DEV Community: Mateo Rivera

How to Customize the Service Catalog in BILLmanager

Mateo Rivera — Sat, 27 Sep 2025 23:32:49 +0000

Many providers offer similar services at comparable prices — for instance, nearly identical VPS configurations that cost about the same. Yet, some companies make it easy for customers to find the right plan and complete their order, while others leave users confused during the selection process, causing them to leave without buying anything.

The issue usually isn't the services themselves, but how they're presented. Even small differences in how a service catalog is organized can significantly impact customer behavior.
BILLmanager lets you do more than just list your services; it allows you to structure them so that customers can:

Understand the differences between plans at a glance,
See all available options exactly when they need them,
Quickly assemble the ideal package of services.

We’ve previously covered how the BILLmanager service catalog works and why a well-thought-out "storefront" reduces the load on your support team, helps customers choose and order services faster, and enables providers to test new monetization ideas more quickly.

In this article, we’ll break down how to configure the service catalog display, set up plan grouping and filtering, and make your hosting services clear and visible to users.

Service Catalog Display

In BILLmanager, you can choose the best way to present your services — either as a classic list or in a modern card-based format.

How to configure:
This setting can be adjusted individually for each product type. Simply select the desired option in the "Tariff plan order form" section.

Plan and Product Type Icons

Visual design helps customers navigate your catalog. In BILLmanager, you can upload custom icons for service plans as well as for entire product types.

How to configure:

Go to edit a tariff plan or product type.
In the "Service order configuration" section, upload an image in the optimal resolution.
Configure the display parameters.

Grouping Tariffs

When you have a large number of service plans, grouping them by specific characteristics (filter groups) can be extremely helpful. For instance, this allows you to organize plans based on technical parameters. This gives potential customers the ability to filter plans by the criteria that matter most to them and quickly select the right service. A single plan can belong to multiple groups simultaneously.

Additionally, filter values can be used as tags, which can be color-coded for emphasis.

How to configure:

Go to the "Filter Groups" section.
Create a new group and configure its parameters.
For the created group, select "Values" → "Add" and define the necessary parameters.
Select a value, click the "Tariff", and assign the desired plans using the "Enable" and "Disable" buttons.

Filtering Tariffs
In BILLmanager, you can set up an intuitive system for logically categorizing your service plans, helping customers quickly find the right services based on key parameters. This feature is especially useful when a single product type contains many variants with different specifications. You can use it to highlight plans with specific technical characteristics, like 2 CPUs, or filter them by name.

Once configured, the left-hand menu in the "Products/Services" section will be structured as follows:
— Product Type (Level 1)
— — Product Subtype (Level 2)

When a user navigates to a Product Subtype, they will see all the plans assigned to that subtype.

How to configure:

To set up a subtype, go to Products → Product Types → select a type → the Subtypes button. Click the “New” button to add a subtype.
Activate the required tariff for this subtype. Go to Products → Product types → select a type → “Subtypes” button → select a subtype → “Tariffs” button → select a tariff → “On” button.

Adding Text Descriptions

In BILLmanager, you can create detailed plan descriptions to help customers make informed decisions. These can include both technical specifications and marketing information.

How to configure:

Enter your text description when creating or editing a tariff plan.
By default, BILLmanager will collapse long descriptions, showing only the first three lines of text.
To make descriptions always display in full, go to Product Types → Tariff plan order form settings and enable the "Disclose description in the order" option. This is useful if you want customers to see all plan details immediately before purchase.

Displaying Parameters

In BILLmanager, you have flexible control over how customers see the available add-ons for each service plan. This helps prevent interface clutter and focuses attention on the most important options.
By default, a plan's card displays all available add-ons: six are shown directly on the card, while the rest appear after clicking the "Show more" link. You can adjust the number of add-ons displayed.

How to configure:

Go to Tariff Plans → Options.
Select the desired add-ons and click "Edit".
In the "Service order configuration" section, disable the "Hide on the tariff card" option.

