How do I make my wiki Public or Private and could you explain the difference between the two?
To change the Public/Private settings, go to your "Settings" page, then click on "Public/Private".
These are the differences between Public and Private:
A private wiki
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Can only be seen by those who have been invited by the owner (administrator).
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Anyone without access to a private wiki will only see the logon page and nothing else if they go to the wiki's URL.
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We don't put any advertising on private wikis.
A public wiki
- Can be seen by anyone surfing to its address.
- All pages are visible, except in certain premium wikis with page-hiding capabilities. Even though everyone can see the wiki, only those who have been given access can edit the pages.
- We place small ads on public wikis.
How to remove private information on my wiki that is also on Google?
We recommend that you never post information on a public wiki that others might consider private. Good examples would be real names, street address, phone numbers or account passwords. Information on the internet doesn't always disappear after you remove it from your wiki. Google and other search engines often provide their users with old copies of website called "cached" copies.
If you unintentionally put private information on your public PBwiki site and you know that Google has a cached copy of it, you have a good chance of getting it removed. Go to
How do I know my wiki is secure?
To be sure your wiki is private:
- Go to your "Settings" page, which is a link at the top of your wiki, to the right side.
- Click on "Public/Private". This setting will let you know if your status is Public or Private.
A private wiki can only be viewed by a person with access from the wiki admin.
If some random person comes to my wiki won’t they also be able to access the wiki?
We assure you that nobody but you, or someone you have invited, can edit your private wiki, except in one case which we'll discuss next.
Caution: If you leave your computer unattended, anyone can use your PC and access your wiki. We recommend that you lock your PC when you are away from it. Most businesses also recommend this for anyone using their computers.
Can you please explain how I stop people from stumbling across our wiki?
If your wiki is private, anyone "stumbling across" your wiki will see a login page. They will see nothing else to help them break into your wiki unless you were to put the wiki password in the wiki title or wiki description.
I see my email address displayed on the wiki; can other people see it too?
Private Wiki
If you have a private wiki of which you are the only user, nobody will ever see your email address. If you have a private wiki that you share with other people, those people can see your email address.
Public Wiki
If you have a public wiki, only a logged-in member of your wiki can see your email address. Vistors from the world wide web cannot see it. The email addresses are there for your benefit when you need to identify who has been editing a page and for contacting the members of your wiki. Your email address will not be exposed to spam bots or search engines, even on a public wiki. Have fun and don't worry. We're looking out for your security.
You want to display an email address but you don't want spam
Don't type your email address or anyone else's email address into a public wiki unless you are certain it's safe to do this. There are a couple of ways to hide email addresses from spammers that we can show you.
How do I allow certain people to edit my wiki, but not others?
Only users who you have shared an access level of editor or writer will be able to edit your wiki.
How can I use Lockable and Hideable pages in my wiki?
Hideable pages and lockable pages are features on the Gold Plan. If you've already upgraded to Silver, you can add those features to your wiki a la carte. Here's how they work:
Lockable pages
Lets you lock them so others can't edit them. This would be useful, for example, for a syllabus or an agenda. You don't want people editing those. Only admins are able to edit lockable pages.
Hideable pages
You can choose to hide certain pages within your wiki. This means that only admins will be able to see them in the All Pages listing. Regular users (readers, writers, and editors) will not. You might use this for planning pages that you don't want others to stumble across and see.
To get either of these features, just visit your wiki's upgrade page, where you can add them instantly.
How do I set up different access levels in a Premium wiki I want to share?
What are access controls?
For wikis with a large number of editors, it may not be sufficient to distribute the administrative password publicly; malicious editors may be able to go in and delete pages and files, ruining users' work. Access controls let users whose needs go beyond a single-password solution offer several different levels of access, each with their own password: Admin, Moderator, Contributor, and Reader.
Admin Rights
As the wiki's creator, you are the admin. As the admin, you are the god of your wiki. You can delete pages, change and disable invite keys for Editors, Writers, and Readers. Admins alone have access to the wiki's Settings page. Only share an Admin password with people you really trust!
Editor Rights
Editors are trusted helpers who are super-privileged Writers. They can delete pages and files, including revisions and revision histories. Editors should be highly trusted, since they can delete your data irrevocably.
Writer Rights
The recommended default for sharing. Writers can edit pages and revert pages to previous versions. They can also upload new files and create new pages. Writers don't need to be super-trusted, since they cannot perform any action that cannot be undone.
Reader Rights
Readers cannot make any modifications at all to a wiki. They only can read the pages, RSS feeds, and files. They can see page revision histories and diffs. Readers don't need an invite key in a public wiki.
How do I create a classroom wiki in such a way that students can't see each other's work?
If you have a premium wiki, assign each of your students page-level access, create a page for them, and then set page-level security for that user on that page. Voila - only that student will be abe to see tht page!
How I keep pages from being edited? (lock)
If your wiki is Platinum, as an admin or moderator, you can click a checkbox on each page that you would like to lock. However, locking the page prevents anyone but admins and moderators from editing the page. While this keeps out vandals, this also prevents others from adding or editing content, so we generally recommend that you don't lock pages unless you feel it's absolutely necessary.
Who's trying to change my password?
Probably no one. Some or all of the password change requests occasionally emailed to the wiki administrators were probably sent as a result of a spider tripping the "Forgot your password?" link.
Can I use IP restriction on my wiki?
A great way to ensure the security of your wiki is to use IP restriction. This means that only computers using a certain IP address will be allowed (IP whitelisting) or denied (IP blacklisting) access to your wiki. IP restriction is part of our business premium pricing plans. To find out more information about adding IP whitelisting or blacklisting to your wiki contact sales(at)pbwiki(dot)com. Once you have IP restrictions available on your wiki, simply go to "Settings" and then click on the "IP restriction" link.
Folder Security
To set folder security, click on the folder and then the "Security" tab. You can set custom security, or make a wiki folder public on a private wiki here.
Page Security
To set page security, click the "Page Security" icon on your wiki page. You can stick with the default access levels of all your users, you can chose to hide or lock pages, and you can set custom page-level security. You can also make a page public on a private wiki.
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