---
url: /payglocal-recurring-whmcs/requirements.md
description: >-
  What your server and PayGlocal account need before you install PayGlocal
  Recurring for WHMCS — PHP, WHMCS, ionCube, RSA keys, and the daily cron.
---

# Requirements

Before you install PayGlocal Recurring, spend a couple of minutes confirming your server and your
PayGlocal account are ready. Almost every requirement here is already met by a normal WHMCS
install — the main things unique to this gateway are your **PayGlocal merchant account** with
Standing Instructions enabled and the pair of **RSA keys** it uses to sign and encrypt requests.

## Server and software

| Requirement | Details |
| --- | --- |
| **PHP** | 8.2 or newer (runs on 8.2, 8.3, 8.4 and 8.5) |
| **WHMCS** | 8.13 or newer, or 9.x |
| **ionCube Loader** | 13.0.2 or newer (see below) |
| **PHP extensions** | `curl`, `openssl` |
| **SSL certificate** | Required for the payment callback endpoint |
| **PayGlocal merchant account** | A PayGlocal Merchant ID (MID) with **Standing Instructions (SI) enabled** |
| **RSA keys** | Merchant private + PayGlocal public `.pem` keys, each with a **Key ID (KID)** |
| **WHMCS daily cron** | Must be running (it performs the recurring charges) |
| **License** | An active PayGlocal Recurring license |

::: info Terms you'll meet
A **mandate** is the customer's standing authorisation to be charged again. **SI** (Standing
Instructions) is PayGlocal's recurring-payment mechanism. A **KID** is the Key ID that identifies
one of your RSA keys in PayGlocal's dashboard.
:::

## The ionCube Loader

PayGlocal Recurring ships as an ionCube-encoded build, so your server needs the **ionCube
Loader** — a small, standard PHP extension that runs protected commercial software. It is the
*same* loader WHMCS itself requires, so a server already running WHMCS almost always has it and
you rarely need to install anything new.

You need **ionCube Loader 13.0.2 or newer**. The exact version tracks your PHP version — WHMCS on
PHP 8.2 uses 13.0.2, PHP 8.3 uses 14.4.0, and newer 15.x loaders work too. One encoded build runs
on every supported PHP and loader version, so there is nothing to match up.

::: danger PayGlocal Recurring will not run without ionCube
If the ionCube Loader is missing or older than 13.0.2, the encoded gateway files won't run —
activation fails and no payments are processed. Enable **ionCube Loader 13.0.2 or newer** for your
PHP version (your host can do this in seconds) and try again.
:::

## What you need from PayGlocal

This gateway talks to PayGlocal on your behalf, so a few things must come from your PayGlocal
onboarding before it can work:

* A **PayGlocal merchant account** with a **Merchant ID (MID)** and **Standing Instructions
  enabled** — SI is what lets you charge a customer again after the first payment.
* A pair of **RSA keys** as `.pem` files: your **merchant private key** and **PayGlocal's public
  key**, each with its **Key ID (KID)**. You generate and download these in the PayGlocal **GCC
  dashboard**; the [PayGlocal key setup guide](/payglocal-recurring-whmcs/guides/payglocal-keys)
  walks through it.

Keep both `.pem` files in a directory **outside your web root**, readable only by the web-server
user — existing mandates were authorised against those keys, so treat them as secrets.

## Why a license

PayGlocal Recurring is licensed software, and the license is what enables **payment processing
itself** on this gateway. The key is entered in the gateway's **License Key** field under
**Setup → Payment Gateways → PayGlocal Recurring**. While the license is inactive, payments are
disabled until it's active again. Your server also needs outbound HTTPS to reach relyweb.co for the
check. See [Licensing](/payglocal-recurring-whmcs/licensing) for the details.

## How to check

* **PHP and ionCube:** in WHMCS, open **Utilities → System → PHP Info** (or run `php -v` on the
  server) to confirm PHP 8.2+ and that the ionCube Loader is loaded at 13.0.2 or newer.
* **Extensions:** the same PHP Info page lists `curl` and `openssl`.
* **SSL:** load your WHMCS admin and client area over `https://` with no certificate warning.
* **Cron:** confirm the WHMCS daily cron is scheduled (**Utilities → System → System Health
  Status** shows the last cron run).
* **PayGlocal:** confirm your MID has Standing Instructions enabled and that you can generate keys
  in the GCC dashboard.

## Related pages

* [Installation](/payglocal-recurring-whmcs/installation) — upload, activate, and configure
* [PayGlocal key setup](/payglocal-recurring-whmcs/guides/payglocal-keys) — generate your RSA keys
* [Configuration](/payglocal-recurring-whmcs/configuration) — fill in the gateway settings
* [Licensing](/payglocal-recurring-whmcs/licensing) — the two license types