Secure Offline Setup

Blockpad is designed to run locally. If you use the desktop editions of the program, your local files always stay on your own computer or network. Your local files never get transmitted or stored elsewhere.

Blockpad has some optional cloud-based features. This guide describes how to disable those optional cloud features.

Cloud features (the web app, cloud file storage, and cloud library) are optional features we offer for convenience. If your company has strict requirements on data security, we recommend disabling these features so you keep complete control over your content. This way, we can ensure we never handle any of your data.

How to disable cloud features

To disable cloud storage for a company account (therefore for all members of the company account), follow these steps as a company administrator:

  1. Go to your Account page.
  2. Click on Company.
  3. Click on the company account for which to disable cloud storage.
  4. Click on Admin panel.
  5. Click on the Security tab.
  6. Check the option Disable cloud storage.
  7. Click Save Changes.

Notes on disabling cloud features

If you disable cloud storage, company members will be blocked from adding or editing any content in Blockpad cloud services. Any existing content that may exist will be read-only.

In this mode, the system will function as a license server for the offline desktop application, with no possibility of uploading any content. Accounts will be only for connecting to licenses. The desktop application will still have read-only access to other content like online examples, unless you block network access.

If you also choose to block network access to the offline application, please allow small amounts of data through these endpoints so the application can connect to the license:

  • https://blockpad.net/identity/account/login
  • https://blockpad.net/start-login
  • https://blockpad.net/finish-login
  • https://blockpad.net/activate
  • https://blockpad.net/app/accessinfo
  • https://blockpad.net/app/check-license
  • https://blockpad.net/app/check-in

Also, if you use the provided installer for installation, it will need access to download files under this path:

  • https://blockpad.net/files/app/

This option only applies to users connected to this company account. If you want to ensure, even if users try to use separate personal accounts, that no content is transmitted to Blockpad cloud services, you can ensure this by blocking requests these endpoint patterns across your network:

  • https://blockpad.net/app/workspace
  • https://blockpad.net/resources/*
  • https://blockpad.net/files/* (GET requests OK)
  • https://blockpad.net/library/* (GET requests OK)

More questions?

If you have more questions, please contact us.