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Adding a Site

Introduction

Adding a new site to your AAArdvark Workspace is easy! By configuring a few key settings, you can ensure your site is optimized to take full advantage of AAArdvark’s accessibility tools.

From your dashboard, click the Add a New Site button at the top of the page. 

Getting Started

From your dashboard, click the Add a New Site button at the top of the page. When you click Add a New Site, you’ll need to provide:

  • Site Name: A friendly name to identify your site. For example, use ‘AAArdvark (Development)’ or ‘AAArdvark (Production)’ if setting up multiple environments.
  • Base URL: The main URL for your site. All additional page paths will use this as a prefix. Ensure the URL works and loads without errors before proceeding.
  • Site Settings: Choose between AAArdvark’s recommended settings or customize them as needed.

Click Validate URL to confirm the Base URL before continuing.

Keep in mind that you can always go back and edit your Site Settings as necessary.

Recommended Settings

To get started quickly, select Recommended Settings when adding a site. These default settings are optimized for most users and include:

  • Standard: WCAG 2.1 AA
  • Display Level: Warnings and Errors
  • Scan Frequency: Weekly on Sunday
  • Authentication: None

If these settings suit your needs, you can move forward without further customization!

Recommended site settings to use for the site entered.

Customize Site Settings

If the recommended settings don’t fit your needs, choose Customize Site Settings to tailor the configuration. Here’s what you can adjust:

  • Standard: Select your preferred WCAG compliance level (e.g., WCAG 2.1 AA is recommended for most sites).
  • Display Level: Decide if you want Notices to appear in the issue list.
  • Scan Frequency: Choose how often automated scans run—daily, weekly, or manual only.
  • Day of the Week: If weekly scans are selected, pick the day they will run.

Remember, you can update these settings later if needed.

Adding a new site with Customize Site Settings enabled.

Authentication

AAArdvark supports login-based authentication, enabling scans of pages not publicly accessible. You can configure authentication settings for some or all pages of a site. Available options include:

  • No Authentication: Publicly accessible pages.
  • HTTP Basic Authentication: Username and password required.
  • Login Form Authentication: Requires login via a form (e.g., username/password).
  • Custom Header Authentication: Allows use of a custom header for authentication.

For detailed instructions, check out our Authentication Guide.

Authentication Settings in the Site Configuration interface

White Listing

If your site’s security tools block automated requests, you can whitelist AAArdvark to allow scans. This involves creating a rule to accept requests based on:

  • Custom Header: Use the Name and Value pair provided in the White Listing section.
  • IP Address: Contact our support team to obtain the IPs used by AAArdvark.

For step-by-step guidance, refer to our Access Denied Guide.

Teams

Assign your site to a specific team within your workspace to streamline collaboration. Only members of the assigned team will have access to the site.

To assign a team:

  1. Invite users to your workspace.
  2. Create a team and assign users to it.
  3. Select the team from the Teams dropdown when adding or editing a site.

For more details, visit our Team Settings Guide.

Assigning a team to the site.

Still stuck?

File a support ticket with our five-star support team to get more help.

File a ticket

  • Please provide any information that will be helpful in helping you get your issue fixed. What have you tried already? What results did you expect? What did you get instead?
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