Number of Displayed Service Plans

In BILLmanager, you can choose how many service plan options a customer sees at once when browsing the catalog. This is especially useful for providers with a large catalogue of services.

By default, three plan cards are displayed, but you can configure this number to fit your needs.

How to configure:

Locate the configuration file. By default, it is located at /usr/local/mgr5/etc/billmgr.conf.
In the configuration file, find the PricelistPerItemtype parameter.
Set this parameter to your desired value.

Plan Prioritization

To promote specific products and services, BILLmanager allows you to manually control the display order of service plans and add-ons using a priority-based sorting feature.

Plans with a higher priority are automatically moved to the top of the list. This function is available for both main service plans and add-ons.

How to configure:

Open the editing form for the service plan.
In the "Service order configuration" section, in the "Sorting" field enter the desired numeric value. The lower the number, the higher the tariff plan will appear in the list.

A well-configured service catalog is more than just a list of plans—it's a powerful tool for increasing sales and reducing the load on your support team. With BILLmanager, you can:

Flexibly customize display using cards and filters,
Guide customer attention effectively,
Offer relevant services and useful add-ons.

Want to see how it works in practice? 👉 Try for Free

How to Customize the Service Catalog in BILLmanager

Mateo Rivera — Sat, 27 Sep 2025 20:44:39 +0000

The issue usually isn't the services themselves, but how they're presented. Even small differences in how a service catalog is organized can significantly impact customer behavior.

BILLmanager lets you do more than just list your services; it allows you to structure them so that customers can:

Understand the differences between plans at a glance,
See all available options exactly when they need them,
Quickly assemble the ideal package of services.

In this article, we’ll break down how to configure the service catalog display, set up plan grouping and filtering, and make your hosting services clear and visible to users.

Service Catalog Display

In BILLmanager, you can choose the best way to present your services — either as a classic list or in a modern card-based format.

How to configure:
This setting can be adjusted individually for each product type. Simply select the desired option in the "Tariff plan order form" section.

Plan and Product Type Icons

Visual design helps customers navigate your catalog. In BILLmanager, you can upload custom icons for service plans as well as for entire product types.

How to configure:

Go to edit a tariff plan or product type.
In the "Service order configuration" section, upload an image in the optimal resolution.
Configure the display parameters.

Grouping Tariffs

Additionally, filter values can be used as tags, which can be color-coded for emphasis.

How to configure:

Go to the "Filter Groups" section.
Create a new group and configure its parameters.
For the created group, select "Values" → "Add" and define the necessary parameters.
Select a value, click the "Tariff", and assign the desired plans using the "Enable" and "Disable" buttons.

Filtering Tariffs

In BILLmanager, you can set up an intuitive system for logically categorizing your service plans, helping customers quickly find the right services based on key parameters. This feature is especially useful when a single product type contains many variants with different specifications. You can use it to highlight plans with specific technical characteristics, like 2 CPUs, or filter them by name.

Once configured, the left-hand menu in the "Products/Services" section will be structured as follows:
— Product Type (Level 1)
— — Product Subtype (Level 2)

When a user navigates to a Product Subtype, they will see all the plans assigned to that subtype.

How to configure:

To set up a subtype, go to Products → Product Types → select a type → the Subtypes button. Click the “New” button to add a subtype.
Activate the required tariff for this subtype. Go to Products → Product types → select a type → “Subtypes” button → select a subtype → “Tariffs” button → select a tariff → “On” button.

Adding Text Descriptions

In BILLmanager, you can create detailed plan descriptions to help customers make informed decisions. These can include both technical specifications and marketing information.

How to configure:

Enter your text description when creating or editing a tariff plan.
By default, BILLmanager will collapse long descriptions, showing only the first three lines of text.
To make descriptions always display in full, go to Product Types → Tariff plan order form settings and enable the "Disclose description in the order" option. This is useful if you want customers to see all plan details immediately before purchase.

Displaying Parameters

In BILLmanager, you have flexible control over how customers see the available add-ons for each service plan. This helps prevent interface clutter and focuses attention on the most important options.

