The Order Manager is able to synchronize inventory with multiple shopping carts that are defined within a single store data file, either on a manual or "real-time" basis, for shopping carts that support those inventory synchronization processes.
To determine a shopping cart's manual QOH capabilities, check its Shopping Cart Functions screen.
To find out which shopping carts support Real-Time Inventory Synchronization, please see the "Real Time Inventory" column on the Shopping Cart Matrix. If there is an "S" in that column, the shopping cart only offers the ability to synchronize inventory at the SKU level, rather than at the attribute (option) level.
Some shopping carts also require additional third-party add-ons, service subscriptions, or special setup activities at the web store. Look for specialized instructions in the Knowledge Base topic with the title, Real-Time Inventory Tracking with ______ Cart, for the shopping cart in question.
The majority of shopping cart systems that support Real-Time Inventory Synchronization follow the same basic steps that are outlined below, or refer to the osCommerce topic as an example of the standard synchronization process. If there is no specific shopping cart topic for real-time inventory synchronization, then it most likely does not support that feature. Refer to the Shopping Cart Matrix to confirm that conclusion.
Manual inventory synchronization is performed at a single point in time by clicking the Send QOH To Website or Get QOH from Website buttons found on the Shopping Cart Functions form. Some carts do not allow any QOH information to be transferred from or to Order Manager, while others may only allow the information to be pulled from the shopping cart. To determine the capabilities of the shopping cart in use, check its Shopping Cart Functions screen to see which buttons are active for that cart.
These buttons only push or pull the current QOH numbers to refresh either the website or the Order Manager. Manual inventory synchronization should be used to initialize inventory counts just before enabling real-time inventory synchronization. Otherwise manual inventory synchronization should only be used occasionally to refresh numbers; they should not be used for real-time inventory management. If the Shopping Cart Functions screen does not contain these buttons, the shopping cart does not support inventory synchronization.
Follow these guidelines to manually synchronize your inventory:
Determine whether the Order Manager or your shopping cart contains the most accurate count of your inventory.
If your shopping cart contains the most accurate inventory count, use the to Get QOH From Website button on the Shopping Cart Functions screen. If an item in your shopping cart store does not exist in the Order Manager, the program adds that item to the Order Manager if the Create Records for New Products check box is checked.
If the Order Manager count is more accurate, you should use Send QOH to Website to send the most current data to the web store. The Maximum number of items to send is intended to prevent server time-out errors, by limiting the number of records that are sent at a time. For example, if you have 100 QOH updates to be sent, two groups of 50 records each will be sent.
Real-time inventory synchronization allows you to make a change to the inventory quantity on hand (QOH) of an item (i.e., via adjustments, sales, receiving inventory, or importing orders) and then communicate those changes directly to your shopping cart(s) almost immediately. For example, if the Order Manager and your web site both show 100 pieces in stock for a given item, and you receive an additional 100 pieces, the Order Manager will notify your shopping cart to add 100 pieces to the QOH value for the given product. Similarly, when you import orders from one shopping cart, the Order Manager will communicate the inventory changes to all other carts defined in the same store data file that are set up for inventory synchronization.
To enable real-time inventory synchronization, follow these steps:
Follow steps 1 through 3 in the Manual Inventory Synchronization section above, to do an initial inventory synchronization, and then close out of the Shopping Cart Functions screen.
Go to the Main Menu> Maintenance Menu> Maintenance tab>Set System Parameters button.
Select the Program parameter group.
Highlight the SynchQOH and set the parameter value to True. Click Save.
Click Close.
Click on the Main Menu> Quick Clicks> Create/Edit Shopping Cart button.
On the Shopping Carts screen, click Edit Cart. (If you have more than one cart, select a cart from the Current Carts List, then click Edit Cart.)
If your shopping cart supports inventory synchronization, the Synchronize Inventory check box will be visible in the upper right corner of the form.
Click in the Synchronize Inventory check box.
Click Save and then Close to exit the Shopping Carts dialog box.
VERY IMPORTANT NOTES:
Follow these recommendations to avoid severe inventory management problems:
It is strongly recommended that you perform these functions outside of normal business hours.
The Order Manager begins transmitting inventory changes immediately after a shopping cart is set up to synchronize inventory, so if you want to synchronize multiple sites, make sure the items that appear on multiple sites all have the same beginning QOH.
Make sure that all outstanding orders have been imported from each cart in the same data file before sending Manual QOH to web sites.
If your cart retains inventory in the shopping basket (e.g. Miva), make sure all baskets are emptied BEFORE turning on this feature.
Inventory Synchronization at the item level, either via the Manual or Real-Time processes, can be impacted by settings on the Web Fields tab of the View Inventory form.
Once you have set up inventory synchronization in the Order Manager, you should not make inventory adjustments on your web site because these adjustments are not returned to the Order Manager unless you click the Get QOH from Web Store button on the Shopping Cart Functions dialog box (manual inventory synchronization).
If it becomes necessary to reset the inventory counts manually, disable real-time inventory synchronization first. This can be accomplished by un-checking the box labeled Synchronize Inventory on the Shopping Cart screen and then saving the Shopping Cart definition. It can also be accomplished by setting system parameter SynchQOH to FALSE, however, be aware that if you use more than one shopping cart system in a single store data file, all shopping carts will be affected by changing this parameter. It would be best to alter the specific shopping cart definition in that scenario.
If
you share inventory across multiple stores, download the QOH from one
web site, and then use the Send QOH to
Web Store buttons on the Shopping Cart Functions
page to send the latest QOH amounts to your other shopping carts before
re-enabling real-time inventory synchronization.
Adjustments or updates to your inventory quantities are recorded by the program and stored in a "Web Stack" before the "Stack Controller" sends all of the information waiting in the Web Stack to your web site. For more information, see The Stack Controller.
If you use the Order Manager on more than one computer, you may want to designate a single machine to act as the Shared Stack Controller to improve the performance of the Order Manager on the majority of PC's in your configuration. Select a low usage machine that is always on, and has Microsoft Access and the Order Manager installed on it. For help setting up a shared Stack Controller, see The Shared Stack Controller.
If you sense that inventory adjustments are not being made on your web site, check the Web Stack for error messages (CTRL+Shift+S from Main menu of Order Manager). Look in the Attempts column of the first record in the Web Stack for the number of times the Stack Controller attempted to transmit the data. The reason the record could not be sent is listed in the Last Response. For further assistance, contact the Technical Support Department of Stone Edge Technologies, Inc. at support@stoneedge.com or (610) 994-3699, 9 am to 6 pm, Monday through Friday EST.
See Also
Setting Up a Shared Post Stack Controller
Updated 4/23/09
Modified 1/12/11