Upgrade to version 2

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    4. Written by Davide Mantenuto  
Back   Posted on 1 september 2018 / Updated on 24 january 2021
Reading time 3 minutes

Preliminary Information

All versions 2 of Billing Extension have nothing in common with ones of the previous generation (v1). It's a brand new module. If you are running any version of Billing Extension from 1.4.6 (11/10/2016) up to 1.5.10 (22/08/2018) read this guide to upgrade to latest version.

Before we start, first we want to infom you about features of previous generation that have been deprecated mainly because they were rarely used. Some other have been changed or removed in favor of brand new features that took their place.

Removed Features

The following pages with their relative functionalities have been removed from admin interface:

  • Clients. Confusing. Its functionalities will be implemented in a new page not yet available at the moment of writing
  • Reports. It became obsolete since now you can view and export data with SorTables
  • Promotions, Support and Incidents pages were all out of place for a billing software. They've been included in Mercury

These features have been removed too:

  • Invoice Due Date was capable of overriding default due date of invoices. Not so useful
  • Invoice Automation was rarely used but we have plans to reintroduce this feature in a new light
  • Multi-Brand. Too complex to use
  • Mailing System of Toggle Invoicing. We will bring this feature back at a later stage
  • Level 3 Tax based on Products/Services. Nobody ever used it therefore we're removing it

Changes

  • The old Conditional Pay To Text has been replaced by Company Profile
  • Toggle Invoicing page replaced by Enhanced Renewals
  • Simplified Invoicing and Toggle Invoicing are now named OneInvoice and OnePayment, respectively

Before Starting

The upgrade to version 2 involves all your invoices, payments, shapshots and settings. Before attempting the upgrade, we strongly recommend you to try it on a testing environment that is an exact copy of your WHMCS.

Please, don't try this procedure directly on the real setup since it could compromise your data. WHMCS grants you a free developer license that can be used for this purpose. If you haven't it yet, submit a ticket on whmcs.com and request it.

If you have uninvoiced payments (eg. if you are using manual invoicing or Simplified Invoicing), generate invoices right now before starting the upgrade!

Upgrade

As we have already said, don't try the upgrade on the real setup. First try to run it on a testing environment. Only when you are totally sure that everything is working fine repeat the upgrading procedure on your real WHMCS. Don't forget to backup all your files and database before trying it!

  1. Run or import this query in phpMyAdmin
  2. Delete the following directory modules/addons/BillingExtension
  3. Upload version 2 of the module
  4. Visit Setup > Addon Modules > Billing Extension and click Deactivate
  5. Once done click Activate and wait for the process to finish
  6. Click Configure, insert your license key and grant permissions
  7. Insert Integration Code

It's important to notice that the installer will try to keep all your settings in this specific order: WHMCS, EU VAT Addon, Billing Extension. That means that first it imports WHMCS settings. If EU VAT Addon is installed it imports data and overrides default settings of WHMCS. The same process repeats for the old Billing Extension. This way most of your customizations will be preserved.

If you are trying the upgrade on a testing environment make sure that everything is working as expected by viewing and downloading invoices and more in general browsing pages of WHMCS and Billing Extension. Review your Tax Rules and Late Fees (if in use). Verify that cron job runs correctly and get familiar with the new interface and features of Billing Extension for a couple of days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I repeat the upgrading procedure?

A: You can repeat the upgrade as many times as you want. Simply press Deactivate and Activate. The deactivation of Billing Extension v2 doesn't change/remove any setting of WHMCS, EU VAT Addon and Billing Extension v1. The only information lost are the ones of Billing Extension v2.

 
Q: It's not working. How can I restore WHMCS with the old Billing Extension v1?

A: If something isn't working as expected, you can restore the original settings by deactivating Billing Extension v2. Once done delete modules/addons/BillingExtension (v2) directory and replace it with the old Billing Extension (v1) you had previously installed on your system. Finally run or import this query in phpMyAdmin.


Q: It's all working good. Should I remove any table from my database?

A: If you are 100% sure that everything is working fine, you can delete all the tables used by the old Billing Extension v1. Run or import this query in phpMyAdmin. You can also remove the following file (if they exist):

  • {WHMCS_ROOT}/transactions.php
  • {WHMCS_ROOT}/tos.php
  • {WHMCS_ROOT}/templates/{YOUR_TEMPLATE}/transactions.tpl
  • {WHMCS_ROOT}/templates/{YOUR_TEMPLATE}/tos.tpl

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