Protect LifterLMS Lesson Files

Goal: only logged-in LifterLMS students can open your lesson downloads

LifterLMS handles the courses, memberships, and enrollment. Media Guard protects the files inside them. Same pattern as LearnDash — the two cooperate through WordPress roles or Media Guard Groups.

Before you start

• LifterLMS is installed and at least one course/membership exists.
• Media Guard is installed.
• Pro is optional — recommended if you want per-course access lists.

The simplest setup (Free)

LifterLMS adds a built-in role called “Student” to anyone who enrolls. You can protect files using just that role:

[mediaguard file="syllabus.pdf" roles="student"]

Every enrolled student now passes the check. Easy and zero glue code.

The catch: all students see all files. If you need different files for different courses, jump to the Pro path below.

The per-course setup (Pro)

Use Media Guard Groups. One group per course or membership tier.

1. In Media Guard → File Manager, drag in your lesson files.
2. Select them, then Assign to Group… a course-specific group (e.g. photography-101).
3. In your LifterLMS lesson content, drop the shortcode:

[mediaguard file="lesson-1-handout.pdf" groups="photography-101"]

Add students to the group when they enroll. Easiest way without code: use Uncanny Automator — its LifterLMS trigger (“user enrolls in course”) feeds straight into a “Add to Media Guard Group” action.

Embedding the file inline

If you want students to read the PDF directly on the lesson page, add embed="yes":

[mediaguard file="lesson-1-handout.pdf" roles="student" embed="yes"]

Test it

1. Visit the file URL directly in an Incognito window — you should be denied.
2. Log in as a non-student account — still denied.
3. Log in as an enrolled student — file opens.

FAQ

Does Media Guard stop students from sharing their login? No — that’s a job for LifterLMS itself (or a session-management plugin). Media Guard only checks is this session a valid student session?

What about LifterLMS Memberships (the tier above courses)? Same pattern — give each membership tier a Group and gate files with groups="...".