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Need clarification on tracked item resets

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Brandon Elliott

24 Jul, 2013 05:14 PM

We are using tracked items a bit differently than your intention, I believe. I need to know that you will NOT touch the values on tracked items. In other words, we need it such that you will not reset to zero or add any values. Just leave the values alone. What setting will accomplish that?

For instance, a user upgrades to 10gb of bandwidth. Every month from now on, that user should stay at 10gb of bandwidth. We do not reset to zero and we do not compound the amounts from month to month. Make sense?

1. 1 Posted by Dean on 24 Jul, 2013 07:28 PM

   

   Hi Brandon -- Tracked Items can be tricky at first, but I'm confident you're using them properly and shouldn't have any problems.

   I need to know that you will NOT touch the values on tracked items. In other words, we need it such that you will not reset to zero or add any values. Just leave the values alone. What setting will accomplish that?

   We do not make changes to items unless they are manually altered in the GUI or are changed via the API. To make sure that the recorded amount will not reset each month, the item needs to not reset monthly. On any 'Edit Pricing Plan' page, you can see a list of all tracked items and a checkbox next to them. Reference your 'Free Account' plan as an example. Leaving the box un-checked will mean every month will be additive. Does that clarify things?

   For instance, a user upgrades to 10gb of bandwidth. Every month from now on, that user should stay at 10gb of bandwidth. We do not reset to zero and we do not compound the amounts from month to month. Make sense?

   That's correct. The customer will maintain 10gb quantity every month as long as nothing is changed in an API call or in the GUI.

   All the best,
   Dean

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2. Support Staff 2 Posted by Marc Guyer on 24 Jul, 2013 07:51 PM

   

   Hi Brandon - Metering bandwidth is exactly the sort of thing that the reset option is for. Typically you'd tell CG how much bandwidth is used as it is used (via the customers/add-item-quantity API method). When it's time to bill the customer, CG calculates overage and charges for the overage if there is any. If the reset option for the item is on, CG resets the quantity for that customer to zero exactly at the right time -- at the very beginning of the billing period.

   If you do not use the reset option, the customers' quantity of the item (bandwidth) is entirely in your hands. As such, in order for you to accurately record the quantity in CG, you will need to do the reset yourself or otherwise ensure that CG knows the right quantity at the right time.

   You might also consider using the Subscription Billable hook for this purpose. Since you meter your own bandwidth and only need to inform CG what it is at the right time to bill the customer the right amount, you should only need to do it once per billing period at the end of the billing period. The hook is sent to you after the billing period has ended but before we've executed the invoice. This gives you an opportunity to update the item quantity to be exactly accurate for the billing period that just ended. We also call this an Invoice Review.

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3. Brandon Elliott closed this discussion on 31 Jul, 2013 11:29 PM.