Combinations in Prestashop are problematic. If a product has many attributes that can result in millions of combinations. The intensive way in which they are stored will results in hanging the computer whenever that product is addressed. A related problem is that Prestashop assumes that every attribute influences stock – what sometimes isn’t true.
The solution I propose is to add a few database fields to solve these problems. This should be done in combination with another proposal from me that would enable one to host more than one product on a page. Product options that one doesn’t want to be included in combinations should be set up as separate products. To do this:
– The product table should have a field “dependent_only” that indicates that this product should not be offered independently and not been shown in search results.
– A table ps_subproducts should be used to link such independent “option” products to the main product. It should have three fields: the base product, the subproduct and the number of subproducts that can be linked to the main product. In some cases this will be just “1”, for example when you use it to select a color. In other cases it might be zero or “1”, for example to indicate whether you want a blueray player inserted in your computer. And in yet other cases it could be any number. These numbers could be comma separated with the word ANY if any value is possible.