By default, a plan's card displays all available add-ons: six are shown directly on the card, while the rest appear after clicking the "Show more" link. You can adjust the number of add-ons displayed.

How to configure:

Go to Tariff Plans → Options.
Select the desired add-ons and click "Edit".
In the "Service order configuration" section, disable the "Hide on the tariff card" option.

Number of Displayed Tariffs

In BILLmanager, you can choose how many service plan options a customer sees at once when browsing the catalog. This is especially useful for providers with a large portfolio of plans.
By default, three plan cards are displayed, but you can configure this number to fit your needs.

How to configure:

Locate the configuration file. By default, it is located at /usr/local/mgr5/etc/billmgr.conf.
In the configuration file, find the PricelistPerItemtype parameter.
Set this parameter to your desired value.

Tariff Prioritization

To promote specific products and services, BILLmanager allows you to manually control the display order of service plans and add-ons using a priority-based sorting feature.
Plans with a higher priority are automatically moved to the top of the list. This function is available for both main service plans and add-ons.

How to configure:

Open the editing form for the service plan.
In the "Service order configuration" section, in the "Sort" field enter the desired numeric value. The lower the number, the higher the tariff plan will appear in the list.

A well-configured service catalog is more than just a list of plans—it's a powerful tool for increasing sales and reducing the load on your support team. With BILLmanager, you can:

Flexibly customize display using cards and filters,
Guide customer attention effectively,
Offer relevant services and useful add-ons.

Want to see how it works in practice?
👉 Try for Free

How the Service Catalog Works in BILLmanager

Mateo Rivera — Sat, 27 Sep 2025 20:07:08 +0000

A service provider's product catalog is more than just a list of available services—it's a core monetization engine. Its structure determines whether a customer gets stuck at the selection stage, how often your support team gets questions about pricing plans, and how quickly you can test new hypotheses regarding your prices and bundled offers.

A well-designed catalog reduces the load on your support team, increases conversion rates, and allows for faster hypothesis testing.

In this article, I'll break down how the BILLmanager service catalog is built.

Unsplash, Janis Ringli

The Structure of the BILLmanager Service Catalog

The service catalog in BILLmanager is built as a flexible hierarchy designed to help customers easily find the solutions they need. It consists of several key components:

Product Types — the main service categories.
Product Subtypes — more detailed classifications within those categories.
Tariff Plans — pre-configured packages with fixed parameters and prices.
Tariff Bundles — collections of plans that can be offered as bundled solutions.
Add-ons — additional services or goods that can be attached to a main order.

Product Types

Product Types in BILLmanager are the foundational structure for classifying your services. They determine how tariff plans are grouped in the catalog and displayed to customers. Each tariff plan can belong to only one product type.

BILLmanager comes pre-configured with standard categories like Web Hosting, Virtual Private Servers (VPS), Dedicated Servers, Domains, SSL Certificates, and Third-Party Licenses. You can also create custom product types to match your specific service offerings, such as Cybersecurity or Cloud Storage.

Using product types helps customers find what they need faster, without having to sift through a massive, unsorted list of services. For the provider, it eliminates backend chaos—all services are automatically organized onto their own dedicated "shelves."

Product Subtypes

For more precise service classification, BILLmanager offers Product Subtypes. The rules for tariff plans work the same way here—each plan can belong to only one subtype.

Unlike product types, there are no pre-configured options for subtypes; the provider creates them independently based on their service structure. For example:

For the Virtual Private Servers (VPS) product type, you could create subtypes like Basic, Premium, and For Development.
For the Web Hosting type—Shared, WordPress-Optimized.

Using subtypes makes the catalog more user-friendly: customers immediately see specialized categories and spend less time choosing, while the provider gains a clear and structured system for managing their tariff plans.

Tariff Plans

A Tariff Plan in BILLmanager is a ready-made commercial offer with a fixed set of resources and a set price. It is the final unit a customer can select when ordering a service.

