Adding/Removing Users

As a site administrator, you can add additional users with their NetID from within the WordPress site dashboard. It is best to add other users with the “editor” role, unless they will specifically be helping you administer the site beyond just simply adding/editing/updating content pages. For websites, it is always good to have one or two designated staff, faculty, or students tasked with keeping the website content up-to-date. If you are using student workers, a faculty or staff should always be directing and monitoring their work.

Before You Begin

• You must be an administrator on the website.
• The user must have a UW-Madison NetID. If the person you would like to add does not have a NetID, please contact us.
• Ensure the user does not already have access to your site by checking Users > All Users in your site dashboard. If the user already exists and you would like to update their role, learn how to do so here.

User Roles

Determine if you will add the user with the editor role or the administrator role.

Editor

The editor role allows users to create, edit, delete, and publish content within your site. They do not have the ability to change certain site-wide settings and have limited ability to use plugins as well. Editors cannot add or remove users from a site. We recommend that new users be given this role if they just need to create/edit/delete content on a page or post. If the user finds that they cannot perform the tasks they need, then you can always raise their user role to administrator.

Administrator

The administrator role gives you the most control over your site, as it allows you to make certain changes within the theme, allows you to see and manipulate plugins within your site (Gravity Forms, for example), and most importantly add or remove users to your site. This role is very powerful, and one can accidentally wreck the site design and menu. It should not be given to students who are not supervised by an experienced staff member.

Important Note: The Russell Labs service agreement prohibits students (undergrad and grad) from holding Administrator roles.

Steps to Add a User

1. Add by NetID

From the WordPress Admin Dashboard menu, select Add by Net ID.

2. Enter the user’s NetID

The Add User by NetID screen will appear. Enter the user’s NetID in the NetID form field.

A note about adding users with their UW NetID

• Make sure to not include the “@wisc.edu” when adding users via their NetID
• Also, make sure you are not adding their UW email alias, which you might often see as “firstname.lastname@wisc.edu” This is not their NetID.

3. Select the user role

Select a User Role from the User role drop-down list. (See more about user roles above).

4. Click “Add User”

Click Add User, and you’re done. The window will reload, and the user should now be added to your site.

5. Verify success

To verify the user was added successfully, click on All Users from the admin menu to view the site list of users, along with their access role.

6. Alert the user

Finally, you can email the person you added to the site, and instruct them to navigate to your website, click the “login” link at the bottom of the page, and login with their UW NetID. It may be helpful to provide them with a few resources on getting started:

• How to log in
• Adding/editing site content
• Creating accessible content

Removing Users

It is a good idea to regularly check and update your site’s users list to ensure nobody has access to your site who should not, such as previous students who have since graduated. Here’s how to remove a user:

1. Navigate to Users > All Users in the admin sidebar menu.
2. Find the user you would like to remove. You can search for them using the search bar in the top right or scroll to locate their user.
3. Hover over the user and select Remove.

Troubleshooting

Should you need to add non-UW-Madison people who do not have a NetID, in some cases, we can help you get them a UW NetID.