Connecting a NetCat store to ILFF

Download the module ilff-netcat.zip

The «ILFF» module links your online store on NetCat (the "Online store" module, netshop) and the ILFF service:

• an ILFF delivery method appears in the checkout with its options: courier to the door, pickup points and parcel lockers, Russian Post, with the price and delivery time;
• an order with the ILFF delivery method goes to ILFF on its own when it gets the status you chose;
• the tracking number and order status are returned to the store;
• stock, weight and dimensions of products are passed from ILFF to the store;
• cancelling an order in the store cancels the request in ILFF.

The store always starts the exchange: the module itself calls the ILFF service with the API key, and you do not need to open the store to us.

You need:

• NetCat 7 with the "Online store" module (tested on NetCat 7.2 E-commerce);
• PHP 8.1 or newer with the curl extension;
• the main store currency is the Russian rouble;
• site administrator rights, access to the site files and to the ILFF client account.

The connection takes 15–20 minutes.

The module, the NetCat control panel and the ILFF client account are in Russian, so their labels are given below as they appear on the screen, with a translation in brackets.

Step 1. Connection in the ILFF client account

Client account → the Интеграции (Integrations) tab → expand the Интернет-магазин (Online store) block.

1. Платформа (Platform): choose NetCat.
2. Адрес магазина (Store address): the site address, for example shop.ru.
3. The Заказ с несвязанным товаром ждёт привязки (An order with an unlinked product waits for linking) checkbox: when it is on, an order with a product that is not yet linked to your product in ILFF is not accepted until you link it (step 5). We recommend leaving the checkbox on.
4. Press Подключить (Connect). The account does not call the store: the module checks the link.

The Ключ API (API key) is shown at the top of the Интеграции tab. If it is missing, press Сгенерировать (Generate). You will need the key at step 3. Do not send it to anyone: the ILFF service recognises your store by it.

Step 2. Installing the module

1. Download the archive ilff-netcat.zip from the module page on the ILFF site or get it from your manager.
2. Unpack the archive into the site root: the module folder must end up in netcat/modules/ilff.
3. Find the secret key of the system: Настройки системы → Секретный ключ (System settings → Secret key).
4. Open https://your-site/netcat/modules/ilff/install.php?secret_key=<secret key> in the browser.

The installer adds the ILFF module, the «ILFF» delivery calculation service, the module tables and the exchange task in the NetCat scheduler (every 5 minutes). Running it again does not duplicate anything.

Step 3. The delivery method and module settings

Open Интернет-магазин → Доставка (Online store → Delivery) and create a delivery method with the automatic calculation ILFF (for example, «Доставка ILFF»). In the service settings:

1. Ключ API ILFF (ILFF API key): the key from step 1.
2. Адрес сервиса ILFF (ILFF service address): already filled in, no need to change it.
3. Вариант настроек калькулятора (Calculator settings profile): the profile code from the ILFF client account, if the site has its own delivery settings. Empty means the default settings.
4. Курьер до двери (Courier to the door), Пункты выдачи и постаматы (Pickup points and parcel lockers), Почта России по адресу (Russian Post to the address): which options to show to the shopper.
5. Статусы, в которых заказ передаётся в ILFF (Statuses in which the order is sent to ILFF): status ids separated by commas, 1 («принят», accepted) by default. A new order in the status «новый» (new) does not go to ILFF: move it to «принят» once you have checked it.
6. Статусы, в которых заказ отменяется в ILFF (Statuses in which the order is cancelled in ILFF): 2 («отменён», cancelled) by default.
7. Order statuses by ILFF statuses: «передан в службу доставки» (handed over to the carrier, «отправлен» shipped by default), «получен покупателем» (received by the shopper, «получен» received by default), «отменён в ILFF» (cancelled in ILFF), «возврат» (return).
8. Способы оплаты при получении (Cash on delivery payment methods): method ids separated by commas. Empty means the methods that have payment on receipt switched on in NetCat. Such orders go to ILFF with cash on delivery, the others are treated as prepaid.
9. Загружать остатки из ILFF (Load stock from ILFF), вес и габариты товаров (product weight and dimensions), вес и места отправления заказа (order weight and packages): what to receive from ILFF.

If there are several ILFF delivery methods, the exchange settings are taken from the first one that is switched on.

Step 4. What the shopper sees

At the delivery step the options are shown under the ILFF method with the price and delivery time: couriers of the carriers, pickup points and parcel lockers (the point is chosen with the standard NetCat point selector), Russian Post. The price is calculated by the shopper's city. An option that does not deliver to the shopper's address is not shown.

Place a test order with the ILFF method, move it to the sending status and make sure the order has arrived in ILFF.

Step 5. Linking products

Once a day the module sends the list of products and variants to ILFF. In the ILFF client account the Товары магазина (Store products) button shows them and their link to your products in ILFF. The link is matched by SKU, the Артикул (Article) field of the product or variant.

If an order is waiting for linking, a banner with the number of such orders appears at the top of the Интеграции tab. After linking, the module resends the order itself.

The order in the store

The module writes the ILFF request number, the tracking number with a tracking link and exchange errors to the Комментарий оператора (Operator comment) of the order. It is visible in the order in the control panel and is not visible to the shopper. When an ILFF status changes the order status, NetCat recalculates stock according to its own settings.

Order cancellation

Moving an order to a cancellation status cancels the request in ILFF until it has been handed over to the carrier; a picked order goes back to storage. If the request is already with a carrier that accepts cancellation (Dalli, 5Post), the cancellation is passed to it. Otherwise the reply of ILFF appears in the operator comment: contact your manager.

The exchange task

The installer itself adds the task to the NetCat scheduler (Инструменты → Задачи по расписанию, Tools → Scheduled tasks). For it to run on time, the NetCat scheduler must be started by the server cron. The task can also be run at the address https://your-site/netcat/modules/ilff/cron.php?secret_key=<secret key>; do not publish the address.

The task resends orders that did not go at once, fetches tracking numbers and statuses, updates stock and weight, and once a day sends the product list and reconciles all stock.

If something does not work

For other questions contact your ILFF manager.