Saw the Online Catalog online once, but I cannot see it now

[big_wally 0]

Installation using Softaculous went fine, everything going under the \public_html folder.  Was able to set up all the Configuration and product info without a hitch.  I was able to see the actual online store and with all the cart, order info, shipping, up to payment (I didn't set that up yet as I'm getting info on the best payment gateway) just one time, but I've not been able to see it again.  What am I missing?

[MrPhil 545]

What exactly do you mean by "cannot see it now"? Are you getting any error messages on your site log? 404? 500? A White Screen of Death? Your domain registration was fubarred? Have you gone into your hosting control panel to check that all the files are still there? Did you do something dumb with permissions, such as chmodding everything to 777? Have you tried accessing your site from a different computer, in case there's something strange cached on your current one? Did you make any change to anything before you lost contact with the site?

If you installed from a "one click installer" such as Softaculous, you probably have an obsolete version (2.3.4, or maybe 2.3.4.1), regardless of whether it's properly installed. You would be far better off installing the responsive version 2.3.4BS Edge, available on GitHub (instructions are on this forum). It is up to date on PHP versions supported, has many security patches, has many new features, and best of all, is responsive (so your mobile customers will be much happier). The only downside is that it's not a "one click" install process.

[ArtcoInc 236]

@big_wally

ASSUMING that you have a working existing website ... and that DNS is properly configured ...

Your existing website is reached by entering your domain into your browser ... www.<your_domain>.com

By default, osCommerce installs itself in the /catalog/ sub-directory. So, you SHOULD be able to enter ... www.<your_domain>.com/catalog  and get to your store.

By default, osCommerce installs the Admin side of your store in the /catalog/admin/ sub-directory. So, you SHOULD be able to enter www.<your_domain>.com/catalog/admin  and get to your Admin side of your store.

If you have changed any of the sub-directories during installation, you'll have to remember to what you changed these.

Now, that all said, as @MrPhil mentioned, if you used a one-click installation, you've installed an old, out-dated version of osCommerce. Do you have an FTP program, such as FileZilla ? If not, get one. You should (IMHO) learn to upload and download files to your site (especially to make backups. You *DO* make backups of your site, don't you?), and then learn how to install, configure, maintain, update, and backup osCommerce (the latest EDGE community version) by hand.

Let us know if you need any more assistance.

HTH

Malcolm