I need to make a directory on my site password protected; nothing fancy, I just need a simple username/password box to pop up to prevent people from stumbling across it. I tried to do this in the .htaccess file, but the whole site became password protected. How can I password protect just one directory? (For example, www.mysite.com/protecteddirectory).

Odds are your hosting control panel allows you to create password protected directories with a few clicks.

Can you show what you tried with your .htaccess file. My guess is you just had an incorrect path to the directory. Here's a tutorial on password protection via .htaccess

Hi vangogh. This is the code that was in the .htaccess file:

AuthType Basic
AuthName "restricted area"
AuthUserFile /protecteddirectory/.htpasswd
require valid-user

You'd need to use a combination of .htaccess and .htpasswd.

This may be useful:
http://www.webmaster-toolkit.com/hta...enerator.shtml

Yep. I think the missing .htpasswd file is the culprit. The article I linked to discusses it as well.

However check your hosting control panel. Odds are you can password protect any directory with a couple of clicks.

If you use cPanel like everyone else these days, there is a simple integrated password protect add-on for directories. It works like a charm.

If not, .htaccess and .htpasswd will do.

Originally Posted by cantletugo

If you use cPanel like everyone else these days, there is a simple integrated password protect add-on for directories. It works like a charm.

If not, .htaccess and .htpasswd will do.

Most people won't have cPanel installed on their localhost, though. It's more for managing a website, one the 'net, in my opinion.

But you are right, htaccess and htpasswd will most certainly work.