New to Zen Cart and trying to duplicate a Template and database?

Hi Zenners,

Firstly thank you so much for replying to my previous posts. Your comments were most helpful and greatly appreciated! I've probably mentioned before that I had a ecommerce website designed by a friend using zen cart, https://www.retro36.co.uk. I'm looking to duplicate the template and database onto separate webspace for my Canadian retail division. I'm also looking to set up a trade website using the same template and database (although with adjustments). I've been reading lots of Question/answers and posts as I try to learn about Zen Cart but I'm still a little perplexed as to how I can duplicate the template and database onto webspace. I have FTP software on my computer that allows me to connect to the server and upload multiple image for my website https://www.retro36.co.uk. Basically I'm a little stumped as to what to do? I'm trying to learn but there's so many posts and sections to read with lots of code I don't understand and I'm abit bambozzled!

Any suggestions? Someone suggested I buy the manual. Would this help me to duplicate the template and database onto separate webspace?

Cheers,
Winks

By 'copying the template and database' I'm assuming you mean that you want to create a duplicate of your existing store site which can then be customized?
If so, there are several ways of doing it.

You can install a brand new store with an empty (no products etc) database, then back up the existing sites database and restore/overwrite to the new database. For the 'look and feel' of the store, you would need to identify all the template files and any mods/addons installed, copy the template files from the old, restore to the new, and install and configure the addons.

You can also backup or copy all the files of the existing shop, as well as the database, restore the files to the new shop, keeping the same folder structure, create a new database and restore the backup to it, and edit the 2 configure.php files to reflect the details of the new site - domain name, folders, database name, user and password etc.

The second is probably easier, as it's a 'shotgun' approach. Nothing to identify, copy the lot, but both require a certain familiarity with Zen Cart.

Hope that helps

Note that the above approach creates completely separate stores with no inventory intercommunication, which is what you asked for , but I'm not certain it's what you want.

Since you are talking about one business, if you do any inventory tracking in ZC, you will have a nightmare of coordination.

If inventory for the different facets is separate, then you have no problem.

If you need to coordinate these sites, there is a new Multi-Site module by member Gerome that is supposed to do that.

Thanks for the comments. I'm just copying accross all the files and folders at present.

cheers

I do need two separate stores with separate inventory. Although there will be the same products featured on both websites the stocks levels and prices will be vastly different and completely separate. But thanks for pointing out a solution.