The parameters that make up a plan vary by service type. For instance, the set of characteristics for a VPS will differ from those for web hosting. In some cases, there is built-in flexibility—the customer can customize certain configuration parameters before placing their order.

The structure of a tariff plan includes add-ons:

Mandatory add-ons (e.g., a base amount of disk space for a VPS).
Optional add-ons (e.g., an additional IP address, backup services, etc.). Tariff plans allow you to standardize your offerings while providing the necessary flexibility for different service categories.

Tariff Bundles

Bundles in BILLmanager are a tool for combining multiple services into ready-made packaged deals. They allow customers to sign up for comprehensive solutions with a single click, while providers can increase the average order value through cross-selling.

Bundles allow you to set special pricing, either at a discounted rate or as a fixed package price. After payment, all services within the bundle are activated through the standard process—just as if they had been ordered individually.

For example, you can use a bundle to create a "Business Startup Kit" that includes everything needed for a quick launch—like a domain, web hosting, and an SSL certificate—or any other package you can think of.

Related products (Customers also buy)

Related products in BILLmanager are additional services that are automatically offered to a customer during the checkout process for their main order. They help increase the average order value and enhance the customer experience through timely, relevant recommendations.

When a tariff plan is added to the cart, the system suggests relevant related products (for example, when ordering a virtual server, it might suggest a domain or an SSL certificate). The customer can immediately add these needed services to their order without having to go back to the main catalog.

All these suggestions are configured by the administrator and displayed as clear, understandable options.

A well-organized service catalog in BILLmanager allows the provider to create comprehensive offerings, simplifies sales scaling through packaged deals, and increases the average order value via automated add-on suggestions. At the same time, the customer benefits from an intuitive service navigation system, the ability to choose either ready-made bundles or individual services, and complete transparency regarding the provider's offerings and pricing.

In the next article, I will cover the catalog customization capabilities in BILLmanager—how to choose its display mode, configure tariff plan grouping—and how these features reduce the time it takes to choose and order services.

How to Sell VPN as a SaaS Using VMmanager — Setup in 3 Steps

Mateo Rivera — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 20:47:14 +0000

With VMmanager, you can quickly create a new service for your customers by selling VPN servers using the SaaS model. The platform includes ready-made templates and tools to help you launch this service.

This enables you to easily and cost-effectively offer a higher-value product compared to traditional VPS/VDS rentals.

For customers, this means getting a fully configured VPN without having to administer the guest OS of the virtual machine. Potential clients for this service include individuals and businesses willing to pay for a secure, anonymous VPN solution.

VMmanager offers two popular VPN server implementations: OpenVPN and WireGuard. Choose the one that best suits your needs. You can also customize your own software as a service (SaaS) based on the existing templates. Below, I’ll explain how to set up a VPN for your customers.

Setting Up a VPN Service — A Step-by-Step Guide

A SaaS-based VPN is a virtual machine (VM) with pre-deployed software, that is installed automatically using scripts.
To configure the VPN service following this guide, you’ll need:

A cluster of nodes in the desired geographic location
VMmanager 6
BILLmanager (for service billing and managing user access to the installation script) Let’s get started!

Step 1: Create a New VM Configuration

For example: VPN-server-WG1

This configuration will be used later in BILLmanager to set up billing. Additionally, the VPN server installation script will only be available for this configuration. More information is provided below.

Step 2: Configure the VPN Script

Go to the "Scripts" section
Choose the OpenVPN or WireGuard VPN script
Click "Copy" to duplicate the script
A new window will open where you can modify the parameters of the copied script:

Enter the name of the script
Set access to "All"
Check the "Hide script contents" box (recommended to avoid exposing unnecessary technical details to clients and simplify service usage)
Add a filter to restrict execution to the previously created configuration (VPN-server-WG1). This ensures the script will only be available to VMs with this configuration.

Step 3: Configure Email Notifications

Complete the HTML template with your custom message in the same section to set up an email notification.

