# Referenceguide

# File Structure

Your Shopware project is expected to use ~/public_html as the public web root. This must point to Shopware’s /public directory, either directly or via symlink. The same applies to the main Shopware directory — you may symlink it if you are using a release-based deployment.

Path	Purpose
`~/public_html`	Web document root — must point to the `public/` folder of Shopware.
`~/shopware/`	Base directory of the Shopware installation. Can also be a symlink.
`~/shopware/public/`	Public assets and front controller (`index.php`).
`~/shopware/vendor/`	Composer dependencies.
`~/shopware/custom/`	Custom plugins and themes.
`~/shopware/config/`	Configuration files (`.env`, `packages/`, `services.yaml`, etc.).
`~/nginx/`	Optional: Custom Nginx configuration.

ℹ️ Note: Symbolic links are fully supported — e.g., public_html → current/public, shopware → releases/20250715. Just ensure that the final paths resolve correctly to the intended directories inside the Shopware project.

# Permissions

Correct file and directory permissions are required to allow Shopware to read/write necessary files while maintaining security:

find ~/shopware -type f -exec chmod 644 {} \;
find ~/shopware -type d -exec chmod 755 {} \;
chown -R $USER:$USER ~/shopware

Make sure your CLI user has ownership of the entire Shopware installation to avoid permission issues during updates or plugin installation.

# Composer

Composer is required to manage Shopware packages and dependencies. It should be used from the base directory of the Shopware installation:

cd ~/shopware
composer install

Use this for installing plugins, platform updates, or rebuilding autoloaders.

# Cache Management

Shopware includes multiple caching layers, which should be cleared when installing plugins, making configuration changes, or performing updates.

Clear cache via CLI:

cd ~/shopware
bin/console cache:clear

If Redis and Varnish are in use (recommended), you may also manually clear these services:

tscli redis clear
tscli varnish clear

# Cronjobs and Scheduled Tasks

Shopware handles background jobs and scheduled tasks internally. To ensure these run correctly, make sure the following cron is set up in your user crontab:

*/5 * * * * cd ~/shopware && bin/console scheduled-task:run >> ~/logs/scheduled-task.log 2>&1

# Updates

Before updating Shopware, always back up your code and database. Then:

cd ~/shopware
composer update
bin/console system:update:finish

Important

To safely test new modules or updates, use a separate staging server. Do not run staging environments locally on the same production host.

Why Separate Servers?

Prevents production disruption.
Isolates tests and experiments.
Maintains better performance and security.

We offer affordable and optimized staging environments. Contact support to request a staging clone of your production environment.

# Logs

Shopware logs are stored in:

~/shopware/var/log

You can monitor errors, system events, and plugin issues from these files.

For any issues related to server performance or access-level troubleshooting, please contact our support team. For application-specific questions or plugin support, refer to the Shopware documentation or community forums.