Apply the core hook points

GST Manager needs four small, one-time extension points in your AcelleMail installation. They let the plugin slot into AcelleMail's invoicing flow — and one of them is a plain tax-calculation fix. Without them the plugin still activates, but its GST features stay silent: invoices don't get the GST PDF, the GSTIN field doesn't appear, export numbers aren't assigned, and — most importantly — tax isn't added to what your customers are charged.

You apply them once, over SSH, with a script the plugin ships. The script is idempotent, so running it again is always safe.

This step is required

GST Manager cannot work correctly until you run this. In particular, until the tax hook is in place AcelleMail bills the pre-tax subtotal, so your Default GST rate has no effect on the amount charged.

What it changes

The script adds four extension points to your AcelleMail code:

1. Export invoice numbering — when an export invoice is paid, the plugin can assign it an EXP-YYYY-N number in its own sequence.
2. The GST invoice PDF — invoice downloads (both admin and customer) render the plugin's GST-aware Tax Invoice / Export Invoice instead of the stock AcelleMail PDF while the plugin is active.
3. The GSTIN field on the contact form — the GSTIN capture-and-validation field appears next to the customer's Tax ID field on their contact page.
4. Tax on order totals — the configured tax is actually added to the order total. This is a correctness fix in AcelleMail's own total calculation; without it every tax rate you set is cosmetic and customers are undercharged.

Before you run it

• SSH access to the server that runs AcelleMail.
• The plugin files already on disk. The patcher ships inside the plugin, so upload the plugin first — Admin → Plugins → Upload Plugin extracts it to storage/app/plugins/relyweb/gstmanager/. You don't have to activate it yet; the files just need to be present.
• PHP on the command line. The patcher is pure PHP — there's no python or other dependency.
• A backup. The script edits a handful of AcelleMail core files in place and does not keep its own backup. Snapshot your AcelleMail files (or make sure your normal backup is current) before you run it.

Run the patcher

From your AcelleMail Laravel root — the directory that contains artisan and composer.json:

cd /path/to/acellemail
./storage/app/plugins/relyweb/gstmanager/scripts/apply-core-patches.sh .

The trailing . tells the script that your current directory is the AcelleMail root. If the shell wrapper isn't executable on your host, call the PHP file directly — it does exactly the same thing:

php storage/app/plugins/relyweb/gstmanager/scripts/apply-core-patches.php .

What you'll see

The script prints one line per file it touches:

• ✓ <file> — patched successfully.
• ↺ <file> (already patched) — the hook was already there, so nothing changed.
• <file> not found, skipping — that file isn't part of your build, which is usually fine.

It finishes with a reminder to clear AcelleMail's caches. Run those two commands so the changes take effect:

php artisan view:clear && php artisan route:clear

Verify it worked

Every patched section is tagged with a gstmgr:hook marker comment — that marker is also how the script knows not to patch the same file twice. Once you've activated and licensed the plugin, confirm the visible results:

• The GSTIN field appears on a customer's contact page, next to their Tax ID.
• Downloading an invoice produces the GST invoice PDF (Tax Invoice / Export Invoice), not the stock one.
• A new order's total includes tax at your configured rate.
• An invoice for a customer outside India receives an EXP-YYYY-N export number.

It's safe to re-run

The patcher is idempotent. Because every change is fenced with the gstmgr:hook marker, a second run reports already patched and changes nothing. If you're ever unsure whether it ran, just run it again — you can't apply it twice.

Re-run after every AcelleMail upgrade

Crucial — don't skip this

An AcelleMail core upgrade can overwrite the files these hooks live in, silently removing them. The plugin keeps loading, but the GST PDF, the GSTIN field, export numbering, and tax-on-totals quietly stop working. After any AcelleMail upgrade, run the same command again and clear the caches. Because it's idempotent, it only re-applies whatever the upgrade removed.

If it can't apply a patch

• Not an AcelleMail root: … — you're in the wrong directory. Run the command from the folder that contains artisan, passing . as shown above.
• ERROR: could not patch <file> — a core file isn't the shape the patcher expects (an unusual or much newer AcelleMail build). Nothing is changed. Contact [email protected] with your AcelleMail version.
• Permission denied / cannot write — run the command as a user that can edit the AcelleMail core files (usually the user that owns them), then run it again.
• GST features still don't appear after activating — you most likely skipped the cache clear, or a recent AcelleMail upgrade removed the hooks. Run the patcher again, then php artisan view:clear && php artisan route:clear.

Related pages

• Installation — where this step fits in the full setup
• Requirements — SSH access and the ionCube Loader
• Troubleshooting — when GST features don't appear
• How GST is applied — what the tax hook enables