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Understanding the Billing Process

Placing an order

Initially, the customer does not yet have access to the client area of the billing system. The order module accepts orders from new and existing customers. Once an order is created in the system, it triggers the invoice module to generate an invoice. Modules such as the tax module act on the newly created invoice and modify it as needed.

The customer then visits their client area and views the invoice. Here they are presented with the available payment options based on the payment modules active in the system. Once they choose a payment method and make the payment, the invoice and order get updated and the account setup process begins.

Modules such as cPanel, Manual Domains and eNom then setup the account as per their configuration. These account modules will update the account's expiry date (the date when a renewal payment is due) and the create invoice date (the date when a new invoice must be created) as required. They also set the suspend and delete dates if applicable and configured to do so.

During this entire process, all communication to the customer is managed by communication modules such as the Email module

Renewal process

Once the account crosses its create invoice date, a new invoice is generated. The customer is expected to make the payment by the expiry date. If the payment is received, the account is renewed and the create invoice and expiry date are updated to the new dates. Otherwise, the account expires and if the suspend and deleted dates are configured, it will be suspended and deleted at the appropriate dates.