What Is The Site Lockdown Feature And How To Use It?

Site Lockdown is a powerful feature that allows you to block all access to your WordPress site, except from specific IP addresses on the bypass/whitelist. It is useful for various scenarios, such as performing site maintenance, restricting access to a development environment, or securing your site during an emergency.

Before you start using this feature, there are some of the important points to note.

Understanding Site Lockdown

Enabling Site Lockdown means all traffic to your site, including Google Bots, will be blocked. Only traffic originating from the whitelisted IP addresses and the hosting server itself will be allowed.

Cautionary Note

It's crucial to proceed with caution. If you enable this feature without whitelisting your IP address, you risk being locked out of your own site.

If that happens, follow this guide for step-by-step instructions on resolving the issue and restoring access to your site.

Note: To prevent other admins from using this tool, consider switching on the Security Admin system.

How to use Site Lockdown feature

This feature is accessible from the Tools section of the Shield Security Dashboard. Before you enable it, you'll be prompted to fill the form. Ensure each confirmation is carefully considered and acknowledged before proceeding.

The Form: Confirmation

Click on the "Whitelist Me" button to ensure your IP address is included in the bypass/whitelist so you can have a continued access to your site during the lockdown. Your IP will be automatically removed from the whitelist when you disable the lockdown feature.

You'll also need to confirm (ensure that all options all selected):

  1. Your understanding that using caching without clearing it afterward can cause trouble for your site's visitors.
  2. You know how to regain access if you become locked out, such as in the case of your IP address changing.
  3. Your understanding of the potential consequences of blocking all traffic to your site.
  4. You have the authority to block all traffic to this site.

During Lockdown

When Site Lockdown is active, visitors/users attempting to access your site will see a warning message indicating that the site is under lockdown.

This message serves as a clear signal that normal access is temporarily restricted.

Logged in site administrators will see a prominent notification across the Shield admin area alerting them that the site is currently under lockdown.

Site Lockdown is a valuable tool for controlling access to your site. By following these simple steps above and heeding the cautionary notes, you can use this feature confidently and avoid unintended disruptions.

Note: ShieldPRO is required for Site Lockdown feature. To find out what the extra ShieldPRO features are and how to purchase, please follow this link here.