Changing the Secret Key

The Watchful Secret Key is like a password. It is used to securely connect to your website and perform maintence, update and intstallation tasks.

Like any password, security best practices dictate that you change the Secret Key on a regular basis. 

To change the secret for an existing site in your Watchful Dashboard, perform the steps below relevant for your website platform.

Changing the Secret Key in WordPress

1. Login to the backend of your WordPress website and navigate to Settings > Watchful in the side menu.

2. In the Watchful settings, edit the Secret Key as desired using a complex combination of numbers and letters (avoid special characters) and take note of the updated key.

3. Click the Save Changes button at the bottom to confirm the change.

4. In your Watchful Dashboard, locate the site in question and edit the details.

5. Enter the updated/new Secret Key from Step 2 and click the Save and Close button at the bottom of the screen.

Changing the Secret Key in Joomla

1. Login to the backend of your Joomla website and select Watchful Client from the Components menu.

2. At the top-right, click the Options button to view the component parameters.

3. In the Watchful parameters, edit the Secret Key as desired using a complex combination of numbers and letters (avoid special characters) and take note of the updated key.

4. Click the Save button at the top-left to confirm the change.

5. In your Watchful Dashboard, locate the site in question and edit the details.

6. Enter the updated/new Secret Key from Step 3 and click the Save and Close button at the bottom of the screen.