Difference between revisions of "Further Security Steps"

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WHMCS has many features built-in to help keep your data safe, but here are several simple extra steps you can take to secure your WHMCS installation even further.
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WHMCS includes many features to help keep your data safe, but you can take recommended additional steps to secure your WHMCS installation further.
  
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==Change your WHMCS Admin Folder Name==
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== Recommended Steps ==
  
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Malicious users who visit your site and recognise a WHMCS install will know that they can try logging into your admin area @ /admin/  To protect against this, you can '''rename the admin folder''' to something else.  You then must tell WHMCS what the name of that folder is for things to work by adding the following line to the configuration.php file:<br />
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We recommend:
  
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$customadminpath = "custom_admin_folder_name_goes_here";
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# Securing the writeable directories by [https://help.whmcs.com/m/installation/l/1650299-securing-writeable-directories moving them to a non-public location].
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# Securing the <tt>configuration.php</tt> file by [https://help.whmcs.com/m/installation/l/1650301-securing-the-configuration-file adjusting its permissions].
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# Securing the <tt>crons</tt> directory by [https://help.whmcs.com/m/installation/l/1650302-moving-the-crons-directory moving it to a non-public location].
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# Protecting your Admin Area by [https://help.whmcs.com/m/installation/l/1650303-restricting-access-by-ip-address restricting access to a specific set of IP addresses] and [https://help.whmcs.com/m/installation/l/1650304-renaming-the-whmcs-admin-directory renaming the admin directory].
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# Disabling any unneeded [[System_Environment_Guide#Database_Privileges|database privileges]].
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# Protecting sensitive data by [https://help.whmcs.com/m/installation/l/1650306-enabling-ssl enabling SSL].
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# If you are not using Apache, ensure against [[Nginx Directory Access Restriction|serving requests directly from the vendor directory]]. <div class="docs-alert-info">The <tt>.htaccess</tt> file within the <tt>vendor</tt> directory will suffice to protect against this for servers running on Apache.</div>
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# Defending against clickjacking by [https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/Clickjacking always sending the proper Content Security Policy (CSP) frame-ancestors directive response headers].
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# Performing general server hardening measures (for example, [https://docs.cpanel.net/knowledge-base/security/security-best-practices/ cPanel's] or [https://owasp.org/www-project-top-ten/2017/A6_2017-Security_Misconfiguration OWASP's] best practices).
  
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== Additional Questions ==
  
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'''NB.''' The Custom admin folder name can contain only alphanumeric characters, underscores, plus and minus (a-z, 0-9, _, + and -)
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If you have additional questions or concerns regarding server security, contact your hosting provider or system administrator. They can review the server, assess the installed software and configuration, and provide tailored recommendations and assistance.
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The variable in the configuration.php file should not contain a leading slash (/)
 
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Please note that if you have already created a cron job, or one has been created for you, you will need to update the path on the cron as well. eg. php -q /home/mylogin/public_html/secure/'''myfoldername'''/cron.php
 
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==Password Protect the Admin Directory==
 
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Add a second layer of protection to the admin directory by setting up '''.htaccess password protection'''. Most users can do this via the Password Protect Directories option in cPanel. Remember to keep your .htaccess username/password distinct and unique. You can use the Random Password Generation feature in cPanel to help.
 
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==Move the attachments, downloads & templates_c folders==
 
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The three folders "attachments", "downloads" and "templates_c" need to be writeable by WHMCS and therefore require the permissions 777 (writeable by all).  When folders have this permission level it is safer to place the folders outside of the public accessible folder tree on your website.  WHMCS allows you to do this.  If you do move the folders, then you must tell WHMCS where they have been moved to by adding the following lines to the configuration.php file:
 
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$templates_compiledir = "/home/username/templates_c/";
 
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$attachments_dir = "/home/username/attachments/";
 
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$downloads_dir = "/home/username/downloads/";
 
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In the above example, "username" is the cpanel username and so the 3 folders are located in the home directory, above public_html.
 
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Note that if you are running suphp or phpsuexec you should not make the mode changes as the folders will already be writeable. In fact, you cannot set folder or file permissions to be 777 when running suphp or phpsuexec - the highest permissions are 755 for both folders and files.
 
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==Move the crons folder==
 
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The "crons" folder currently contains the [http://docs.whmcs.com/Domains_Tab#Domain_Sync_Enabled domain synchronisation file] so this should also be moved outside the public accessible folder tree to prevent outside users from triggering it. The entire "crons" directory should be moved, containing both the domainsync.php and config.php files.
 
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WHMCS allows you to do this.  If you do move the folders, then you must tell WHMCS where they have been moved to by editing the /crons/config.php file and specifying the path to the WHMCS root directory, for example:
 
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  $whmcspath = '/home/username/public_html/whmcs/';
 
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In the above example, "username" is the cpanel username and whmcs is located in the directory "whmcs".
 
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Please note that if you have already created a cron job, or one has been created for you, you will need to update the path on the cron as well. eg. php -q /home/mylogin/crons/domainsync.php
 
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==Restrict Access by IP==
 
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For added security, if your staff use fixed IP addresses, you can add even more protection to your admin area by restricting access to a specific set of IPs.  This is done by creating a file with the name .htaccess within your WHMCS admin directory, with the following content:
 
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<source lang="php">
 
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order deny,allow
 
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allow from 12.34.5.67
 
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allow from 98.76.54.32
 
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deny from all
 
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</source>
 
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You can specify as many different '''allow from''' lines as you require.  Or you can even allow entire IP subnet's by specifying just the first part of an IP, for example: "12.34.".  This is called Htaccess IP Restriction.
 
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[[Installation|<< Back to Installation Overview]]
 

Latest revision as of 20:04, 14 February 2023

WHMCS includes many features to help keep your data safe, but you can take recommended additional steps to secure your WHMCS installation further.

Recommended Steps

We recommend:

  1. Securing the writeable directories by moving them to a non-public location.
  2. Securing the configuration.php file by adjusting its permissions.
  3. Securing the crons directory by moving it to a non-public location.
  4. Protecting your Admin Area by restricting access to a specific set of IP addresses and renaming the admin directory.
  5. Disabling any unneeded database privileges.
  6. Protecting sensitive data by enabling SSL.
  7. If you are not using Apache, ensure against serving requests directly from the vendor directory.
    The .htaccess file within the vendor directory will suffice to protect against this for servers running on Apache.
  8. Defending against clickjacking by always sending the proper Content Security Policy (CSP) frame-ancestors directive response headers.
  9. Performing general server hardening measures (for example, cPanel's or OWASP's best practices).

Additional Questions

If you have additional questions or concerns regarding server security, contact your hosting provider or system administrator. They can review the server, assess the installed software and configuration, and provide tailored recommendations and assistance.

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