Automatize master .htaccess file creation

  • Resolved Daedalon

    (@daedalon)


    11 years, 5 months ago

    Could creating the master default.htaccess and secure.htaccess files be made automatically when BPS settings have been changes? For our single-site installs I see only upsides for this.

    Background

    Every time we update our BPS settings, e.g. custom code, we have to:

    1. Click the Security Modes tab
    2. Visually locate the Create xxx.htaccess File buttons
    3. Distinguish which one of them we want to use
    4. Click it
    5. Wait for page reload
    6. Visually locate the Root Folder BulletProof Mode radio button
    7. Click it
    8. Visually locate the appropriate Activate button
    9. Click it
    10. Wait for page reload
    11. Visually locate the wp-admin Folder
    BulletProof Mode radio button
    12. Click it
    13. Visually locate the appropriate Activate button
    14. Click it
    15. Wait for page reload
    16. Enjoy!

    This suggestion is about removing steps 2 to 5 by having the default.htaccess and secure.htaccess master files be created automatically when BPS settings have been changed.

    https://wordpress.org/plugins/bulletproof-security/

Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)
  • Plugin Author AITpro

    (@aitpro)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    I have posted your info for review on our task list.
    It is possible to reduce the total number of clicks required, but I’m not sure if that is a really smart thing to do. We have been discussing doing something like for quite a while. There are valid Pros and Cons to doing something like that.

    Official BPS Root Custom Code steps just for reference:

    Root htaccess File Custom Code Setup Steps
    1. Enter your custom code in the appropriate Root Custom Code text box.
    2. Click the Save Root Custom Code button to save your Root custom code.
    3. Go to the Security Modes page and click the Create secure.htaccess File AutoMagic button.
    4. Select the Root Folder BulletProof Mode Radio button and click the Activate button.

    Official BPS wp-admin Custom Code steps just for reference:

    wp-admin htaccess File Custom Code Steps
    1. Enter your custom code in the appropriate wp-admin Custom Code text box.
    2. Click the Save wp-admin Custom Code button to save your wp-admin custom code.
    3. Go to the Security Modes page, select the wp-admin Folder BulletProof Mode Radio button and click the Activate button.

    Plugin Author AITpro

    (@aitpro)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    Looking at the other thread you posted I suspect that you are regularly or constantly adding IP addresses to Custom Code in an attempt to stop spammers/hackers. If you are doing that approach then you are wasting your time. blocking or blacklisting by IP address is an excercise in futility since there are millions upon millions of IP addresses used by hackers and spammers.

    Using a CAPTCHA based system is very effective at stopping automated hacker and spammer bots.

    Thread Starter Daedalon

    (@daedalon)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    Thank you for your consideration. Hopefully your team can look into the question of what is the benefit of requiring the user to manually recreate the master files?

    Hopefully my list of the required steps above serves as a good reference for identifying potential other steps to eliminate to improve the user experience. As someone who works on UX every day I’ve some in mind already for the time when the more pressing ones have gotten incorporated. If memory serves, removing the multisite buttons from single-site installs took more than a year from my first time of suggesting it, so I’m not expecting this suggestion to make it into the product before Christmas next year either. Would be happy if it did, though 🙂

    Based on your first message here I got the feeling that wp-admin .htaccess file is handled completely separately from the root .htaccess file. Apparently I’ve used BPS for some years before figuring that out. I’ve noticed you’ve improved the UI this year with several steps; perhaps one of those would have helped in figuring this out if I hadn’t gotten used to doing things in a certain way back when the UI was less clear. If there haven’t been changes in clarifying this, perhaps the UI could be improved in that regard.

    I’ve responded to the other thread separately.

    Plugin Author AITpro

    (@aitpro)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    Yes there are Pros and Cons that need to figured out first before offering something like that. Thanks.

    Thread Starter Daedalon

    (@daedalon)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    I’m curious as to what the pros for requiring that manual step are, so if some come to mind and you’ve the time I wouldn’t mind hearing about it. But the main thing is that you have the idea in consideration and can then prioritize things as best fits you. Thanks.

    Plugin Author AITpro

    (@aitpro)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    The most beneficial Pro is that you do not get sent down a rabbit hole / never ending loop. ie someone adds bad code to Custom Code that crashes a website. Since the steps are broken up into stages then it makes it very easy to remove that bad code and get out of a looping situation. Add test, remove test work well in this type of framework. There are other pluses, but these are probably the most significant pluses.

    In a nutshell the deciding factor always comes down to “support time”. ie if something significantly increases our support time then unfortunately we probably won’t add it to BPS since it would not be cost effective for us to do that.

    Plugin Author AITpro

    (@aitpro)

    11 years, 5 months ago

    Thread Start Date: 12-5-2014
    Thread Resolved/Current Date: 12-6-2014
    Comments: This is an ongoing feature request. A task has been scheduled and attached to “BPS DEV Mode” to look into this further.

Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)

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