Control Your Shop - Documentation

Introduction

The installation of ControlYourShop is designed to be quick and simple. Within a few minutes, you’ll have a functional, secure environment on your own server. This section will guide you step by step through the installation, from setting up your server on DigitalOcean to acquiring your domain on Cloudflare.

The server

Your server will be hosted on DigitalOcean, a reliable and high-performance cloud provider. Follow these steps to set it up:

1. Create an account on DigitalOcean if you don’t already have one.
2. After logging in, navigate to Create a Droplet.
3. In the "Choose a Data Center" section, select the region closest to where your customers are located to ensure optimal loading speeds.
4. In the "Choose an image" section, click on "Marketplace" and select "Docker on Ubuntu 22.04".
5. Next, select the size of your droplet. You can start with something simple, like a droplet that costs $0.010/hour (about $7/month) with premium AMD, which is more than sufficient for most small-to-medium stores.
6. Set a strong password for your droplet and make sure to save it securely.
7. Expand the "Advanced Options" section and select "Add Initialization scripts (free)".
8. A text box will appear. Paste the unique code that you will have received by email after purchasing the template into this box. This code will automatically configure your template on the first launch.
9. Finally, click "Create Droplet" to launch your server. Your site will automatically be set up and ready to go!

The Domain Name

To get started, you’ll need a domain name for your online store. We recommend using Cloudflare to manage your domain. If you don’t have a domain yet, you can purchase one directly through Cloudflare. If you already have a domain, you’ll need to link it to Cloudflare to benefit from its advanced security and simplicity features.

After purchasing the domain name, follow these steps to ensure your domain is properly secured with HTTPS:

1. Go to the "Websites" section in your Cloudflare account.
2. Click on your domain name to access its settings.
3. On the left-hand side menu, click on "SSL/TLS".
4. Under the "Edge Certificates" tab, you will see an option for "Always Use HTTPS".
5. Turn this setting ON to ensure that all traffic to your site is securely served over HTTPS.

Video

Linking the Domain to the Server

Now that your domain is set up on Cloudflare and your droplet is created, it’s time to connect your domain to your server. Don’t worry if you’ve never done this before — just follow these steps:

1. In your DigitalOcean dashboard, find your droplet and copy the IP address associated with it. This is the address of your server.
2. Log into your Cloudflare account and click on the domain you want to link to your server.
3. Go to the "DNS" section in Cloudflare.
4. In the DNS settings, click "Add Record" and choose "A" as the record type.
5. In the "Name" field, enter "@" (this stands for your domain). In the "IPv4 address" field, paste the IP address of your droplet.
6. Save the record. This tells Cloudflare to point your domain to your server.
7. After a few minutes, your domain will be linked to your server, and you’ll be able to access your website through your domain name.