Online Users Setup

Overview

This document offers a comprehensive guide to setting up and configuring the Online Users extension for Ultimate Member.

The extension provides real-time online status indicators, allowing users to see who is currently active on the site. A green circle appears on a user's profile card in the Member Directory or on their profile page to signify their online presence.

The guide covers key features, including privacy settings for controlling visibility, shortcodes for displaying online users, and a widget for seamless integration into sidebars or footers. 

Contents

Settings #

Once the extension is activated, the Online tab appears on wp-admin > Ultimate Member > Settings > Extensions.

In this tab, you will find the following options:

Online stats in member directory

This setting controls whether a user's online status is displayed within the Member Directory.

  • Enabled (Checked): A green circle appears next to a user's profile photo in the member directory and user profile, along with the word “Online”, indicating their active status.
  • Disabled (Unchecked): The online status will not be visible in the Member Directory and user profile.

Note: The Hide online stats setting in the Member Directory is available when this option is enabled.

Offline stats

This setting controls whether a gray circle (offline dot) appears when a user is not online.

  • Enabled (Checked): A gray dot is displayed near the user’s avatar in the Member Directory and on their profile page, clearly indicating that the user is offline.
  • Disabled (Unchecked): No indicator is shown for offline users; their profile will simply appear without any status icon.

Member Directory options #

The extension integrates with Member Directory settings, giving you control over how online users are displayed. To enable the display of online status in the Member Directory and the user profile you should navigate to wp-admin > Ultimate Member > Settings > Extensions > Online and check the box labelled Display online stats in member directory.

Profile Card

To disable the display of a member's online status in the desired directory:

  1. Go to wp-admin > Ultimate Member > Member Directories.
  2. Edit the directory you want to customize.
  3. Scroll down to the Profile Card section.
  4. Besides Online stats, check the Hide online stats setting to disable the online status visibility for this directory.
    • Checked: Online status will not be shown on user profile cards, even if global settings allow it.
    • Unchecked: Online status will appear on profile cards, provided it is enabled in the global settings.
  5. Save your changes by clicking the Update button.

When Hide online stats is not checked, a green circle appears next to a user's profile photo on their profile card within the Member Directory, visually indicating their online status to other users.

Search Options

You can also allow users to filter members by their current online status in the directory’s search form.

  1. Navigate to wp-admin > Ultimate Member > Member Directories > Edit Directory.
  2. Scroll down to the Search Options block to enable search feature.
  3. Turn on the Enable Filters feature, and choose Online Status as a filter option.
  4. Save your changes by clicking the Update button.

When enabled, users browsing the directory can filter results by members who are currently online or offline.

If a user selects Online from the filter, only users who are currently online will be displayed, and vice versa for Offline.

User Profile #

The extension enhances user profiles by adding a green circle next to the user's name whenever they are online. This feature allows users to quickly identify active members on the site.

Additionally, the extension introduces the Online Status field, which can be included in the profile form to display a user’s real-time online presence.

Setup in Profile form

  1. Navigate to wp-admin > Ultimate Member > Forms.
  2. Select the form you want to edit and click Edit Form.
  3. In the Form Builder, click the + (plus sign) button to add a new field.
  4. The Fields Manager window will appear. Select the Online Status field from the predefined field options.
  5. Navigate to the User Meta section on the right-hand side. Click the Add New Field button.
  6. Next, select Online Status from the drop-down menu. Any fields added or chosen from the User Meta section will appear in the profile header area below the user's display name. Be sure to include the Online Status field to ensure it is displayed.
  7. Click Update to save changes.

Display of Online Status

Once configured, the online status field is displayed in the user profile. If the online status field does not appear, try updating the user profile by clicking on the gear icon, selecting Edit Profile, and then saving the profile again or configure the setting in the User Account, shown below.

User Account #

When the Online User extension is activated, a privacy option is added under the Privacy tab of the user's account page, allowing users to control their online visibility.

  • Users can choose whether or not to display their online status to others.
  • If a user opts out, their status will not be shown in the member directory, profile, or widgets.

Privacy setup:

  1. Go to the Account page on your site.
  2. Click on the Privacy tab, then locate the Show my online status? option and select Yes to enable it.
  3. Click the Update Privacy button to save.

Shortcodes #

The [ultimatemember_online] shortcode displays a list of current online members. This can be placed on any page or post.

Available attributes:

Attribute Type Default Description
max integer 11 Defines the maximum number of members to display per screen.
roles string 'all' Filters members based on user roles. Accepts a comma-separated list of roles.

Example:

[ultimatemember_online max="6" roles="administrator,subscriber"]

The sample shortcode can display up to six users with the user roles administrator and subscriber; however, since only three users are online, it will only show those three users.

Widgets #

The extension introduces the Ultimate Member - Online Users widget, which can be added to a sidebar or footer to display online members.

Widget Features:

  • Allows customization of the widget title.
  • Set a maximum number of profile photos to display initially (default: 20).
  • If more than 20 users are online, a text link appears to reveal additional members.
  • Choose to display all roles or filter by a specific role.

Adding the Widget:

  1. Navigate to wp-admin > Appearance > Widgets.
  2. Click the + (plus sign) button to add a new widget.
  3. Search for "Ultimate Member - Online Users".
  4. Drag the widget to your desired sidebar or footer
  5. Customize the title and settings as needed.
  6. Click Update to save changes.

Visit the page where you added the widget to check who is online.

With these steps, you can fully configure the Online Users extension to enhance user engagement on your website.