Getting Started

Prerequisites & Hosting Requirements

vaBase is developed using PHP and therefore requires suitable web hosting to run the application.

Minimum Server Requirements

• PHP 7.2+

• 100MB disc space

At vaBase we also offer hosting solutions. To find out more please visit the hosting sections on our website here.

There are no database requirements for vaBase as all data is cloud hosted and is accessed via the core API.

Downloading the software

To download the web software for your server you can find this in the following location:

• vaBase.com > Downloads

Once you have downloaded the software, you can now extract the files from the zip to a location of your choice.

This folder contains everything to run vaBase on your web server.

Modifying the files

To edit your vaBase files we highly recommend the use of Visual Studio Code which can be downloaded for free at https://code.visualstudio.com/.

We always recommend taking a backup of a file before modifying it.

For advanced users we would also recommend using version control software such as github.com. This will allow you to keep backups and track/revert changes you make to the files.

Configuring vaBase for your server

To get vaBase up and running on your web server there is some initial basic configuration required.

Locate config.php in the root of the software folder which is the primary configuration file for the system.

There following configuration sections are in config.php:

• API Key

• Virtual Airline Settings

• SimBrief

• Discord Webhook Notifications

• Base URL

• Email

• Site Settings

Basic Configuration

The below configuration is the basic requirement to run vaBase on your server:

API Key

1. You can locate your API key for your airline in your account:
   vaBase.com > Dashboard > Airline

2. Copy and paste your API key into config.php > client_api_key

Base Url

1. Enter your website URL in config.php > website_base_url
   Ensure that you include an ending / at the end of the URL.

Advanced Configuration

Email

You can configure an email account within vaBase to send system notifications to you and your pilots. An example of this would be when a pilot applies to join the VA you would receive a notification. If you accept the application the pilot would then receive an email notification.

Locate “Email SMTP Settings” within config.php.

1. Smtp_host should be the host of your mail server. This is usually mail.yourdomain.com
   
   Please note: when using the following ports you must prefix your host with the following:

• 587 – tls://mail.yourdomain.com

• 465 – ssl://mail.yourdomain.com

• 25 – mail.yourdomain.com

Mail.yourdomain.com is used as an example. You should refer to your mail server provider for the correct URL/hostname.

2. smtp_port is the port for your mail server. As above, this could be port 25, 465, 587, etc.

3. smtp_username and smtp_password is the username and password for the email account.

4. smtp_from_address is the from address you would like vaBase to send email from. This will also be the address that members can reply to from system generated email.

SimBrief Configuration

vaBase includes a SimBrief integration for a seamless dispatch experience for your pilots.

To enable SimBrief you will need to obtain an API key. You can do this by contacting support at the following URL: https://www.simbrief.com/home/?page=support.

Once you have your SimBrief API key, locate simbrief_api_key in config.php and paste it between the quotes. Set simbrief_enabled to true to start using the integration.

You can configure the remaining fields to suite your airlines operations:

• simbrief_flight_plan_format (flight plan format. E.g., LIDO)

• simbrief_cost_index (airline cost index)

• simbrief_airline (your airline ICAO code)

• simbrief_extra_fuel_minutes (extra fuel to be factored in to all flights)

• simbrief_custom_fp_remarks (default remarks that will appear on all flight plans)

• simbrief_allow_charter (set to true or false to allow or disallow charter flights)

Discord Notifications

vaBase has integrated Discord notifications capabilities via webhooks. To enable Discord notifications within vaBase you will need to obtain a webhook URL from Discord. Information on how to generate the URL can be found here: https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/228383668-Intro-to-Webhooks

When you have generated a webhook URL you can paste this in the vaBase.com dashboard (vaBase.com > Your Airline > Manage > Edit > Discord Webhook URL).

Once you have added the webhook the following events in vaBase will trigger notifications:

• New PIREP/Completed flights

• New pilot application

• Pilot awards

• Dispatched flights

• News

You can turn on/off specific alerts in config.php under the Discord Webhook Notifications section.

Additional config parameters

Below is a list of additional config parameters that can also be found in config.php.

• virtual_airline_name – Your airline name. It appears at the top of your website and is used in the email templates.

• airline_admin_email – Is the main airline admin email that will receive email notifications from the system.

• fuel_weight_display - Set to 0 for KG or 1 for LB. This is the default display for fuel weight in your system.

• cargo_weight_display - Set to 0 for KG or 1 for LB. This is the default display for fuel cargo in your system.

• pilots_can_book_same_flight – Allow pilots to fly and book the same flight. When this is set to false one pilot can book and fly the flight at a time.

• file_upload_dir – The directory that files will be uploaded to. In most cases you do not need to change the default value unless you would like files to be uploaded elsewhere on your server. Ensure that the uploads folder has the relevant write permissions.

Accessing the admin system

Once you have configured vaBase and uploaded the files to your server. Open the browser and browse to your website URL. You can login to the main admin pilot account with your vaBase.com email address and the admin password you when creating your airline. You can change the admin password by going to vaBase.com > Dashboard > Airline > Manage > Edit.

Once logged in you should see an Admin link in the top navigation. This will take you to the admin area where you can configure and manage your VA.