Best billing system for cPanel?

[SeanLee]

I know this is a hard one to answer... but are there perhaps like a "top 3" that most small to medium ISP's prefer? Is integration difficult?

TIA

-Sean

[ShannonS]

we use clientexec www.clientexec.com and have fund it to be good and some say modernbill www.modernbil.com but it can be complex

[Vinayak]

People had praised WHMCS a lot at many forums.

[trhosting.net]

We used ClientExec, WHMAutopilot, Modernbill and WHMCS.

WHMCS is the best and usable one.

[Infopro]

I know this is a hard one to answer... but are there perhaps like a "top 3" that most small to medium ISP's prefer? Is integration difficult?

TIA

-Sean

Not really, this same thread has been posted many times. Search.

[garingas]

The other billing systems we tried had terrible support. WHMCS was easy and the support guy that we delt with could actually *gasp* answer more than one question in the same email reply.

It isn't perfect, but we've found simple work arounds for anything that wasn't quite right.

[biggdogg285]

Yes, WHMCS rules!!

http://www.whmcs.com

[electric]

We're using www.awbs.com and like it a lot. Has all the features and functionality of modernbill, without the clutter and bugs.

[h4f]

Yes, WHMCS rules!!

It comes with bad support, no EU-VAT implementation (while advertising for it), slow response.

No UTF-8 support (only global UTF8 setting for website but language files are all in other charset, UTF8 for the PDF or outgoing mail to customers is not supported), no foreign or multiple language support (invoices and other document templates are only possible in one langauge), multiple currency support, no support for bandwith or diskspace billing etc..etc.. (just check their "feature request" forum and read the comments of their moderators)

Also the documentation to build modules (such as payment or registrar) is to brief to be able to implement something yourself before (and if) WHMCS has created them.

No clue on secure programming, "Register Globals" must be on (while next version of PHP doesn't support it at all) they state that it isn't a security problem.
Also some script don't have any input validation, they state that this is not a security issue.
Creating orders without paying for it was just fixed this week, while this problem is (probally) several years in the encoded scripts (a reason why source should be open)


The solution has every file encoded with IONCUBE, even the files that they obtained from GNU or other opensource sources are encoded.

The company behind WHMCS doesn't have a registratrion nor a tax number, they are just one or two teenagers that made something that can be usefull for small hosting companies that are running just one server and do not have any intention to pay taxes.

Do not be misguided by their website, just try out their test version and keep in mind why you are looking for a billing solution. If you don't mind the bad support, the misleading features that are not (fully) implemented, then this is a good product for you.

You make me and all your competitors happy when you use WHMCS

Check also:
The 15 other solutions on this page: http://www.cpanelresources.com/cpbilling.php
And http://www.awbs.com/

AWBS

[garingas]

The point is that someone with a small hosting business can get a nice and easy to use billing system up an running very fast with whmcs.

I spent all of January and half of February trying to automate my business billing.

Modernbill was a difficult nightmare that wouldn't import existing server accounts, LPanel wanted to send separate invoices for each domain a customer had and AWBS wanted to take over my entire website.

No thank you! After trying whmcs for one day I was done looking.

You've obviously never dealt with their support. They have incredibly responsive and intelligent support.

:P

Register Globals isn't insecure, it just lets people do insecure things easier.
http://in2.php.net/register_globals

[brianoz]

It comes with bad support, no EU-VAT implementation (while advertising for it), slow response.

I've never heard anything so ridiculous in my life.

The support is the best I've experienced in the industry - fast, knowledgeable, helpful and accurate responses usually within 4 business hours. You can't go past that in this industry.

No doubt there are features missing - but it's more than adequate to run a hosting company. Some not-so-small hosting companies have recently moved to it.

Also the documentation to build modules (such as payment or registrar) is to brief to be able to implement something yourself before (and if) WHMCS has created them.

You have to be joking. The others don't even document this stuff; that WHMCS does says a lot. You'd also get good support if you needed it on this, I'm sure.

The company behind WHMCS doesn't have a registratrion nor a tax number, they are just one or two teenagers that made something that can be usefull for small hosting companies that are running just one server and do not have any intention to pay taxes.

Geez louise, for teenagers they've produced an amazingly effective product. Who cares whether they have a tax number yet? I want them to be effective developers, and I've enough experience to understand that's not the same skill as being a top business administrator. Not to start with, anyway.

Do not be misguided by their website, just try out their test version and keep in mind why you are looking for a billing solution. If you don't mind the bad support, the misleading features that are not (fully) implemented, then this is a good product for you.

Come now, whether your experience was bad or not, this is just sledging. If it's so bad, why are people moving to it in droves? Because it's easy to learn, and provides an effective solution. And I'm confident enough in the people behind it to beleive that any problems that now exist will be fixed. For me, WHMCS wass miles ahead of Modernbill in almost every way that mattered. For me, and many others, their support has been nothing short of excellent. Try getting a 4 hour response from MB. I'm not saying WHMCS is perfect, but it provides a working solution that has been easy to setup and easy for my staff to learn. And of course, if you have a massive hosting company you (a) probably already have a solution; and (b) have entirely a different set of problems to the ones solved by WHMCS.

[trhosting.net]

It comes with bad support, no EU-VAT implementation (while advertising for it), slow response.

Bad support? you are kidding. Our problems were fixed in the same day. Before we used Modernbill and WhmAutopilot and i know we waited for days. Once we waited 2 weeks for Modernbill to fix their license checkers problem (issue with 64bit systems) etc. WHMCS has best support that we used. Second is ClientExec.

