CP session type¶

This determines how sessions are handled for the Control Panel. You may use cookies, session IDs, or a combination. The available options are:

• Cookies and session ID: Both cookies and URL session ID parameters are used to track the admin user. This is the default setting, and is the most secure since it relies on two individual cookies and a URL session ID.
• Cookies only: Only cookies are used to track the admin user. When this setting is used a “remember me” checkbox will appear next to the Control Panel login page, enabling users to stay permanently logged in.
• Session ID only: Only URL session IDs are used to track the admin user. This option should only be used if your desktop computer prevents you from accepting cookies in the event you are behind a firewall or due to some other technical issue.

Website Session type¶

This determines how sessions are handled for the front-end of the site. You may use cookies, session IDs, or a combination. The available options are:

• Cookies and session ID: Both cookies and URL session ID parameters are used to track the user throughout their visit.
• Cookies only: Only cookies are used to track the user throughout their visit. This is the default setting, and generally the best option since it prevents URLs from showing session IDs.
• Session ID only: Only URL session IDs are used to track the user throughout their visit.

Cookie Settings¶

Cookie settings apply to all native ExpressionEngine cookies and all third party add-ons following recommended standards. For added security for addons that use PHP sessions, they are also used to set PHP session parameters.

Domain¶

Optionally specify a domain the cookie is available to. By default, the exact hostname of the requested page is set as the cookie domain. For example, if the page at http://www.example.com/blog/an-entry-title is loaded and the cookie domain is left blank in ExpressionEngine’s configuration, the browser will use www.example.com as the cookie domain. The browser will only make these cookies available when the page’s hostname is exactly www.example.com.

If the cookie domain is explicitly specified, however, the browser will make the cookie available whenever the requested page’s hostname contains the cookie domain. For example, setting the cookie domain to .example.com will ensure the cookie is shared whenever the requested page’s hostname includes example.com, www.example.com, admin.example.com, blog.example.com, and so on.

If you’re running multiple subdomains on a single ExpressionEngine installation and want member sessions to be valid across all subdomains, you should explicitly set the cookie domain.

Path¶

Optionally specify a cookie path. When a cookie path is set, the browser will only share cookies with ExpressionEngine when the beginning of the URL path matches the cookie path. For example, if the cookie path is set to /blog/, a cookie for the domain example.com will only be sent by the browser if the URL begins with http://example.com/blog/. This can be useful if you have ExpressionEngine installed in a sub-directory and want to ensure that only that particular installation has access to the cookies it sets.

By default, the cookie path is set to /, so cookies will be available within the entire domain.

Prefix¶

Specify a prefix for the cookie name set by ExpressionEngine. This protects against collisions from separate ExpressionEngine installations on the same cookie domain.

Send cookies over HTTP only?¶

When set to yes, cookies will not be accessible through JavaScript.

Send cookies securely?¶

When set to yes, cookies will only be transmitted over a secure HTTPS connection.

Allow members to change username?¶

As the name suggests, this setting determines whether or not members are allowed to change their own usernames after registration. (Members will always be able to change their own screen names.)

Minimum username length¶

You may specify the minimum length required for a member username during new member registration. Specify the minimum number of characters required.

Allow multiple logins?¶

Set whether an account can have multiple active sessions at one time.

Require user agent and IP for login?¶

If this preference is set to “Yes”, then users will not be able to log in unless their browser (or other access device) correctly supplies their IP address and User Agent (browser) information. Having this set to “Yes” can help prevent hackers from logging in using direct socket connections or from trying to access the system with a masked IP address.

Enable password lock out?¶

When this preference is set to “Yes”, the system will lock a member account if more than four invalid login attempts are made within a specified time period (see next setting). This preference is designed to deter hackers from using collision attacks to guess poorly chosen passwords. The account remains locked for the duration of the time period. Once the period expires it becomes unlocked.

Password lock out interval¶

This setting is used together with the previous preference. Here you can determine, in minutes, the time interval over which more than four invalid login attempts will trigger a lockout. You may use decimals to indicate fractions of a minute: e.g. 1.5 equals one and a half minutes.

Require secure passwords?¶

If this preference is set to “Yes”, then users will be required to choose a minimally “secure” password. In this case, a password containing at least one uppercase character, one lowercase character, and one numeric character. Passwords that follow this basic formula are much more difficult to guess.

Minimum password length¶

You may specify the minimum length required for a member password during new member registration. Specify the minimum number of characters required. It is common practice to require passwords at least eight (8) characters long.

Allow dictionary words in passwords?¶

Set whether words commonly found in the dictionary can be used as passwords. Disabling will make “dictionary attacks” by hackers much more difficult.

Dictionary file¶

This is the filename of the dictionary file used for the previous preference. Download the dictionary file, unzip, and upload the text file (dictionary.txt) to system/user/config/.

Enter only the filename of the file (dictionary.txt) in this field.

Deny duplicate data?¶

This option prevents data submitted by users (such as comments) from being processed if it is an exact duplicate of data that already exists. This setting is designed to deter automated spam attacks as well as multiple accidental submissions.

Require user agent and IP for posting?¶

Similar to the previous setting, when turned on, this setting requires IP address and user agent information to be supplied when submitting comments.

Apply XSS filtering?¶

Checks all file uploads for code injection attempts before finalizing the upload. Superadmins are exempt from image XSS filtering.