Enable reader logins

If you'd like to create and maintain readers directly within KnowledgeOwl (and you're not using SSO or remote authentication to create them), readers log in with a username and password on your knowledge base's reader login page. KnowledgeOwl calls this Direct login.

How you turn it on depends on whether all of your content should be private or only some of it:

• If everyone must log in before seeing any content, require readers to log in. Direct login is always on while you use that setting.
• If you have a mixture of public and private content, turn on direct login for a public knowledge base.

Require readers to log in

To restrict your knowledge base so everyone must log in before seeing content:

1. Go to Security and access > Access & SSO.
2. In the Who can read this knowledge base? card, select Logged-in readers only.
   The Who can read this knowledge base? card with Logged-in readers only selected
3. Select Save changes.

Any reader who isn't logged in and navigates to any page of your knowledge base will now be directed to the reader login page (which is your homepage URL with /readerlogin at the end of it). In the Login methods card, the Direct login row shows Always on.

Turn on direct login for a public knowledge base

If you're using your knowledge base for a mixture of public and private content, keep Public selected under Who can read this knowledge base? and make direct login available:

1. Go to Security and access > Access & SSO.
2. In the Login methods card, select Set up in the Direct login row. (If direct login is already available, the button says Manage.)
3. In the Direct login card, select Available. Readers can then log in at the reader login page or with the Log in link in your knowledge base header, to see restricted content. When it's Off, the reader login page and the Log in link are hidden.
   The Direct login card with Off and Available options
4. Select Save changes.

Check the Log in link

The Log in link comes from your knowledge base's top navigation. If you've customized your Top Navigation HTML, it may be missing. To check:

1. Select View Knowledge base.
2. If there's a Logout link in the top navigation, you're all set.
   Sample Logout link in live knowledge base
3. If there's no Logout link, go to Customize > Style (HTML & CSS).
4. In the Customize HTML, CSS, and JS section, select Custom HTML.
5. Choose Top Navigation from the Select HTML to edit dropdown.
6. Somewhere in this Top Navigation, add the Reader Login template merge code. These instructions will show you how to add it after the Contact Us link in the screenshot above, but you can add the template in different places if you'd rather.
7. Look for the div with the id="navbar-collapse", usually at or around row 23:

   <div class="navbar-collapse collapse" id="navbar-collapse">
       [template("slideout-right-toggle")]
       <ul class="nav navbar-nav navbar-right">
           <li>[template("searchbar")]</li>
           <li>[template("contact")]</li>
       </ul>
   </div>

8. Within that div, add a blank line after the contact template, usually at row 27.
9. Copy the code below and paste it onto that blank line: 

   <li>[template("login")]</li>

10. Your code should now look like this:

    <div class="navbar-collapse collapse" id="navbar-collapse">
        [template("slideout-right-toggle")]
        <ul class="nav navbar-nav navbar-right">
            <li>[template("searchbar")]</li>
            <li>[template("contact")]</li>
            <li>[template("login")]</li>
        </ul>
    </div>

11. Save your changes.

For more on the other options on this page, refer to Access & SSO page overview.

Optional related features/next steps might include: customizing the text displayed in the Reader login form, adding Reader signups, Google log in for readers, configuring your Reader password security, customizing your Reader emails.