<div>
<img src="https://www.ispsystem.com/pictures/icon_wireguard_1.jpg" alt="Wireguard" style="width:33px;padding-right:5px; vertical-align: middle;">
<h1 style="display:inline; vertical-align: middle;">Your WireGuard server is ready</h1>
</div>
<div style="width: 600px">
<p style="margin-top: 10px;">To start using it, please:</p>
<ol style="padding-left:20px;">
<li>Download and install the client on your device:</li>
<div class="download" style="margin:10px 0 10px -15px;">
<a href="https://www.wireguard.com/install/"><img src="https://www.ispsystem.com/pictures/download-windows-linux.jpg" alt="windows" class="windows" style="width:194px;"></a>
<a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.wireguard.android&amp;hl=ru&amp;gl=US"><img src="https://www.ispsystem.com/pictures/download-android.jpg" alt="android" class="android" style="width:137px;"></a>
<a href="https://apps.apple.com/ru/app/wireguard/id1441195209"><img src="https://www.ispsystem.com/pictures/download-apple.jpg" alt="ios" class="ios" style="width:137px;"></a>
</div>
<li style="margin-bottom: 10px;">Import the file attached to this email into WireGuard</li>
<li>Make a connection</li>
</ol>
</div>

Here’s how the WireGuard setup notification email will appear to your clients:

The BILLmanager integration uses the virtual machine template created in Step 1. This template is linked to a specific tariff plan that includes the service cost. You can configure the integration following the official documentation.

Customers who purchase this tariff can then run the VPN installation script on their virtual machine.

How Customers Order the VPN Service: WireGuard Example

The customer journey for ordering a VPN through BILLmanager is straightforward.

Ordering the VM: First, the customer selects a tariff plan linked to the VPN-server-WG1 configuration.
Script execution. After provisioning, the customer logs into VMmanager 6 and runs the pre-configured VPN installation script on their VM.
Email. Once the script has finished running, the customer receives an email containing setup instructions and a VPN configuration file. The email also includes download links for client apps that are pre-configured for all major operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS.

This workflow can be applied to other SaaS services. Just prepare an installation script for the additional software or use pre-built VMmanager templates.

How to build a flat L2 network between VMs and hardware in different locations

Mateo Rivera — Mon, 26 May 2025 00:33:48 +0000

Hello everyone! My name is Mateo. I'm a software developer and network engineer from Argentina.

At my company, we use a wide variety of technical solutions: open-source software, proprietary solutions, and many others. While there are many useful software product manuals available, official documentation does not always cover solving complex problems and corner cases. So I will be preparing useful articles and sharing my own experience in this field on my blog.

For now, I have chosen to focus on the products offered by ISPsystem: VMmanager and DCImanager. This article covers the flat networks workflow. I hope you enjoy reading and find the information useful!

If your infrastructure includes both VMs and physical servers, you may one day find that you need to connect them to the single network. L3 connectivity is not always the answer. And sometimes, you need to combine services into an L2 network.

For example, you have a platform installed on a virtual machine to manage your physical IT infrastructure. If all your hardware is located in one site and you have access to network equipment, you can solve the problem by configuring VLANs on switch ports and in the hypervisor.

But what if the servers and VMs are geographically distributed, and you don't have access to switches and routers in the data center? So, you will need to configure L2VPN between the sites.
Here's how you can solve this problem.

How it works

We’ll use VxLAN tunnels and the BGP EVPN dynamic routing protocol to connect two networks.

If you already have VMmanager, turn on the "Virtual Networks" technology for your cluster. VMmanager will set up the BGP FRR daemon on the cluster nodes and create VxLAN tunnels.
Here’s an example.

Let's assume we have a Juniper QFX5100 physical switch with VxLAN and BGP EVPN support. Let's connect a physical server to port xe-0/0/1.

VMmanager cluster consists of two nodes connected to a switch. Node 1 hosts a virtual machine that is connected to a virtual network. A physical server located at another site is connected to the Juniper QFX switch via port XE-0/0/1. A routable network is configured between the QFX switch and nodes 1 and 2.

