Groups are mainly used to determine a user’s access rights for individual folders within the archive structure and the files contained therein. However, groups can also be used to limit communication and determine other restrictions such as access to sub-projects.
It is systemically necessary, that every user is assigned to a primary group which is usually named “P – All”. This group does not provide any access to folders but by ensuring that all users have access to at least one common group, it allows them to communicate with each other in the project and can help regulate access to the main common areas for all users.
Users can then be assigned to additional groups to receive access to folders & files. If no group is assigned to an account or the assigned group(s) possess no rights to folders, the folders will not be visible in the archive structure for those users.
To view the groups available in a project click on "User" in the navigation menu and select "Groups":
Groups are typically named after the roles setup in the project.
For a better overview and orginization, it is customary to assign prefixes when naming groups to indicate the type of group.
This naming is optional, some examples of standard prefixes and their meaning include:
P- Primary group (used for all users)
A- Archives group (used to assign rights to folders)
C- Communications group (used to regulate communication restrictions)
T- Subproject group (used to grant access to subprojects)
I- Information group (used for distribution purposes)
Click on "User" in the navigation menu and then click on "Groups":
To create a new group, enter the name and value for sorting in the textboxes of the grey middle section and click «New» to create.
Once a groups has been created, access rights to folders must be defined seperately.
To set up the access rights to folders for a group using the user matrix, click on "User" in the navigation menu and click the button «Usermatrix» at the bottom of the page:
On the bottom of the next page click «Download Excel»:
The next page then shows the archive folders where you can select individual folders or select none to download all. Scroll to the bottom of the the page and click «Download Excel»:
This will open an Excel document where you can see the groups listed across the top:
The letters/colours in each group's column reflect the types of access to each folder on the left. Four different types of access-rights for users can be assigned. Depending on the access rights only the allotted files can be viewed within the folders. The rights are listes in order of hierarchy beginning with "N" no rights as the lowest
Make changes to the group by entering the correct letter for each folder in the group's column. Save this Excel do your desktop.
Next, open the Archive menu, followed by Rights then Import Permissions. Choose the saved file and then select «Upload Excel»:
It will then load the Excel that you have submitted allowing you to verify the changes. Scroll to the bottom of the page and select «Import» to complete the upload processs in the browser.
Once the upload is complete, the page will reload to show you the archive tree.
Note: "Importieren und E-Mail an SP schicken" allows you to upload outside of the browser and will email you once the upload is complete. This procedure is advisable for projects with many groups / folders.
Click on "User" in the navigation menu and then click on "Groups".
To amend the title of a group, choose the required group, type in the new name in the textbox and then click «Rename»:
It is not possible to delete a group once it has been created, however any group that contains no participants can be hidden. Click on "Hide groups" from the navigation menu under groups. Use the checkboxes to choose which groups to hide and then click «Save»:
To reactivate a group uncheck the box and click «Save».
To rearrange the order in which the groups are displayed, click "Sort groups" in the navigagtion menu under Groups. Type in the required sorting number in the box for each group and then click «Save».
Users can be added to groups in a number of ways. As mentioned earlier in this article, each user is typically added to a primary group. The user can then be added to as many additional groups as required. The access rights for each group will add up. If a user is assigned to groups that grant different access rights to the same folder, the highest right of all the rights granted determines the access.
Example: Group 1 has read access to a folder but Group 2 has write access. If a user is assigned to both groups, they will have write access to that folder.
The hierarchy of rights is listed at the bottom of the matrix. "W" - Write access rights is the most comprehensive access:
Option 1: Select "User" followed by "Groups" from the navigation menu:
Click on the desired group and then use the checkboxes next to each user on the right to add them to this group. Uncheck the boxes to remove the group.
Click «Save changes» to save before proceeding to the next group or leaving the page:
Option 2: Select "User" followed by "Users to groups" from the navigation menu:
Select the User from the list and then use the checkboxes on the right to choose which groups to add/remove for the user.
Click «Save changes» to save before proceeding to the next user or leaving the page:
Option 3: Select "User" and click on the user name from the project participants list. On the new page click on the tab "Permissions":
The assigned groups for that user are listed under "Additional groups". Add or remove groups by clicking on the button. A seperate window will open and you can check/uncheck the boxes next to the groups.
Click «Select» to apply the changes made to the groups and once back on the page "Permissions" click on «Accept changes» at the bottom of the page to save.