> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://codebeans-customer-cart-manager.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How it works

> What the app tracks, how a cart moves from browsing to ordered, and the timing rules behind each dashboard view.

Cart Manager has two parts on your storefront and one in your Shopify admin.

| Part | Where it lives | What it does |
| - | - | - |
| **App embed** (Cb Customer Cart Widget) | Your theme → App embeds | Shows the cart widget with the shopper's Cart ID, the popup, and the support form. |
| **Web pixel** | Shopify **Settings → Customer events** | Records page views, product views, add/remove from cart, and checkout starts. Installed automatically — nothing to set up. |
| **The app** | Shopify admin → Apps | Dashboard, cart details, draft orders, analytics, settings and notifications. |

## The life of a cart

Each shopper visit becomes a **session**. As the shopper moves through your store, the session's status changes:

```mermaid theme={null}
stateDiagram-v2
    [*] --> Browsing: visits the store
    Browsing --> Cart: adds a product
    Cart --> Checkout: starts checkout
    Checkout --> Ordered: completes the order
    Cart --> Ordered: completes the order
```

| Status badge | Meaning |
| - | - |
| Browsing | The visitor is viewing pages but has nothing in their cart yet. |
| Cart | The visitor has at least one item in their cart. |
| Checkout | The visitor has started Shopify checkout. |
| ✓ Order Placed | An order was created from this cart. The cart's **Conversion Summary** links to the order. |

> [!NOTE]
>
> Orders are matched to carts automatically using the cart Shopify assigns at checkout. If that match isn't possible, the app falls back to the customer's email address.

## Cart IDs

Every tracked cart gets a **Cart ID** that's identical on the storefront widget, in emails, and in the dashboard. You can show it as a text ID (like `v_yna3sj0b2`) or as a simple running number (`#1`, `#2`, `#3`…). See [Cart IDs](https://codebeans-customer-cart-manager.mintlify.site/carts/cart-ids.md).

## Timing rules behind the dashboard

The dashboard groups carts using the time of the shopper's **last activity**:

| View | A cart appears here when… |
| - | - |
| **Live Carts** | the shopper was active in the last **30 minutes**. |
| **Today's Carts** | the shopper was last active **today**. |
| **Week to Date Carts** | the shopper was active in the last **7 days**. |
| **Abandoned Carts** | there has been **no activity for over 1 hour** and the cart hasn't reached a completed checkout or order. |
| **Live visitors** (stat card) | any visitor — with or without a cart — was active in the last **5 minutes**. |

The dashboard refreshes itself every few seconds while it's open, and immediately when you switch back to the app's browser tab. A cart detail page refreshes every 10 seconds.

## What's included in your monthly usage

* **Tracked carts** — each distinct shopper cart recorded this calendar month counts once, however many times it changes. Browsing-only sessions don't count.
* **Draft orders** — each draft order created through the app this calendar month counts once.

Both reset on the 1st of each month. When you reach your plan's cart limit, carts that are already tracked keep updating, but new carts aren't recorded until the next month or until you upgrade. See [Plans & billing](https://codebeans-customer-cart-manager.mintlify.site/plans-and-billing.md).

## How long cart history is kept

Your plan sets a **history retention** period. Each day, carts whose last activity is older than that period are removed from the dashboard, and are permanently deleted 30 days later. See [Privacy & data](https://codebeans-customer-cart-manager.mintlify.site/help/privacy-and-data.md).

## Where the widget gets its settings

When you save a template or settings, the app publishes a copy of your widget configuration to your store. The storefront reads that copy directly, so the widget loads quickly and doesn't depend on a round-trip to the app on every page. Changes you save appear on your storefront on the next page load.


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