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What I still don't understand about WHMCS
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What I still don't understand about WHMCS

mpkossenmpkossen Member
edited November 2012 in General

I've been trying to use WHMCS for a while to bill my current customers. These are customers that have a customized product with me and have been with me from the start (October 2008). I've always billed them manually, but I would prefer to automate things.

One things that's always prevented me from using WHMCS for this is their invoice number. In The Netherlands it is required to have consecutive invoice numbering. No exceptions. If you sent an invoice that you want to cancel, you need to create a credit invoice/negative invoice to make up the balance. That also needs to be in the same consecutive numbering as the normal invoices.

In WHMCS there is consecutive paid invoice numbering, but no consecutive invoice numbering. This would require me to use proforma invoices and send the final invoice after payment. For my existing customers this is too much of a hassle. They work with accountants and pass everything on. For them having 2 invoices makes it all the more confusing.

I've had several discussions about this on the WHMCS forums. I've always been pointed back to consecutive paid invoice number or the EU-thingy add-on. They just don't cut it. I need consecutive invoice numbering from the start.

My questions are:
1. Am I missing something here? Is what I want already possible?
2. What's your view on this? Do any of you have the same problem and how do you go about it?
3. If it turns out to be a "problem" with WHMCS, how on earth can I make them fix it?

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Comments

  • You mean your WHMCS somehow generated non-consecutive invoice numbers? How? Can you show us an example of several numbers that whmcs generated?

  • @mpkossen said: 3. If it turns out to be a "problem" with WHMCS, how on earth can I make them fix it?

    $$$

  • @rds100 said: You mean your WHMCS somehow generated non-consecutive invoice numbers? How? Can you show us an example of several numbers that whmcs generated?

    He wants consecutive invoices, not just for paid ones.

  • rds100rds100 Member
    edited November 2012

    @concerto49 said: He wants consecutive invoices, not just for paid ones.

    Yes, i got that part. WHMCS starts from some number and then the next number is just larger with 1 (unless you tell it to use a different step). Or am I missing something? That's why i asked for an example of the non-consecutive numbers he sees.


    Invoice # Incrementation Enter the difference you want between invoice numbers generated by the system (Default: 1)
    Invoice Starting # Enter to set the next invoice number, must be greater than last #.... (Blank for no change)

    What am i missing?

  • mpkossenmpkossen Member
    edited November 2012

    @rds100 said: You mean your WHMCS somehow generated non-consecutive invoice numbers? How? Can you show us an example of several numbers that whmcs generated?

    I think it relies in MySQL's auto_increment, so yes, gaps can always happen. Besides, if you ever delete an invoice (or if somebody cancels with an outstanding invoice) and a new one is generated, it still increments and leaves an unused number.

  • Well, if invoice was already sent and someone received it and already printed it, how can you really cancel/delete that invoice when someone already has a copy of it? If you create a new different invoice with the same number the potential for creating a mess is even bigger i think?

  • This is the reason we have asked for a statement system to be put into WHMCS. The client will only get an invoice when payment has been made.

  • For example at the minute if a client want's to upgrade a product, it will generate them an invoice before payment is made. The problem starts when the client decides they don't want the upgrade and asks for the invoice to be cancelled (We can't deleted invoices under any circumstances).

    Doing it the statement way will solve 99% of the problems. The client will get a statement that they can pay. Once they pay, an invoice is generated and sent to them.

    The only time you will need to cancel an invoice is when you lose a charge back case or claim.

  • @soluslabs please excuse my non-native English, is "statement" the same as "proforma invoice" ?

  • Pretty much yes. It just doesn't work right in WHMCS. It just causes confusion like someone stated above. What we want is a statement that is in no way related to an Invoice (a bit like OVH does it).

  • @soluslabs what if you just edit the WHMCS templates / language files and replace the words "proforma invoice" with "statement" - doesn't this solve the problem? Or the format must be different. Sorry, i have no services with OVH so have no idea what their statement looks like.

  • @soluslabs

    So basically you want an order page like OVH.
    Which will then send the invoice to your email when you pay?

