Warning
As of the time of writing (10-30-22), BoxBilling is no longer being actively maintained. FOSSBilling is a fork of it that is being actively developed. If you do decide to use BoxBilling, please be aware that its current state has multiple bugs and vulnerabilities.
What is BoxBilling?
BoxBilling is a free open source, billing and client management solution. It can help automate invoicing, incoming payments, and client management for businesses of various sizes, from startups to established firms. Although it is often utilized by web hosting services, BoxBilling’s versatility allows you to use it for any kind of online business including digital downloads. Designed to be extensible, BoxBilling can integrate with your favorite server management software and payment gateways. As self-hosted software, it is free to install, requiring only a web server, PHP, and a MySQL database. Learn more about the requirements below!
Contents
Requirements
The following environment is highly recommended for running BoxBilling. It may be possible to run the software in other environments, but they will be untested and unsupported.
- A suitable web server (Apache, Nginx, Litespeed, Lighttpd)
- PHP 8.0 (PHP 8.1 hasn’t been tested yet, and PHP 8.0.x is recommended)
- MySQL 8, or higher (MariaDB and other MySQL compatible DBs work)
- The following PHP extensions:
- pdo_mysql
- curl
- zlib
- gettext
- openssl
Installation
Installing BoxBilling is simple and there are three ways to do it:
- If you use shared hosting or want to install BoxBilling for production, download and install the latest stable version.
- If you want to contribute to BoxBilling’s development, install from latest source code.
- If you’re familiar with Docker, you can also install BoxBilling in a Docker container.
Download the latest stable version
To use BoxBilling in a production environment, it’s best to download the latest release. These releases are more secure and stable. First, download the latest release from our GitHub repository. Each release includes a BoxBilling.zip file.
After downloading the file, unzip it to ensure the folder structure contains:
htdocs
├── bb-data
├── bb-library
├── bb-module
└── ...
Create a new empty MySQL database using your server control panel or command line, note the database name, username, and password, then navigate to your domain and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation.
Install from latest source code
For the development version, get the latest ZIP archive from GitHub. The rest of the installation process is similar to the stable version. Unzip it, create a MySQL database, and prepare to install BoxBilling.
Run composer install to get required packages if you have Composer installed. Navigate to your domain in a web browser afterward to finish the installation.
Installing with Docker
This guide assumes you have Docker, Git, and GNU make installed. Start by running:
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/boxbilling/boxbilling
# Navigate to the local repository
cd boxbilling
# Run the app with Docker
make all
Then navigate to localhost in your browser to access your BoxBilling setup.
Contributing
Interested in contributing? Thank you! BoxBilling is reviving with new updates. Check out the contribution guidelines and our pull requests on GitHub. If you want to get involved but don’t know where to start, review the open issues.
Licensing
BoxBilling is open-source software licensed under the Apache v2.0 license. Review the full license terms for more details.
Links
Troubleshooting
If you encounter any issues during installation or configuration, consider the following troubleshooting tips:
- Ensure your server meets all the requirements listed above.
- Check for errors in your web server’s log files, which can provide insight into the issues faced.
- Verify that all PHP extensions are installed and enabled on your server.
For more insights, updates, or to collaborate on AI development projects, stay connected with fxis.ai.
At fxis.ai, we believe that such advancements are crucial for the future of AI, as they enable more comprehensive and effective solutions. Our team is continually exploring new methodologies to push the envelope in artificial intelligence, ensuring that our clients benefit from the latest technological innovations.