How to create downloadable products

A downloadable product is used to grant access to a file or page on your site. For example, a site that sells e-books will need to grant access to PDFs for customers who purchased the product. There are two ways to accomplish this.

Using Link Obscurity

The easiest way is to attach a file on your site to the variant. This is a quick and easy way to provide downloadable file. However, anyone who gets hold of the URL, will be able to download your file.

1. From the Storefront administration Catalog > Products, create your new product as usual. See How to create a simple product for more information.
2. Edit the variant details. Assign the Download file to an existing file on your site or upload a new file. Click Save.

Using Secure Folder

Your site is capable of securing file access by folder. This means you can upload your file to special secure folders and only grant the user access by a special role. Even if the URL is discovered, the user cannot download the file without permission.

1. Under Admin > Security Roles page, click Add New Role. Give it a name (e.g. "War and Peace") and click Update.
2. From the site Admin > File Management page, start by creating a new folder to place your files. Give it a name (e.g. "War and Peace") and choose Folder Type = "Secure" and click Save. See this video for more information.
3. Right mouse click the View Properties on the newly created folder.
4. Under the Permissions tab, allow access to your newly created role (e.g. "War and Peace") and remove access for other non-administrative roles. Click Save.
5. Upload your desired file(s) to this newly created folder.
6. From the Storefront administration Configuration > Security settings, set the Allowed roles to include your newly created role. Click Save.
7. From the Storefront administration Catalog > Products, create your new product as usual. See How to create a simple product for more information.
8. Edit the variant details. Assign the Download file to your newly uploaded file. Under the Action tab, set the Place order action rule to "Basic" and click Add new. Select "Grant role" and choose the newly created role. Click Save.

Please note in both cases, after the customer has placed the order and the merchant has marked the order as "Completed" or "Paid", the customer will be able to view their downloads from the Manage Product Download module.