User Management

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The user management page of the administration interface lets you add, disable, and manage user accounts.

Creating New Users

The form at the top of the UI lets you create new users in Code Collaborator.  If you're using LDAP authentication you won't see this form because users are created automatically when they first log into the system.

admin-user-create

Usernames must be unique in the system; if you pick an existing username the form will kick out your request.  The full name is used when displaying the user in the interface, and the email address is used to send notifications messages.

After you create a user you are returned to the same screen.  This makes it easy to add multiple users quickly.

Warning: When creating new user accounts, it's a good idea to make the login name identical to the user's version control login.  One advantage is that the user doesn't have to remember a new login.  Another advantage is that certain features are enabled in Code Collaborator because it can correlate users from version control changelists with Code Collaborator users.  Another advantage is that cross-system reporting becomes much easier.

Statistics

The statistics box shows information about users and usage of Code Collaborator:

admin-user-statistics

This can help monitor your usage and determine how many seats are necessary.

The User List

The user list shows every user in the system along with key information about each:

admin-user-list

Users are listed in order of their login name.  Use the "find" feature of your browser to locate a user by full name.

The [Edit] link allows you to update any user setting from basic contact information to personal display and notification settings.

The first column of icons tells you several things about the user's recent activity and how the user is counting towards server licensing.

Icon
(see above for example)

Is user currently
logged in?

Is user counting towards floating-seat license?

Is user counting towards fixed-seat license?

Red Flag

Yes

Yes

Yes

Wrench

No

No

Yes

(none)

No

No

No

The second column of icons tells you about the user's access rights:

Icon
(see above for example)

Is user an administrator?

Is user allowed to log in?

Blue Policeman

Yes

Yes

Green Person

No

Yes

Red "X"

No

No

You will notice that the admin account never counts towards licensing.  This is one of the special characteristics of the System Administrator Account described later in this section.

Log User Off

Administrators also have the ability to force a user to log out of Code Collaborator to make a seat available.  To do so, just click the [Log Off] link that will appear to the left of the logged in username.  This feature should be used carefully as the user will immediately be logged off.  Once a user is forced out, the next time they access Code Collaborator, they will be required to reenter their username/password to gain access.

Deleting & Disabling Users

You cannot delete users in Code Collaborator because the user record is necessary for reporting and for viewing old reviews that they were a part of.

However you can disable a user.  Disabling a user does several things immediately:

The user can no longer log in.
If the user is already logged in, he is automatically logged off.
The user doesn't show up in standard user lists for e.g. inviting to a review.
The user will not receive any notifications or broadcast messages.
The user immediately does not count towards either floating-seat or fixed-seat licensing.

The user will continue to appear in the general user list, and an administrator can re-enable a user at any time.

To disable or enable a user, click the [Edit] link next to that user on the user list and change the "Is Enabled" flag:

admin-user-disable

Administrative Access

Users with administrative access are allowed to access the "Admin" menu from the menubar and all screens therein.  They also have a variety of other permissions described elsewhere in this manual, including but not limited to:

Administrators can look at all reviews, regardless of whether they have been marked restricted.
Administrators can do anything with defects in any review: create, delete, edit, externalize, and mark fixed, regardless of their role or even non-participation in that review.
Administrators can edit characteristics of any review including changing custom field content, changing the list of participants, and canceling the review.

To set or clear a user's administrative access, click the [Edit] link next to that user on the user list and change the "Is Administrator" flag:

admin-user-admin

Warning: Be careful if you are an administrator and you're editing your own user information.  If you say that you're not an administrator, you're not from that point forward!
If you do this by accident it can be remedied by another administrator, or the System Administrator in particular (see below).

The Special "System Administrator" Account

One user account is special: The System Administrator Account.  How do you know which account is this special one?  If you're using internal authentication, the System Administrator Account is always called admin (this cannot be changed).  If you're using LDAP authentication, the account is determined during installation.

The System Administrator Account has the following special properties:

There can be only one.  One to rule them all.
The System Administrator is always an administrator; administrative access cannot be revoked.  (This is prevented in the user interface so you can't revoke access, even by mistake.)
The System Administrator can always log in.  Even if the server license has been exceeded, this account is still allowed to log in.