When accessing a directory (rather than a page) on your site, a visitor will by default see the index page for that directory. If the directory does not contain an index file, the browser will display a list (or index) of the files in that directory.<\/p>\n

For example, browsing to yourdomain.com\/images\/<\/a> would, if there were no index file (such as index.html) display a list of the contents, such as shown in this screenshot:<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

To prevent this directory listing, you can use an .htaccess file (a topic I’ll cover in a future article). If you’re not yet familiar or comfortable working with htaccess, there is a function in cPanel that will take care of it for you.<\/p>\n

In cPanel under the Advanced section, click “Index Manager”. Choose public_html or whatever directory you want to change.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Index Manager allows you to customize the way a directory will be viewed on the web. You can select between a default style, no indexes, or two types of indexing. If you do not wish for people to be able to see the files in your directory, choose “no indexing”.<\/p>\n

\n
1. Select the directory in which you wish to begin navigating your website’s contents using the pop-up window.<\/li>\n
2. To navigate Index Manager, click the folder icon next to the directory name.<\/li>\n
3. Click the name of the directory for which you want to change the indexing style.<\/li>\n
4. cPanel offers 4 options; select 1 of the following:\n
   \n
   • Standard Indexing:<\/strong> Contents appear only as filenames.<\/li>\n
   • Fancy Indexing:<\/strong> Information about the files, such as the size and time last modified, appear.<\/li>\n
   • Default System Setting:<\/strong> The default defined by your web host will be used.<\/li>\n
   • No Indexing: <\/strong>The contents of the directory are not listed; visitors will see a message stating that the contents are \u201cforbidden.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
   • Click Save<\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/a><\/p>\n

     With directory listing\/indexing disabled, someone visiting a directory without an index file will now see this:<\/p>\n

     <\/a><\/p>\n

     cPanel creates the required .htaccess file and entries for you. Because of the way .htaccess works, your new setting applies to the current directory and all sub-directories. If you want a different setting for a particular sub-directory, just use Index Manager again for that directory and select your desired setting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

     When accessing a directory (rather than a page) on your site, a visitor will by default see the index page for that directory. If the directory does not contain an index file, the browser will display a list (or index) of the files in that directory. For example, browsing to yourdomain.com\/images\/ would, if there were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":134,"featured_media":1236,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[143,74],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n