  • @BronzeByte No, they generate invoices before you pay which delete after 72h if you don't or so

    What I presume @soluslabs is saying is to generate a paid invoice AFTER payment has been made so if no payment is made straight after ordering there will be no invoice generated

  • @StormVZ

    That's what I meant :)

  • @StormVZ said: No, they generate invoices before you pay which delete after 72h if you don't or so

    And that is exactly something that shouldn't happen. If somebody doesn't pay or cancels, I want to create a credit invoice and not see it deleted.

    @rds100 said: Well, if invoice was already sent and someone received it and already printed it, how can you really cancel/delete that invoice when someone already has a copy of it? If you create a new different invoice with the same number the potential for creating a mess is even bigger i think?

    If it was sent, if may never be deleted, but I should create a credit invoice. If somebody cancels, see the above.

  • @mpkossen so what you need is some addon for automatically creating credit invoices for cancelled invoices?

  • @rds100 said: @mpkossen so what you need is some addon for automatically creating credit invoices for cancelled invoices?

    No, what I need is that WHMCS lets me do it myself and doesn't ever delete any invoice (nor ever skips an invoice number no matter what MySQL's auto_increment says, if it does that).

  • Don't know, i have never seen whmcs delete an invoice for me or skip a number. Unless i hit the "delete" button of course, but it should be possible to hide that button if it bothers you.

  • AlexBarakovAlexBarakov Patron Provider, Veteran

    More likely:
    Create 2 seperate invoices. The first one, proform invoice, which stays no matter paid or not paid, the second one, with seq numbering would be for paid invoices only and be used for accounting.

  • @rds100 said: Don't know, i have never seen whmcs delete an invoice for me or skip a number. Unless i hit the "delete" button of course, but it should be possible to hide that button if it bothers you.

    When somebody cancels a product and has an outstanding invoice it gets deleted. Also, before you even send an invoice you can make one and delete it. It'll also get the numbers messed up.

  • Have you contacted the WHMCS support team to get some custom modifications done?

    I've organized things with Matt in the past and the rates are very affordable.

  • mpkossenmpkossen Member
    edited November 2012

    @SonicVPS said: Have you contacted the WHMCS support team to get some custom modifications done?

    I've organized things with Matt in the past and the rates are very affordable.

    I haven't offered any money, but I've contacted them several times in the past and they always kept refering me to the EU add-on. They have some kind of Dewlance-oblivious act towards this. It's annoying and they just don't get the point :(

  • @mpkossen said: When somebody cancels a product and has an outstanding invoice it gets deleted. Also, before you even send an invoice you can make one and delete it. It'll also get the numbers messed up.

    My experience is different - when somebody cancels the product the invoice is still there, it just says "canceled".
    And the second problem - you can create an invoice and delete it - yes you can. "Don't do it then".

  • jarjar Patron Provider, Top Host, Veteran

    @mpkossen said: In The Netherlands it is required to have consecutive invoice numbering

    By law? That would be quite annoying.

  • AlexBarakovAlexBarakov Patron Provider, Veteran

    @jarland said: By law? That would be quite annoying.

    Pretty sure this law applys for the whole EU.

  • There's a number of accountancy faux pas within WHMCS.

  • @Alex_LiquidHost said: Pretty sure this law applys for the whole EU.

    Its an EU wide law; however only applies to VAT registered businesses

  • @shardHost though as they are a UK company they probably look down on EU regulations :D

  • marcmmarcm Member
    edited November 2012

    @mpkossen - Have you tried HostBill?

    @soluslabs - IIRC HostBill integration with SolusVM is far superior than the integration with WHMCS, right?

  • @rds100 said: @soluslabs what if you just edit the WHMCS templates / language files and replace the words "proforma invoice" with "statement" - doesn't this solve the problem? Or the format must be different. Sorry, i have no services with OVH so have no idea what their statement looks like.

    I'm going to give it a go on our dev WHMCS to see what happens. Don't really want to try it on the main system.

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