The setup process

Configure the switch

Connect the QFX to the routable network so that the address on the lo0.0 interface is accessible from the VMmanager cluster nodes (in our example, this is 10.3.0.47).
Select the AS number to use. In this example it is 62200:

routing-options {
  router-id 10.3.0.47;
  autonomous-system 62200;
}

Configure VTEP:

switch-options {
  vtep-source-interface lo0.0;
  route-distinguisher 10.3.0.47:1;
  vrf-target target:62200:1;
}

Configure BGP and specify all nodes of your VMmanager cluster as neighbors:

protocols {
    bgp {
        group VMmanager {
            type internal;
            local-address 10.3.0.47;
            family evpn {
                signaling;
            }
            peer-as 62200;
            neighbor 172.31.33.2 {
                cluster 10.3.0.47;
            }
            neighbor 172.31.33.3 {
                cluster 10.3.0.47;
            }
        }
}

Set up VMmanager

In the cluster settings, turn on "Virtual Networks" and switch to Route Reflector mode.
Set the local autonomous system to 62200.
Add QFX 10.3.0.47 with autonomous system 62200 to the neighbors.

Let’s assume that johndoe@ispsystem.net is our default VMmanager user. Log in to the administrator user account and do the following:

Create a new virtual network: 192.168.10.0/24.
Create a new virtual machine in this virtual network.

After creating the VM, go to the “Network Settings” section and copy the VxLAN number. In our example, the interface is connected to vxbr1194142, which means that our VNI will be 1194142.

Return to the QFX configuration

Add the EVPN protocol settings:

protocols {
    evpn {
        vni-options {
            vni 1194142 {
                vrf-target target:62200:1194142;
            }
        }
        encapsulation vxlan;
        multicast-mode ingress-replication;
        extended-vni-list all;
    }
}

Please note: it is crucial to specify vrf-target = target:ASN:VNI, otherwise the routes will not be established and there will be no connectivity.

Create a VLAN:

vlans {
    test {
        vlan-id 100;
        vxlan {
            vni 1194142;
            ingress-node-replication;
        }
    }
}

Connect the following port to this VLAN:

interfaces {
    xe-0/0/1 {
        ether-options {
            auto-negotiation;
        }
        unit 0 {
            family ethernet-switching {
                interface-mode access;
                vlan {
                    members test;
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

Done! Now the VM you created and the server are on the same flat network.

Troubleshooting

Let's check the connection on our server:

root> show evpn database
Instance: default-switch
VLAN  DomainId  MAC address        Active source                  Timestamp        IP address
     1194142    00:1e:67:ca:6d:a9  xe-0/0/1.0                     Mar 12 15:44:40  192.168.13.3
     1194142    52:54:00:6b:33:a6  172.31.33.2                    Mar 12 14:12:26

Also, let's check the connection on the VM Manager node. Run the vtysh command:

show evpn mac vni 1194142
Number of MACs (local and remote) known for this VNI: 2
Flags: N=sync-neighs, I=local-inactive, P=peer-active, X=peer-proxy
MAC               Type   Flags Intf/Remote ES/VTEP            VLAN  Seq #'s
00:1e:67:ca:6d:a9 remote       10.3.0.47                            0/0
52:54:00:6b:33:a6 local        vm13706_vxlan0                       0/0

Other servers can be added to this network by simply assigning the VLAN to the appropriate port. In addition, we can create more virtual machines for the user in this VxLAN. They will all be inside the virtual network.

The result

We combined virtual machines and physical servers in different locations into a flat, non-routable L2 network. Now, we can manage physical servers through DCImanager or deploy a private network between virtual and physical servers to complete other tasks.

The most important feature of this approach is that it does not involve routing. With VxLAN, traffic is encapsulated and appears to external routers as UDP traffic between two points.

I hope this mini-tutorial was helpful and saved you some time. I plan to publish new tutorials on my blog, so stay tuned for updates and subscribe!