like Miva), you're going to have more trouble, since if you move you'll need to make sure that software is available on the other server, the versions match, etc. Some are just so proprietary... But if it's a cart licensed for your site alone and installed into your space alone, it should be much easier.

I like ClickCartPro because it will run on a *nix or Windows server. It's also easily moved - some configuration changes are all that's required to move the whole thing. The only additional step you might have to take is if you use MySQL as the database, in which case you have to set up your database and move those files too. If you're moving an SSL cert, that could add a coupla steps. (we've moved instances of this cart between hosts/servers with no problems, in less than an hour, most of that spent waiting for the files to finish scp)

Hope that helps.

LisaB

[pleeker]

If someone created a site that only they can host, they're either, A)lying, or B)not a good programmer/designer.

Wholly untrue. As bunltd points out, there are hosts/developers who prefer proprietary software packages that only run on their own servers. It can dramatically speed up the setup/install of such software on a new site, and support is usually a snap because the host/developer is intrinsically familiar with config, etc.

Yes, on the down side, if the site owner wants to find a new host, they can't take the software with them.

[Robino]

Let me revise my staement then.

Here:
"Avoid this type of set up!"

[pleeker]

:) Really, it's only a problem if the company/people using the proprietary software are so bad that you end up wanting to find a new provider. There are many firms with web sites that run proprietary software and they never have any problems because they found a good provider...

[bryndyment]

It's worth pointing out that the whole hosting question is one that should be dealt with upfront when dealing with a developer. Some developers might assume that certain technologies are "fair game" when building a site for you, and you may find yourself caught when trying to migrate the "finished" site to your current ISP.

For example, if you're with Earthlink, which only allows certain Microsoft technologies for their lower-end accounts, and your developer builds the site with PHP and MySQL, you'd have to change hosts.

At least with that scenario, it's easy to find another host that will support PHP/MySQL. However, moving hosts (provided you have an existing one) can be a hassle (moving e-mail accounts, updating DNS, etc.).

In worse scenarios, your developer might use a more proprietary system, and you might not have many, or any, cheap hosting options.

Also, since deploying a site can sometimes take work, make sure it's clear whether "finished" means that the site is (a) running on the developer's machine, or (b) running on the live server.

[chesworth]

As already stated it does depend upon the system used to build your ecommerce site, do you know what it is?

If its using a software based package (X-Cart, Erol) then you would need to change hosts and reupload your shop or start from scratch (you would also need the software if you don't already have it).

If its a online based system (ekmPowershop, 1&1) then in theory all you would need to do is move hosting account and that's it. As your "ecommerce element" would be hosted with your provider, obviously you would need to ensure the name of the account was yours.