No UTF-8 support (only global UTF8 setting for website but language files are all in other charset, UTF8 for the PDF or outgoing mail to customers is not supported), no foreign or multiple language support (invoices and other document templates are only possible in one langauge)

Our site is multilingual (english and turkish). We are using utf8 on both web and database side. Converting language files is not a hard process and can be done within seconds.



We used WHMAutopilot, Modernbill, ClientExec.

WHMAutopilot was good but have lots of problems with the new version. They are not updating their old version, so we have to leave

ClientExec is a good system but few features so we couldn't use it.

Modernbill is a good system but very complex and very hard to set system. Like WHMAutopilot, they are all concentrate on the new version. The new version has lots of problems (so the old version). As i mention above, we waited them for 2 weeks to fix the licensing issue. Then we have to leave, because our server is 64bit and modernbill didnt work on it. (it is fixed now but after 3-4 weeks)

We don't use AWBS, because it likes not an hosting billing system, but an online shop. Cart system is not good and prefered in hosting industry (my opinion). The second problem is as garingas said before "AWBS wanted to take over my entire website" and this is not possible for us to use.

WHMCS is simple, effective and the cheapest solution that i can find.

[h4f]

Our site is multilingual (english and turkish). We are using utf8 on both web and database side. Converting language files is not a hard process and can be done within seconds.

Are you able to maintain English and Turkish invoicing with WHMCS.
If so, please document how you did it and post in on WHMCS.com, because it is not supported.

WHMCS is simple, effective and the cheapest solution that i can find.

Indeed. It's cheap the $ 150 version that you use it nothing compared to the $ 200 you spend each month on an external accountant or the $ 1250 that you spend on an employee.

btw: I noticed that you do not have any servers configured in whmcs see: http://www.trhosting.net/bs/serverstatus.php

And I still stand behind my claim that WHMCS is only usefull in countries without taxes for small
webhosting companies.

[h4f]

I've never heard anything so ridiculous in my life.

You must be young.

The support is the best I've experienced in the industry - fast, knowledgeable, helpful and accurate responses usually within 4 business hours. You can't go past that in this industry.

At least you needed a response in your young live, that is weird because in your reply you state you wonderfull the product is.

No doubt there are features missing - but it's more than adequate to run a hosting company. Some not-so-small hosting companies have recently moved to it.

Like which one?
The biggest hosting company using WHMCS has only (according to WHMCS panel) 7 servers.
The majority have one.

You have to be joking. The others don't even document this stuff; that WHMCS does says a lot. You'd also get good support if you needed it on this, I'm sure.

Just check their forum, how many request for features are their and the majority are features that you can find as default in other product and should be at least what you might expect from a billing solution. (such as tax support)

Who cares whether they have a tax number yet?

In some parts of the world, such as Europe it's illegal to do transactions as a company with people who do not pay taxes or provide correct invoices (like for surcharges).

Come now, whether your experience was bad or not, this is just sledging. If it's so bad, why are people moving to it in droves? Because it's easy to learn, and provides an effective solution.

There are only 600 installed WHMCS in the world, and more of the half of them don't have any servers configured in them, this means that they are using a test version (which only expires for the admin area) or are a small hostingcompany, without a server that has a supported panel (like cpanel) installed on it.

And I'm confident enough in the people behind it to beleive that any problems that now exist will be fixed.

I don't think that they understand this market and what it needs, else their priorities and current features would atleast support the most important thing in any business, correct administration.

Just look at their changelog of their versions, after reading the feature request forum.
Then you would also admit that they are not listening to the majority on their own forum.

Look at the features added in version 3.0.0 !
http://forums.whmcs.com/viewtopic.php?t=2729
Tax support, PDF invoices (which can't support utf8), Invoice balance, TLD pricelist

WHMCS allready excisted a few years and this version was released on 1 february 2007

If you then see that almost montly a new version is released that is adding new features (without knowing if the allready implemented features are working properly), then it would be
rare to think that WHMCS is stable (or proven technology) which you business is going to run on.

For me, WHMCS wass miles ahead of Modernbill in almost every way that mattered. For me, and many others, their support has been nothing short of excellent. Try getting a 4 hour response from MB. I'm not saying WHMCS is perfect, but it provides a working solution that has been easy to setup and easy for my staff to learn. And of course, if you have a massive hosting company you (a) probably already have a solution; and (b) have entirely a different set of problems to the ones solved by WHMCS.

Modernbill looks like something that you build yourself in the middle 90's, that said, I think that the people behind Modernbill have actually a better understanding of the concept of business processes and the role of accounting.

But you can't compare something like modernbill with WHMCS.
In that case you can also compare OScommerce with WHMCS, with a week of work you can build a better solution and benefit from allot of payment modules that are allready out there.

WHMCS has nice concept to have a Billing, support and selling solution in one package, but they are still in their development period.

I am happy that you state that WHMCS isn't perfect, the isn't going to be a product that is perfect for any business, unless you build it your self.

While the minor and major issues with WHMCS aren't resolved and the software hasn't proven itself over a longer period of time, I do not think that any bigger webhosting company ( > 1000 customers) will use WHMCS, because it would cost them allot of headache
and get them in trouble, which at the end of the day costs them money.

If they fix the issues that I described, then next year I will look at them again.

At this moment I am discussing with our team on using OScommerce and rebuild it for our needs or building something from scratch.

btw: go to http://www.whmcs.com/index.php and press on "See how WHMCS compares" do not be suprised after reading my comments.

[BraveX]

It isn't perfect, but we've found simple work arounds for anything that wasn't quite right.

I'm wondering what kind of problems you had with it?

thanks,
BX