Using PayPal Website Payments Pro
How to configure the PayPal authentication system to use PayPal Website Payments Pro to process user payments for network access.
Log into your PayPal Account.
Apply for Website Payments Pro.
Go to Custom Payment Page Styles (optional).
Go to API Access.
Request API Credentials (or view existing Credentials).
Request an API Signature.
Wait for PayPal to email you with access to your API credentials.
Access your PayPal API Credentials.
Copy your API Username, Password, and Signature.
Navigate to the PayPal authentication system in SputnikNet.
Add a new PayPal authentication system or select an existing one.
Name your PayPal Authentication System and apply basic settings.
- Select a module: select "PayPal Module" (authentication system).
- Name or description: provide a name for the authentication system that will be displayed in SputnikNet.
- Visible name: provide a descriptive name that users will understand. This name will be displayed in the captive portal window if users have to select from more than one authentication systems.
- Allow duplicate logins?: check this box if a subscriber can log in multiple simultaneous sessions (usually disallowed).
- Display warning about popup?: warns users not to close the session monitor window (which they can use to log out, rather than have the system timeout after they leave). Because PayPal authentication only supports continuous account time limits, it isn't necessary to check this box.
Click "Add" or "Save Changes" when done.
Select Website Payments Pro.
Apply PayPal Merchant Settings.
Paste or carefully type your API Username, API Password and Signature into the corresponding fields in your PayPal authentication method in Sputnik Control Center or SputnikNet. Click "Update Configuration".
Note that if you do not select the Direct Payments checkbox (for example, if you are a non-U.S.-based service provider), then the Express Checkout path will be used to process customer purchases and the user will either need a PayPal account or to pay by credit card while signing up for an account.
Click "Update Configuration" to apply your settings.
Add a new network access product.
Name your product, set price and expiration.
- New Name: enter the name of the product that your customers will see. It's a good idea to mention the allowed time in the name.
- Price Amount: enter amount you want to charge for the product.
- PayPal Currency Code: select the desired currency from the pop-up list (see next step).
- Hard Expiration Interval: set the amount of time that the account will be valid for, following creation, in the format hh:mm:ss.
NOTE: The PayPal and WorldPay authentication systems only support continuous usage plans that are valid only during the hard expiration interval. Users often neglect to use the session monitor window to terminate their sessions manually, which means that the session length tracked by SputnikNet can be greater than the amount of time the user believes they spent online. It is therefore simpler to offer continuous hourly/daily/weekly plans that have unambiguous expirations (from the user's perspective). This approach causes less of a support burden for the service provider and avoids disputes.
Add and apply additional network access products.
Apply the authentication system to one or more captive portals.
Apply the captive portals to one or more Sputnik-powered devices.
Click on "Routers" from the CONFIG menu. Then click on the name of any Sputnik-powered device ("router"). From the pop-up "Portal" menu, select the captive portal that uses the authentication system you set up previously. Click "Save Settings" to do just that.
To see what users experience when logging in, see the online documentation chapter titled "User Experience: Paying for Access using the PayPal Authentication System".