Other characteristics of the software product

Besides the functions listed in chapters 03–07, the product has the operational qualities set out below. They describe how the platform behaves, not what screens it has; implementation details that do not concern the user are not the subject of this document.

8.1. Reliability

• The product is built on a modular client–server architecture, on widespread web technologies with long-term support, and is oriented towards continuous operation.
• All the data that determine money and production are validated and recalculated on the server when the order is registered — the price, the VAT, the discounts, the weight, the deadline, the artwork requirements — regardless of what was displayed in the browser; input data that do not match the expected format are rejected.
• Automatic rules do not override people's decisions: a status set manually is not reverted by a rule; an order keeps the VAT rule and the deadline promised at the moment it was placed; a reference book item that has been switched off does not break the calculation of the products that use it.
• The operations that could leave the store in a non-functional state are protected: the last administrator cannot be deactivated, the system pages cannot be deleted, deletions require confirmation, and real orders are cancelled (remaining in the history) instead of being deleted.
• Notifications and background tasks are processed asynchronously, with an automatic retry in case of failure, so that a delay in an external service (e-mail, messaging) does not block the registration of the order.
• The files (artwork, images, documents) are kept in a storage service separate from the application; the database has backups at the infrastructure level; the platform is monitored by the developer.
• Quality is ensured through automated tests of the price calculation engine, of the artwork rules and of the server interface, through manual checking of the interface for every new function and through compatibility testing with the supported browsers; maintenance mode makes it possible to carry out major work without showing visitors a broken site.

8.2. Extensibility

• The modular architecture allows new functions and integrations to be added (a payment processor, a courier, a messaging channel) without modifying the rest of the product.
• Most extensions require no code: new operations and materials in the reference books, products with any number of physical parts and operations, new statuses and rules, new roles, widget types combined freely into pages, content in any of the active languages.
• The public storefront and the admin panel communicate with the server through the same programming interface, which other applications of the print shop can also rely on.

8.3. Security

• All traffic between the browser and the platform is encrypted (HTTPS).
• Passwords are stored exclusively as hashes; sessions are held in cookies inaccessible to the scripts in the page, with a limited duration (2 hours or 30 days, at the user's choice); sign-in links are short-lived and single-use; repeated sign-in attempts are rate-limited.
• Role-based access control is verified by the server on every request, not merely hidden in the interface; the validity of the account is re-checked on every request, so deactivation takes effect immediately.
• Input data are strictly validated on the server and unknown fields are rejected; prices and commercial conditions cannot be influenced from the browser.
• Files are uploaded directly to the storage service, through signed addresses of limited duration issued by the platform, with the type and the content checked in the case of artwork; the internal files of an order are not visible to the customer.
• The credentials of external services are accessible only to administrators and are displayed masked; published content is separated from drafts, and the admin panel is separated from the public storefront.
• The personal data of customers are processed on behalf of the print shop, with the consents collected at registration and with the policies published on the site.

8.4. Ergonomics

• The interface is available in Romanian, Russian and English; each user of the admin panel chooses their own language, and the site serves the visitor's language.
• The admin panel is organized according to the working areas of the print shop, with a permanently visible menu, a global search with a keyboard shortcut, real-time notifications, a light and a dark theme and recent pages.
• The lists have combinable filters, status tabs with counters, sorting, pagination and the choice of columns; frequent actions (changing the status, activation) are performed directly from the table; destructive actions require confirmation, and input errors are marked on the field itself, with an explicit message.
• Configurations can be checked before publication: a preview of the calculator exactly as the customer sees it, a live preview of the pages at several screen widths, the test mode of the integrations.
• The production queue is a shop-floor screen, reduced to what the operator needs; the public storefront adapts to any device and respects the visitor's theme preferences.
• The documentation is integrated into the product: the User guide follows the menu of the admin panel, with screenshots for every screen.

8.5. Maintainability

• The product is delivered as a service: updates, fixes and improvements are installed centrally by the developer, without any action on the part of the print shop and without interrupting sales.
• Operation requires no special knowledge beyond that described under user qualification; all routine customizations are made from the admin panel.
• The history of changes (F27) allows the situations reported by users to be diagnosed quickly; support is provided by the developer through the registration and the processing of the requests of the print shops using the product.
• The documentation is updated together with the product; every chapter shows the date of its last update.
• The print shop's data (customers, orders, products) can be exported on request, including when the use of the product ends.

8.6. Compatibility

• It works in current browsers, on desktop and on mobile, without installation and without extensions (technical requirements).
• It is published on the print shop's own domain, with an HTTPS certificate.
• It exchanges data in standard formats: CSV and Excel for lists, PDF for documents, sitemap.xml and robots.txt for search engines, the providers' interfaces for payments, courier delivery, e-mail and messaging.