Salon Booking OS by OsDot™

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Hosting, requirements, the license and support.

Hosting and installation

Standard hosting requirements

  • PHP 8.3 or 8.4. PHP 8.3 is the minimum: below it the application does not start.
  • PHP extensions: intl, mbstring, pdo_mysql, openssl, sodium, curl, json, ctype, fileinfo, gd and simplexml.
  • A database: MySQL 8.4 LTS, or MariaDB 10.11, 11.4 or 11.8 LTS. Other series show a warning and may be used at your own risk; a version below the application's minimum is refused.
  • An empty database and a database user with SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, CREATE, ALTER, INDEX, DROP and REFERENCES on it. The TRIGGER privilege is not needed: this version creates no database triggers.
  • HTTPS, at the root of a host name (for example https://booking.example.com/). Installing into a sub-folder of another site is not supported.
  • A web root you can point at the application's webroot/ folder, or, on Apache or LiteSpeed hosting with a fixed public_html, .htaccess files with URL rewriting allowed. On Nginx the web root must point at webroot/.
  • Scheduled tasks (cron) every minute, run with your site's PHP 8.3 or later: give its full path where the host's plain php is older.
  • memory_limit of at least 128 MB (256 MB recommended).

Where it runs

  • Shared hosting, cloud hosting and VPS that meet the requirements above. A VPS is not required. The browser installer checks your server before it installs anything and says what to change.
  • Tested on Hostinger shared hosting (LiteSpeed, PHP 8.3, MariaDB 11.8): installed from the package through the browser installer, with the contents of the package's Web/ folder in the website's fixed public_html; the scheduled tasks run with the site's PHP by its full path.
Do I need a VPS?

No. Shared hosting that meets the requirements works; the installer checks it for you.

Can I install it in a sub-folder (`example.com/booking/`)?

No. Use a host name of its own, such as a sub-domain (booking.example.com).

My host's `public_html` is fixed. Can I still install?

Yes, on Apache or LiteSpeed hosting with .htaccess files allowed: upload the contents of the package's Web/ folder into public_html (the installation chapter's Route 2).

Which PHP does the cron use?

The one you name in the task's command. Some hosts run an older PHP for plain php; use the full path of your site's PHP 8.3 or later, as the installer's success page shows.

Does it need the TRIGGER privilege?

No. This version creates no database triggers.

Is there an iPhone app?

The package includes the app's iOS source for you to build on a Mac with Xcode and your own Apple developer account; OsDot does not publish or build the iOS app for you.

Licenses and editions

Is the license perpetual?

Yes. Each edition is a one-time perpetual software usage license. Normal software updates come with every license; the end of any support period never ends it.

Which edition do I need?

Single Site: one production installation, for one salon. Multi Site: up to five production installations, one salon each — your own salons or your clients’. Reseller / White-Label: resell installations to your own customers under your own brand, one salon each.

Do I need a license key?

Single Site and Multi Site use one license key, which activates one or up to five installations. The Reseller / White-Label edition has no license key and no activation: the purchase is the entitlement.

The product

Is this salon booking system self-hosted?

Yes. You install Salon Booking OS by OsDot™ on your own hosting; OsDot does not host salons. Installation is offered separately as a service on the OsDot store.

Does the salon booking software take deposits?

Yes, on the services you choose: the deposit is collected online through PayPal, Stripe or Razorpay on the salon’s own accounts, and the balance is paid at the salon.

Do payments and text messages go through OsDot?

No. They go through your own provider accounts; OsDot takes no commission on your bookings and adds no markup to your messages.

Is the customer app included?

Every edition includes the Flutter source of the customer app for Android and iOS. The Android app is build-tested; iOS source is included for you to build.

Can I try it first?

Yes. The public demo runs a fictional salon with sample data, with four demo logins and an Android demo app.

Support

What does Priority Support include?

Personal technical support from OsDot with priority handling of standard installation, configuration and update issues, for $97 a year. It is optional: Self-Service (the documentation and the published fixes) is included.

What is not included in support?

Custom development, server administration, hosting administration, third-party services and their fees.

Another question?

OsDot Solutions answers questions about Salon Booking OS by OsDot™ before you buy.

Contact OsDot Solutions Try the public demo