PayPal IPN - No Order Created

Hi there.

I am currently working on a shop for someone who asked to use PayPal as a payment method, which I have set up to test with the paypal Sandbox. Have opened a test business account in PayPal and verified it, and then opened a test personal user account ( to make a payment).

Then I have set up the module as per the instructions, and placed a test order. After paying in paypal I am redirected back to the checkout_success page without an order number, and the order is not entered into the database.

So, I have searched the forums and read a few threads, which led me to to the wiki (http://www.zen-cart.com/wiki/index.php/PayPal). I read it, twice, removed the module, then installed it again while making sure all the information is correct. It still doesn't work. Did it again. Nada. So, went through the list of Things to Check if it's not working. Here are the results:

1 - 3. Okay.
4. Primary email @ paypal is the same as in the module. Triple checked.
5. Account is verified.
6 Is business account.
7 & 11. Submitted a ticket with the hosting service who said ports 80 & 443 are both open, and that the ip addresses are not blocked.
8. Accessed the ipn_main_handler.php in the site, which says: "Nothing to process. Please return to home page."
9.Tools: http://haeon.com/test/ipncheck.php and http://haeon.com/test/curltest.php (although I am not trying to use PayPal Express).
10. http://haeon.com/test/logs.zip
12. Removed at least three times... deleted the whole shop and installed it again and tried it on a fresh installation, thinking it might be something I've done with my modifications (although I have not touched anything around that area). Not working.
13. I'm not just a pretty face (i.e. I am using the right account).
14. Checked.
15. Never turned them on, made sure they weren't, they're not.
16. There is nothing regarding ipn_main_handler.php on the error log.
17. Not using any contribution whatsoever.
18. ...and finally: Zen Cart 1.3.8a, Database Patch Level: 1.3.8

Over to you, and thank you in advance for your assistance.

Try some live testing, the Sandbox can be very unreliable.

Have you turned on Debug Log-To-File in the module?
What's it generating in the logs when you do a test transaction?

http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61199

Thanks for the replies so far.

DrByte: link to log files: http://haeon.com/test/logs.zip

I will try, as Kim suggested, to put a test on the live PayPal system and see whether it works.

Thanks to both of you for taking the time to answer.

I have tried putting an order on the live environment and it did go through perfectly.

Thanks Kim for suggesting doing that, which also made me realise what might have been the problem: the ip addresses of the sandbox shouldn't be the same one as the live environment, and I was asking the host about the ip addresses of the live environment (as listed in the wiki).

Thanks again, and I hope this might help someone else in the future.

So true, i had exactly the same problem. Thanks for clearing things up.

I have another problem though, i am not automaticly sent back to my page.

So if the customers close the webbrowser after the payment i never see the order.

Regards Morten

Mortenjan:

i am not automaticly sent back to my page.

So if the customers close the webbrowser after the payment i never see the order.

That's something you'll need to ask PayPal about.
Or, use Express Checkout instead.