Manage Site Visibility: A Guide to Public, Private & Password-Protected Access
Site availability controls who can view your content. Choose from four main access settings to manage your site's visibility and security.
Public sites are fully accessible to all visitors and search engines. This setting is ideal for:
- Live websites ready for visitors
- SEO visibility and search engine indexing
- Active online stores accepting orders
- Social media sharing
Password Protected sites require visitors to enter a password before accessing content. This works well for:
- Sharing with specific audiences
- Client previews
- Work in progress sites
- Limited access content
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Private sites are only visible to logged-in site owners and contributors. Visitors see a login page instead. Use this when:
- Building a new site
- Making major updates
- Temporarily hiding content
- Preventing public access
"Private Site" on a page
SSO Protected sites (Enterprise only) require authentication through apps like Okta, Azure, ClassLink, or Google, ideal for business sites needing controlled access.
To change your site's accessibility:
- Open Site Availability panel
- Select desired access level
- Save changes
Additional control options:
- Hide individual pages while keeping others public
- Set up a Coming Soon page
- Exclude from search engines while remaining accessible
- Cancel or delete trial sites
- Manage site promotion settings
Before publishing, review the site launch checklist and SEO guidelines to ensure your site is ready for visitors.
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