System Settings of OpenCart 2.2.x - The Definitive Guide

You probably already know that OpenCart offers a lot of flexibility when it comes to system settings, whether you are a beginner or experienced user. Adjusting the free Ecommerce platform might take some time if you want to go into detail.

However, the information in this tutorial will help you get through the settings easier as it will explain what everything is and what all the adjustments are used for.

Get yourself a cup of coffee and focus. Here we go.

First step - find the settings. Go to your OpenCart admin panel, find the System menu and then click Settings.

You will see a default store, which is called Your Store. Click on the Edit button to modify the current store, or delete it and create a new store from the Add New button above.

General

The first tab of the settings is relatively simple. These are just the basics:

• Meta Title - Add your store name so it appears in the browser tabs of your customers when they open your website.

• Meta Tag Description - Every result that comes up in the Google search has a snippet with a short description. This is the field where you can enter this description - remember that the ideal length is about 160 characters.

• Meta Tag Keywords - This field is not mandatory as the Google algorithm no longer adds the value of meta tag keywords to the search results. However, you can just add a few keywords that are related to your industry.

• Theme - If you download and install a theme for your OpenCart website, you can choose which theme to activate from this setting.

• Default Layout - Select a layout that will remain as a default one.

Store
 

• Store Name - Type the name of your store.

• Store Owner - Type your personal name.

• Address - Input the physical address of your store.

• Geocode - Type the geocode of the area where your store is located.

• E-Mail - Input your admin email address.

• Telephone - Type your phone number.

• Fax - Fax.

• Image - Upload the store logo image you want to appear on your Contact Us page.

• Opening Times - List the opening hours of your online store.

• Comment - Add any comments or important notes you want to leave for customers. For example, “Store does not accept checks.”

Local
 

• Country - Choose the country where your store is located.

• Region / State - Choose your region or state.

• Language - Choose the main language for your OpenCart store.

• Administration Language - Choose the language for your administration panel.

• Currency - Select the main currency you want to use for transactions in your store.

• Auto Update Currency - Enable or disable to update the conversion rate between currencies each day.

• Length Class - The metric unit for length class.

• Weight Class - The metric unit for weight class.

Option

Product and Category Options
 

• Category Product Count - Enabling this option will display how many items are available in each product category.

• Default Items Per Page (Admin) - Define the item count for how many products will be displayed in the admin panel.

Review Options
 

• Allow Reviews - Product reviews can be enabled or disabled from this setting. Choose whether you want your customers to be able to submit reviews for your products.

• Allow Guest Reviews - If product reviews are allowed, you can adjust this additional setting for reviews from guest users who do not have an account in your store.

• New Review Alert Mail - Select whether you want to receive a notification email whenever a new product review is submitted in your store.

Voucher Options
 

• Voucher Min - The minimum amount a customer can purchase a voucher for. This number will be calculated in the default currency.

• Voucher Max - The maximum amount a customer can purchase a voucher for. This number will be calculated in the default currency.

Taxes Options
 

• Display Prices With Tax - Enable or disable the taxes to be displayed with the product prices.

• Use Store Tax Address - The tax calculation will use the store's shipping or payment address if the customer is not logged into their account.

• Use Customer Tax Address - The tax calculation will use the customer's shipping or payment address if they are logged into their account.

Account Options
 

• Customers Online - Choose whether you want OpenCart to perform customer tracking and show how many customers are online.

• Customer Group - Set the default customer group that users will join when they sign up.

• Customer Groups - Give new customers a choice to join specific customer groups when they make their registration.

• Login Display Prices - Choose whether you want to show prices to users who are not logged in.

• Max Login Attempts - Set the limit for maximum login attempts.

• Account Terms - Select the page to which new users will be forced to agree before they are allowed to create an account.

• New Account Alert Mail - Select whether you want to receive an email notification whenever a new account is created.

Checkout Options
 

• Invoice Prefix - Set the invoice prefix. Invoice IDs will start at 1 for each unique prefix.

• Display Weight on Cart Page - Choose whether you want to show the cart weight on the View Cart page.

• Guest Checkout - Enable or disable checkout for guests who want to complete orders without having an account in your store.

• Checkout Terms - Choose the page which you want customers to agree to before they are allowed to complete a purchase.

• Order Status - Choose the default order status that will be enabled after an order is confirmed by the customer.

• Processing Order Status - Define the status that will enable product subtraction, coupon, voucher or reward point redemption.

