How-To Guide¶

This guide provides step-by-step workflows for common tasks with the Preferred Delivery Date for Customers plugin.

How the Plugin Works¶

Data Flow Overview¶

Customer adds products to cart
        ↓
Plugin calculates earliest possible delivery date
  (product delivery time + buffer time + order cut-off time)
        ↓
Public holidays and blocked weekdays are skipped
        ↓
Calendar shows only selectable dates from the minimum date onward
        ↓
Customer selects preferred delivery date
        ↓
Date is saved in the cart
        ↓
When order is placed: date is saved with the order
        ↓
Date visible in order confirmation, admin order list, and detail view

Example Flow: 1. Customer adds a product with "1–2 weeks" delivery time to the cart 2. Plugin configuration has a fallback buffer of 2 days 3. Plugin calculates: 2 weeks = 14 days → earliest possible date is 14 days from today 4. If that day is a Saturday (blocked), the minimum shifts to the next Monday 5. If Monday is a public holiday, it moves to Tuesday 6. The calendar opens with that Tuesday as the earliest selectable date

Common Workflows¶

How to: Set Up the Plugin for the First Time¶

Goal: Configure the plugin with basic settings after installation

Steps:

Activate the plugin
Navigate to: Extensions → My Extensions
Find "Preferred Delivery Date for Customers" and click Activate
Open the plugin configuration
Click the three dots next to the plugin → Configure
Or go to: Extensions → My Extensions → Preferred Delivery Date → Configure
Select your federal state
In the "State" field, select the state where your warehouse or dispatch center is located
This automatically loads the correct public holidays
Set unavailable weekdays
In the "Unavailable Days" field, select the days on which you do not deliver
Typically: Saturday and Sunday
Set the fallback lead time
In the "Fallback Delivery Lead Time" field, enter the minimum buffer (e.g., "2")
In the "Fallback Lead Time Unit" field, select the unit (e.g., "Days")
Set the order cut-off time (optional)
In the "Delivery Lead Time — Use Next Day After" field, enter your cut-off time (e.g., "14:00")
Save the settings
Click Save

Result: The date picker now appears in checkout with a correctly calculated minimum date.

How to: Add Company Closure Days¶

Goal: Block multiple consecutive days as company holidays

Steps:

Open the holiday management page
Navigate to: Settings → Extensions → Preferred Delivery Date
Add each day individually
Click "Add Date"
Enter a name in the "Name" field (e.g., "Company Holiday")
Select the desired date
Click Save
Repeat this for each day of the company closure

Result: The added days are no longer selectable in the checkout calendar.

Tip: Add company closures well in advance — at least as far ahead as your longest product lead time — so customers ordering shortly before the closure cannot select dates during it.

How to: Set a Product-Specific Lead Time¶

Goal: Give a product with a long production time its own lead time

Steps:

Open the product
Navigate to: Catalogues → Products
Open the desired product by clicking on it
Switch to the "Additional Fields" tab
Click on the "Additional Fields" tab
Enter the lead time
Find the "Delivery Date Lead Time" field
Enter the number of days (or hours, depending on the plugin configuration) this product requires as lead time
Example: "14" for 14 days
Save the product
Click Save

Result: When this product is in the cart, the earliest possible delivery date is automatically pushed at least 14 days into the future.

How to: Activate the Plugin for Specific Shipping Methods Only¶

Goal: Only offer the preferred delivery date for express delivery, not for standard shipping

Steps:

Open the plugin configuration
Navigate to: Extensions → My Extensions → Preferred Delivery Date → Configure
Disable "Active"
Turn off the "Active" switch
Select shipping methods
In the "Only active for these shipping methods" field, select the desired shipping methods (e.g., "Express Delivery")
Save
Click Save

Result: The preferred delivery date is now only shown when the customer selects one of the specified shipping methods during checkout.

How to: Filter Orders by Preferred Delivery Date¶

Goal: View all orders with a preferred delivery date scheduled for today

Steps:

Open the order overview
Navigate to: Orders → Overview
Open the filter area
Click the filter icon or the "Filters" button above the order list
Set the date filter
Find the "Preferred Delivery Date" filter
Enter today's date in the "From" field
Enter today's date in the "To" field
Apply the filter
Click "Apply" or the filter activates automatically

Result: The order list shows only orders where the preferred delivery date matches today.

How to: Manually Trigger a Holiday Update¶

Goal: Refresh the holiday list immediately without waiting for the hourly automation

Via admin (scheduled tasks):

Navigate to: Settings → System → Scheduled Tasks
Find the task "webla-update-storefront-holidays"
Click "Run"

Via command line (for developers / system administrators):

bin/console webla:update-holidays

Result: The holiday list is immediately updated with the latest data from openholidaysapi.org.

Quick Reference¶

Task	Location in Admin	Key Setting
Activate / deactivate plugin	Extensions → My Extensions	"Active" switch
Configure buffer time	Plugin configuration	Fallback Lead Time
Manage holidays / blocked dates	Settings → Extensions → Preferred Delivery Date	"Add Date" button
Product-specific lead time	Catalogues → Products → Additional Fields	Delivery Date Lead Time
Category lead time	Catalogues → Categories → Additional Fields	Delivery Date Lead Time
Shipping method lead time	Settings → Shipping → Shipping Methods → Additional Fields	Lead Time
Filter orders by delivery date	Orders → Overview → Filters	"Preferred Delivery Date" filter
Customer-specific delivery days	Customers → Overview → [Customer] → Additional Fields	Delivery Day(s)

Best Practices¶

Always set the correct federal state: Select the state of your warehouse, not your company's registered address, since holidays are relevant for the dispatch location.
Set a realistic order cut-off time: If your logistics team processes orders until 2:00 PM, enter "14:00". Orders after that time will automatically receive the next available date.
Use the fallback lead time as your minimum: Set the fallback lead time to the minimum production time of your simplest product. For more complex products, set product-specific lead times.
Add company closures in advance: Block company closure days at least as far ahead as your longest product lead time, so no unrealistic dates are offered to customers ordering shortly before the closure.
Set a maximum delivery date: Set a sensible maximum (e.g., 3 months) to prevent customers from selecting dates far into the future.

What to Avoid¶

Marking all weekdays as "unavailable" — this results in no selectable dates being available
Setting a fallback lead time that is too short (e.g., 0 days) — customers might select today's date before their items are ready to ship
Manually managing holidays that are covered by the automatic API update — manual entries are not overwritten, but may end up duplicating automatic entries