Can We Test the Checkout System?

[AnitaN]

Hi all,

Well, I'm days away from having my old site shut down. Whether I'll be ready with my 3dCart site remains to be seen! :-) (I'm burning the midnight oil to make it at least presentable.)

Is there a way to test the checkout procedure without entering actual credit card numbers? I did it last night with a low priced item and a real credit card number. It seemed to work quite well.

I was able to see the order in Linkpoint, see what information appears in the admin panel, see what the printed order slip would look like, see the confirmation e-mail that goes to the customer, etc.

I'll cancel the bogus order, but I'm sure I'll have to pay for the transactions.

I'd like to try a few other transactions. Is there a way I can enter test orders using a test cc number so I don't rack up transaction fees from Linkpoint? (Although we're probably talking only a handful of dollars here.)

Until I actually walk through the process, I don't know what all of the screens, e-mails, and message to the customer look like.

Also, are orders through 3dCart immediately billed to the customer's credit card? My previous hosting service pre-authorized the amount and then after I shipped the order I "settled" it and then it was put on the customer's card. That doesn't seem to be the case here. The transaction shows as "sale" in Linkpoint.

Thanks for your help.

Anita

[mueller]

I assume you are using the same processing account you are currently using for your live site, but if not you should be able to change the mode to testing with your payment gateway.

Alternatively you could create a custom payment in 3DC. We use this for internal orders that will be billed outside of 3DC via invoice sent to the customer.

As far as the authorize vs. charge; I believe I can set this with our payment gateway (Authorize.net) but there is definitely a check box next the payment setup in the 3DC admin panel to "Authorize Only". I am not sure exactly how it will work, but it may work for you. Also immediately after you do a test charge you could go into your gateway admin (assuming you have one with your provider) and cancel the transaction before your charges settle for the day. I think this would solve your problem without making any changes to your settings.

[brendang]

Hmm... I hadn't thought of that. The not bill until ship option. That would defiantly be the way I'd want to do it, both as a merchant and customer.

Can anyone confirm this as an option either in 3DC or with Authorize.net?

Brendan G.
killersocks.com

[WFox]

If you go into the online payments section in 3dCart ADMIN, you can check or uncheck "Authorize Only" That way you can keep from capturing the sale. This is very important too for Visa/MC rules that you must ship within a certain time ( I don't recall the exact time now - I'm thinking it is 72 hours of capturing a sale) You can also go into your Authorize.net aacount and void the transaction. I know with the Authorize.net account we have you can put it into test mode.

I hope this helps some. Good luck with the site. 3dCart is really a cool cart to work with.

Bill Fox
http://www.4filters.com