• Complete Order Status - Choose the default status for a completed order.

• Fraud Status - Set the status that will appear when an order is suspended due to suspicious activity.

• New Order Alert Mail - Choose whether you want to receive a notification email on your admin email address whenever a new order is confirmed.

• API User - Since version 2, OpenCart has an API for integration with third party services. The same API is also used by OpenCart when editing orders for example. In order to access the API, a pair of username and API key is used. These pairs are created from System > Users > API. This option lets you select which pair will OpenCart use, when it uses the API.

Stock Options
 

• Display Stock - Choose whether you want to display stock levels in product pages.

• Show Out of Stock Warning - Enable or disable the warning notification if a product is out of stock.

• Stock Checkout - Allow or deny checking out with products that are out of stock.

Affiliate Options
 

• Affiliate Requires Approval - Enable or disable automatic affiliate approval.

• Automatic Commission - Enable or disable automatic commission reward.

• Affiliate Commission (%) - Configure the commission percentage for affiliates.

• Affiliate Terms - Choose the page that you want all new affiliates to agree to before they complete their registration.

• New Affiliate Alert Mail - Choose whether you want to receive a notification on your admin email whenever a new affiliate completes their registration.

Return Options
 

• Return Terms - Select the Terms page that you want customers to agree to when submitting a product return.

• Return Status - Select the default status of an order when it’s submitted for a return.

Captcha Options
 

• Captcha - Enable Captcha verification. They are configured from Extensions > Captcha.

• Captcha Page - Check the pages you want the Captcha verification to be enabled for.

Image
 

• Store Logo - Upload your store logo.

• Icon - Upload your store icon which will be shown in the browser tab. The requirements for the icon are PNG 16px by 16px.

FTP

All of the fields here should be filled with the FTP details you have from your hosting provider.

• FTP Host

• FTP Port

• FTP Username

• FTP Password

• FTP Root - Input the directory of the installation of your OpenCart store.

• Enable FTP - Enable or disable FTP.

Mail
 

• Mail Protocol - Choose your mail protocol between Mail or SMTP.

• Mail Parameters - If you select “Mail” for the protocol, you will have to enter an email address.

• SMTP Hostname - If you are using SMTP, input the address of the SMTP host.

• SMTP Username - Enter the full email address of the SMTP host.

• SMTP Password - Choose your password.

• SMTP Port - The SMTP port number is provided by your SMTP host.

• SMTP Timeout - The timeout is also provided by your SMTP host.

• Additional Alert E-Mails - Input any additional email addresses you want to use for receiving notifications.

Server

General Options
 

• Maintenance Mode - Enable or disable your website’s maintenance mode. This will make your OpenCart unreachable for all customers.

• Use SEO URLs - Choose whether you want to use SEO URLs. These URLs use the SEO Keywords you can select from the different page settings in OpenCart.

• Robots - A list of web crawlers that will be prevented from using shared sessions in your store.

• Output Compression Level - GZIP for more efficient transfers to requesting clients. The number sets the level of HTTP compression used in your HTTP headers.

Security Options
 

• Use SSL - Enable or disable SSL certificate.

• Allow Forgotten Password - Choose whether you want to allow using the forgotten password option for the admin login.

• Use Shared Sessions - Select whether you prefer using session sharing with multiple OpenCart stores and shopping carts if you have any.

• Encryption Key - This is a secret combination that is used to encrypt private information. Use both letters and numbers for better protection.

Upload Options
 

• Max File Size - Define the max file size you want to be uploaded in your store. The number should be in bytes.

• Allowed File Extensions - Input all of the file extensions you want to be allowed in your website. For example - TXT, PNG, MP3, PDF, etc.

• Allowed File Mime Types - Input all of the file mime types you want to be allowed in your website. For example - Image/GIF, Application/ZIP, Text/Plain, etc.

Error Handling Options
 

• Display Errors - Enable or disable error displaying when a problem occurs.

• Log Errors - Choose whether you want to keep a log of all the errors that have occurred in your store.

• Error Log Filename - Choose the filename where the log will be kept.

That’s all folks!

These are all the System Settings you have in your OpenCart store. We used the latest 2.2.0.0 version of the platform to make sure the guide is as relevant as possible. Take your time with inspecting the settings yourself because it’s very important to know what your website is capable of and what you can do with it. Thanks for reading, consider leaving us a comment if you have any questions and share the knowledge if it was helpful!