Troubleshooting

Very little should have gone wrong during the setup process as outlined in this chapter. However, it is not beyond the realms of possibility that things do go amiss—hopefully due to something simple (and easily rectified) like a typo. One of the most frustrating problems can occur during the final stages in the setup of osCommerce. For example, you may have come across something like this:

In this case, the first thing you need to do is click the Back button, check your settings, and try again. If this problem persists despite you being absolutely sure that you have made no mistake, then simply refresh the window before trying again.

Again, if this does not work, then you need to go back to the Make Sure the Host is Ready section and follow the instructions there to ensure that you do have valid database users and that they are using passwords and that they are allowed to access the correct database.

Finally, if there are any niggling worries (or even larger worries) that have reared their ugly heads, then this is the course of action you should take:

1. Check the documentation.
2. Visit the osCommerce site, go to the knowledge base (http://www.oscommerce .info/ )or forums (http://forums.oscommerce.com), and search for similar posts or problems.
3. View the bug list (http://www.oscommerce.com/community/bugs) to see if your problem is a reported bug.
4. If you can’t find similar posts or problems, then try posting your queries on the forums, and ask someone in the community to give you a hand.
5. If this does not yield a positive result, get in touch with your Internet Service Provider and see if they can guide you through the installation, or shed light on what the problem is.
6. To supplement this, get on Google and try using relevant keywords to locate a similar problem, with hopefully a solution presented.

It may seem like a bit of a cop-out to give you a list of actions to take rather than present all the problems that may crop up. However, having a solid, robust approach for finding solutions to problems is infinitely more valuable than simply being given individual solutions to a problem. The above points form a methodology that should help you solve any osCommerce-related problem you encounter ever—not just the ones that might be bugging you now!