Controlling visibility to an issue allows you to control who can view an issue in Issuetrak. Many implementations require the ability to control whether a user can see certain issues. We can do this by using a combination of entities (organizations and departments), along with subscribers and user permissions to allow a user to access an issue.
The Basics
A user's access to an issue is controlled through:
| Access Control | Definition |
|---|---|
| Administrator rights | All administrators are able to view all issues regardless of any visibility controls. |
| A role on the issue | Assignee, enterer, submitter, next action, task assignee, or a member of an issue's subscribers list. Users with a direct role can always view the issue. |
| User permission | Without a role on the issue, a user with the permission Can view issues submitted by other users is able view issues that are submitted by other users as well as their own issues. With this permission, they can view all issues in the site unless bound by internal entity membership(s). |
| Entity Membership | Being associated with an entity can limit access to issues. If an entity is restricted to an internal view, then users can only view issues that belong to that entity. |
Together, these options control each user's access to view issues and user lists in Issuetrak, enabling you to specify whether a user sees all issues or only a subset.
Administrator Rights
Users designated as administrators within Issuetrak are not impacted by visibility controls and see all the issues and user lists within the site. Their access cannot be limited. A user is considered an administrator when they have any of the following:
- Agents with the Sys Admin parameter
- Agents with the Can access and maintain Administration functions permission
- End Users or agents with the Allowed Read Only access to Administration information permission
Issue Roles
Certain roles always grant access to view an issue as well as add notes and attachments to that issue:
| Role | Definition |
|---|---|
| Enterer | The person logging the issue |
| Submitter | The person with the problem the issue targets |
| Assignee | The owner of the issue |
| Next Action | An Agent or Group that takes temporary ownership of an issue |
| Task Assignee | The owner of one of the action items in an issue's task list |
| Subscriber | A user or group on the subscribers list of an issue |
Subscribers and Issue Visibility
If a site is configured with the ”Allow Subscribers to Add Notes to issues” option turned on, then users on the subscribers list are able to view, add notes to, and add attachments to issues, but cannot edit, close, or assign issues unless they also have a role on those issues. If that option is turned off, then the subscribed users will be able to receive email notifications for those issues, but will not be able to view them in the site. Subscriber lists can be found in many areas, such as issues, issue types, organizations, locations, SLAs, and departments. These lists provide a way to override other visibility restrictions.
To allow users to view issues to which they are subscribed:
Steps:
- Click the gear icon in the upper right > Click Defaults beneath System.
- Check the box next to ”Allow Subscribers to Add Notes to an issue”.
- Click Update.
A confirmation message will appear when this is complete.
Subscribers for Issue Visibility
Most controls provide sweeping access across a site, organization, or department. Because of that, some customers encounter these challenges:
- A user can belong to only one department but might need access to issues in another.
- Entity-based visibility controls might be too broad for some users.
Adding Users to Subscribers Lists
Steps:
- Edit the feature or entity to which you'd like to subscribe one or more users or groups.
- In the right quick menu, click View/Maintain Subscribers to see the Subscribers page.
- Click the Add New User button and add users or groups to the list. Adjust notification events as needed. See the Issue Notifications article for additional details.
Entity Membership
Internal versus External Entities
Organizations and departments can be set as “internal”. If a user in an internal organization or department has the Can view issues submitted by other users permission, they will be able to see all issues associated with their organization and/or department. If they don't have that permission, they can only see issues in which they have a role.
Organizations
- Users whose primary organization is marked as internal and who have the Can view issues submitted by other users permission can only see issues within their own organization.
- If a user is a member of additional (secondary) organizations, they may also see issues in those organizations based on their issue roles and/or user permissions. Unlike subscribers lists for organizations, this visibility control can also allow secondary members to edit, close, assign, and perform other actions based on their permissions.
- Default setting: Internal. Uncheck when creating/editing the organization to make the organization external.
Departments
- When the optional department entity is enabled, the “Limit to Submitting Department” or “Limit to Assigned Department” option can be used to control visibility based on the submitting user’s or assigned agent’s department.
- Users whose department is marked as internal and who have the Can view issues submitted by other users permission can only see issues within their own department.
- Unlike organizations, users can only be a member of one department.
- Default setting: External. Check during creation or editing to make the department internal.
Example Scenario
User A has “Organization A” (internal) as their primary organization along with user permissions to assign, close, and edit issues. They also have the “Can view issues submitted by other users” permission. To give User A access to issues in "Organization B", one of the solutions below can be used:
- Subscribers Lists solution: To access issues in Organization B, add User A to the Subscribers list of Organization B. User A can now view, add notes, and add attachments to Organization B’s issues, but cannot Assign, Edit, or Close those issues.
- Organization Memberships solution: If User A needs the ability to assign, edit, or close issues in Organization B, instead of adding the user to the Subscribers List for Organization B, add them to the Members List of Organization B.
User Visibility
Visibility to other users in Issuetrak is determined by a combination of permissions and entity memberships, ensuring that users only see information relevant to their roles.
Administrator Visibility to Users
- Administrators can see all users without any restrictions.
Non-Administrative Visibility to Users
- Non-administrative users' visibility is controlled by their permissions and entity memberships.
Key Permissions
- Can submit Issues on behalf of other users: Users with this permission can see other users in the Submitter field when submitting or viewing an issue.
- Can view Assigned To information in Issues and email notifications: Users with this permission can see the assigned agent on issues.
- Can assign Issues: Users with this permission can assign issues and see relevant users.
- Can assign Tasks: Users with this permission can assign tasks and see relevant users.
- Can assign Next Action: Users with this permission can Next Action issues and see relevant users.
For all of the above permissions, if a user is a member of any internal entities, they can only see users within their own internal department and/or internal organization assuming that they are not a member of a secondary organization(s).
Exclusive Projects
A Project may be marked as Exclusive. Exclusive projects restrict visibility so that only project members can see the project and its related issues.
Visibility for Exclusive Projects
- Exclusive Project Members: Can see both the project record and its related issues.
- Subscribers, Issue Submitter, Enterer, Task Assignees, and Project Administrators: Can see the related issues but not the project record itself.
Closing Thoughts
There are multiple ways to control the visibility of issues within Issuetrak, and not all of them may be needed on your site. The best results come from using a combination to create a layered structure that meets your company needs. If you have any questions or would like the assistance of our product experts, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions.
