osCommerce is a classic open-source Content Management System (CMS) for online stores, written in PHP. The platform is designed to build full-featured e-commerce websites with product catalogs, shopping carts, payment, and delivery modules. Thanks to its modular architecture, osCommerce is easily extendable and suitable for stores of any scale—from small boutiques to large retail networks.

The system uses MySQL or MariaDB, is compatible with Apache and Nginx, runs on Linux servers, and is supported by an active developer community.

osCommerce is valued for its stability, simplicity, and the vast number of free plugins and templates.

• supports dozens of payment modules (PayPal, Stripe, LiqPay, etc.);
• includes built-in discount, tax, and coupon systems;
• allows product import and export (CSV, XML);
• easily integrates with ERP systems;
• fully optimized for SEO and SSL.

In essence, osCommerce is a reliable open-source e-commerce builder that provides maximum control to the store owner without unnecessary complexity.

Server Preparation

Installing osCommerce on hosting

osCommerce is installed via a web interface and does not require complex setup. You simply need to upload the system files and run the installer.

1. Download the latest stable version from the official osCommerce website.
2. Upload the archive to your domain folder (~/www/DOMAIN_NAME) via FTP or File Manager in your hosting panel.
3. Unpack the archive and ensure the files are accessible to the web server.
4. Create a new database (DB_NAME) and user (DB_USER).
5. In your browser, open https://DOMAIN_NAME/install — the installation wizard will appear.

Follow the installation steps:

• specify the site name and administrator email;
• enter database parameters (DB_NAME, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD);
• set a login and password for the admin panel.

After completing installation, delete the /install/ directory to secure the setup.

Installation osCommerce on Server

If you are deploying osCommerce on a VPS, manually configure the LAMP or LEMP stack: Nginx / Apache + PHP + MySQL.

Example commands for Ubuntu 24.04:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install nginx php php-mysql php-zip php-mbstring php-xml mysql-server unzip -y

Copy osCommerce files to /var/www/DOMAIN_NAME:

sudo mkdir -p /var/www/DOMAIN_NAME
sudo unzip oscommerce.zip -d /var/www/DOMAIN_NAME
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/DOMAIN_NAME

Configure Nginx:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name DOMAIN_NAME;

    root /var/www/DOMAIN_NAME;
    index index.php index.html;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string;
    }

    location ~ \.php$ {
        include snippets/fastcgi-php.conf;
        fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php/php8.2-fpm.sock;
    }

    location ~ /\.ht {
        deny all;
    }
}

Enable the site and restart Nginx:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/oscommerce.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t && sudo systemctl reload nginx

Configuring osCommerce Additional Features

Enabling SSL Certificate

To enable HTTPS, use Let’s Encrypt or a commercial SSL certificate.

After installation, make sure the HTTPS redirect is active in your Nginx configuration.

Performance Optimization

• Enable page caching in osCommerce settings.
• Configure OPcache in PHP (php.ini → opcache.enable=1).
• Optionally, use Redis for session caching.

Backups

Create database and file backups daily: you can use the built-in Backup Manager in the admin panel or a cron script:

mysqldump -u DB_USER -p DB_PASSWORD DB_NAME > /backups/oscommerce_$(date +%F).sql

Verifying Installation

After installation, open:

• https://DOMAIN_NAME/admin — osCommerce admin panel;
• https://DOMAIN_NAME/ — storefront homepage.

Useful links