SteelWP Documentation
Welcome to the official documentation for SteelWP — a high-signal WordPress security auditing and hardening plugin built for real-world environments.
SteelWP helps you quickly identify critical risks, understand their impact, and apply safe, reversible hardening without breaking your site.
Getting Started
New to SteelWP? Start here to get up and running in minutes.
Using the Plugin
- Dashboard Overview
- Scan Risk Score Explained
- Hardening Posture Score Explained
- Reviewing Findings
- Applying Hardening Safely
Licensing & Activations
Manage your licenses and connected sites.
- How Licensing Works
- Activating a Site
- Activating a Site
- Moving a License to a New Site
- Managing Licenses in the Portal
Hardening Reference
Detailed explanations of each hardening control and how they behave across environments.
- Uploads PHP Execution Protection
- Directory Listing Protection
- Security Headers Reference
- wp-config Hardening
- Server-Specific Considerations
Findings Reference
Understand what each scan result means and how to respond.
- Debug Mode Enabled
- SQL Dump in Web Root
- Backup Archive in Web Root
- phpinfo File in Web Root
- Default Admin User
Troubleshooting
Having an issue? Start here.
- Activation Failed
- Could Not Connect to License Server
- Scan Does Not Complete
- Hardening Could Not Be Applied
- cPanel and Shared Hosting Notes
How SteelWP Is Different
SteelWP is built around a simple philosophy:
Focus on high-signal risks, provide safe hardening, and respect real-world hosting environments.
- No noisy, low-value alerts
- Clear separation of Scan vs Hardening
- Safe, reversible changes
- Server-aware implementation (Apache, IIS, Nginx)
- Designed for developers, agencies, and serious site owners
Recommended Workflow
If you're unsure where to begin, follow this flow:
- Install and activate the plugin
- Run your first scan
- Review high-risk findings
- Apply hardening where appropriate
- Re-scan to confirm improvements
- Monitor regularly
Need More Help?
- Explore the sections above
- Check troubleshooting guides
- Review detailed reference pages
Review all documentation at: https://docs.steelwp.com/books
SteelWP — Security clarity without the noise.