Managing users

User roles

  • Administrators: Administrators have the most privileges on the site. They can create, edit and delete any content, add and assign user roles, and manage the site settings.
  • Editor: They can create, edit, delete, and publish both pages and posts (and upload media files)–even those belonging to other users.
  • Author: They can create, edit, delete, and publish their own posts (and upload media files). They cannot edit other users’ content. 
  • Contributor: A contributor can edit and delete their own posts. They can write their own posts, but not publish them–they are submitted for review instead.
  • Subscriber: They can read all posts on the site (as well as manage their own profiles).

How to add a new user

Note: All users are required to take the Digital Accessibility for Content Creators training before they begin managing site content, to ensure compliance with Harvard’s Digital Accessibility Policy.

  1. Ask the user to login to HarvardSites WordPress using their HarvardKey at this URL: https://sites.harvard.edu/wp-login.php.
    • This will establish their account by mapping their HarvardKey information.
  2. After they have already established an account, you can add them as a user by going to the Dashboard left sidebar and navigating to Users > Add new.
  3. Add in their email and select their role.
    • Note: if you do not enter the email address associated with their HarvardKey, you will get a “The requested user does not exist” error message.

How to manage users

  1. In the Dashboard left sidebar, navigate to Users > All Users, which takes you to the Users dashboard
  2. You have the option to add, remove and change roles for users (if you are an Administrator). You will see a username, the full name for the user, email, role of the user and how many pages/posts that the user has created on the site. 
  3. By clicking on a checkbox next to a user name, you can bulk remove users from your site.