Admin menu reference¶

This page describes every page in Security Shepherd's Admin menu, for organisers and administrators. To set up an event step by step, follow Running a CTF instead.

The Admin button at the top of the left-hand menu opens three sections: Configuration, Module Management and User Management. One section is open at a time.

Changes take effect immediately. Players may need to reload the page to see them.

The start page¶

The start page that admins see, Let's Get Started, has a Configure Shepherd section with shortcuts for opening levels. To get back to it, reload the page.

Button	What it does
Open All Levels	Opens every web and mobile level
Open Web App Levels Only	Opens the web levels and closes the mobile ones. This is the usual choice.
Open Mobile Levels Only	Opens the mobile levels and closes the web ones
Close All Levels	Closes every level
Enable Unsafe Levels	Tick it before clicking Open All Levels or Open Web App Levels Only to include the unsafe levels, which make the server itself vulnerable. Only do this on an isolated server.

Configuration¶

Page	What it does
About Security Shepherd	Information about the project
Cheat Sheet Management	Turns on cheat sheets for administrators, or for everyone, or turns them off. While they're on, a Cheat button in the left-hand menu shows how to complete the open level. Turning them on for everyone gives the answers away.
Feedback Configuration	Makes players fill in a feedback form before a level is marked as complete. Read the answers in View Feedback.
Open/Close Registration	Lets people create their own accounts from the login page, or stops them. Players have to reload the login page to see the registration link.
Scoreboard Configuration	Who can see the scoreboard. See below.
Set Core Database	Changes the database server that Security Shepherd's `core` database is on. Only needed for an unusual database setup.

Scoreboard Configuration¶

The Configure Scoreboard page: Make Scoreboard Public, Enable Scoreboard, Enable Scoreboard for Admins and Disable Scoreboard, then Enable Class Specific Scoreboard and Enable Class Specific Scoreboard for Admins

Button	Who sees the scoreboard
Make Scoreboard Public	Anyone, without logging in
Enable Scoreboard	Every logged-in user
Enable Scoreboard for Admins	Admins only
Disable Scoreboard	No one
Enable Class Specific Scoreboard	Logged-in players, who see only the players in their own class. Admins see the default class.
Enable Class Specific Scoreboard for Admins	Admins only, showing the class set in Set Default Player Class

Module Management¶

Page	What it does
Change Module Layout	Chooses how levels are presented to players: CTF Mode, Open Floor Mode or Tournament Mode. How Shepherd works shows each one from a player's side.
Module Block Setup	Stops players from opening one level, with a message of your choosing. In CTF Mode, that stops them from going any further. See below.
Open and Close Modules	Opens and closes individual levels. Closed levels don't appear in any player's menu.
Open or Close by Category	Opens and closes every level in a topic at once
View Feedback	The feedback players gave for a level. See below.
View Progress	How many levels each player in a class has completed. See below.

Open and Close Modules¶

Select levels in the To Open list or the To Close list, then click Update Module Status. Hold Ctrl, or Cmd on a Mac, to select more than one.

Module Block Setup¶

Choose the level to block and write the message players will see, such as when the block will be lifted, then click Enable Block. Use it to pause an event, for example to teach a topic before the levels that need it. Come back to this page to remove the block.

The Set a Module Blocker page: a list to choose the level to block, a Blocked Message to Give box, and an Enable Block button

View Feedback¶

Choose a level and click Get Feedback. The table shows each player's answers: how long they took, how hard they found it, how much they knew before and after, and their comments. The first row is the average.

Feedback is only collected while Feedback Configuration is on.

The Get Module Feedback page for Insecure Direct Object References: a table of players with their time, difficulty, knowledge before and after, and comments

View Progress¶

Choose a class and click Get Progress to see how many levels each player has completed. Use it to spot players who are stuck.

The Get Progress page for the class 2026 Autumn CTF: each player's name with a bar showing how many modules they've completed

User Management¶

A class is a group of players, such as the players at one event. Players in a class share a scoreboard when class-specific scoreboards are on, and medals and bonus points are awarded per class. Players without a class are listed as Unassigned Players.

Page	What it does
Add Players	Creates a player account in a class. The password you set is temporary: the player changes it at their first login.
Delete Players	Deletes a player's account
Add / Deduct Player Points	Adds points to a player's score, or takes them away with a negative number. A player with a negative score doesn't appear on the scoreboard.
Assign Players to Class	Moves players into a class, or out of one
Create Class	Creates a class, with a name and a year
Create New Admin	Creates an admin account, with a temporary password
Reset Password	Sets a new temporary password for a player, which they change at their next login
Set Default Player Class	The class that players who register themselves join
Suspend Player	Stops a player from logging in for a number of minutes
Undo Suspend Player	Ends a suspension early
Upgrade Player to Admin	Makes a player an admin
Downgrade Admin to Player	Removes an admin's admin rights