Ferndesk
Authentication

Enabling Authentication

Control who can access your help center by switching between Public and Private modes.

Private help centers require a Team or Enterprise plan.

Access Control Modes

Navigate to Help Center > Customize > Access Control in your dashboard.

Public Mode

Anyone can access all content without signing in. This is the default setting.

Private Mode

Users must sign in to access any content. Before enabling Private mode, configure at least one authentication method or you'll lock out all users.

Switching to Private

  1. Set up authentication (Magic Links, OIDC, or JWT)

  2. In Access Control settings, click the Private card

  3. Click Save changes

The live preview panel on the right shows how your help center will look after saving.

Once you save Private mode, unauthenticated users will be redirected to the Sign In page when trying to access your help center.

To access your help center, you'll need to manually create a user for yourself in the Customers settings.

Testing Your Configuration

  1. Open your help center in an incognito window

  2. Verify you're redirected to the sign-in page

  3. Test each enabled authentication method

  4. Confirm you can access content after signing in

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