Users access the assets that are stored in Elvis by making use of any of the client applications such as the Pro client, the Brand portal or the InDesign client.
Before they can do this, they need to be given access to these clients and the stored assets. This is done by adding the users or user groups to Elvis and subsequently defining Permissions for these users or user groups. Such Permissions control access to:
- Client applications and their features
- Folders and assets in Elvis
- Metadata fields
- Presets for downloading images
This article describes how to control user access to the client applications and their features.
Capabilities
Controlling access to a client and its features is done by setting up 'Capabilities'. In it, the following aspects are defined:
- The role of the user or user group and the clients that can be accessed
- Which features within a client the user or user group can use
Managing Capabilities
Capabilities are assigned to users and user groups as part of assigning Permissions. This is done in the Management Console.
Step 1. Access the Management Console.
Do one of the following:
- Access the following URL and log in using system administrator credentials (a 'Super user' account):
<Elvis Server URL>/console
- Access the Elvis Pro client by accessing the following URL, log in using system administrator credentials, and choose Management Console from the Avatar menu.
<Elvis Server URL>/app
Figure: The Users page in the Management Console.
Step 2. In the menu on the left of the page, choose Permissions followed by User Groups or Users.
Step 3. Use the search options to search for users and/or user groups.
In certain scenarios, the following error can appear:
LDAP search failed: The number of search results exceeds the Active Directory limit. Modify your search to limit the number of results.
For more information, see "LDAP search failed" error when searching for users in Elvis 5.
Step 4. Select the user or user group to which you want to assign a Capability.
Step 5. Set up Capabilities (see below).
1. Setting the user role and client access
The first step is to define the role of the user and the clients that can be accessed.
Both are done by assigning a specific user license.
|
Notes:
|
| Role | Required license | Description | Access to clients |
|---|---|---|---|
| Super user | Pro | The Super user has access to all clients and all of their features, can access all assets and can use all metadata fields. Because such a user has full access, no further settings have to be set (all options are grayed-out). This role is usually only granted to the general ‘admin’ user. |
All clients:
|
| Unspecified user | Unspecified; the license is inherited from the user group that the user is added to. |
In a typical workflow, a user will have the Unspecified role assigned and will be added to one or more groups. With the Unspecified role, a user will inherit the user license that is set for the group that they are added to. Note: When a user is a member of multiple groups with different user license settings, the most feature-rich license will be used. When no user license type is set for a user or one of its groups, the least feature-rich license will be used (a Basic license if available, else a Standard license or else a Pro license). |
Depends on the license that is assigned to the group that the user is added to. |
| Standard user | Standard | Use this role for asset contributors who mainly need to import and edit assets. |
All clients:
|
| Basic user | Basic | Use this role for asset consumers who only need to search, download and share assets. |
Brand portal only |
| API | API | Use this role when connecting to Elvis Server through an API. | Not applicable. |
2. Setting access to the client features
The next step is to define the client features that the user can use. Be aware that features may be grayed-out when:
- The user has the role of 'Super user'. Such users have full access to the system.
- The chosen license does not allow access to the feature.
Features can be assigned manually or as part of copying Permissions from another user or group.
Step 1. Access the Users page or User groups page (see above).
Step 2. From the list of user groups, select the user group to which a feature needs to be assigned.
Tip: Use the Filter to narrow down the results in the list by typing any part of a name.
Step 3. From the list of features (see below), select the features that need to be assigned to the group.
Copying Permissions is an efficient way of quickly assigning an existing set Permissions to a user or group.
Warning: When copying, all existing Permissions for that user or user group will be replaced.
Info: This feature requires Elvis 6.13 or higher.
Step 1. From the list of users or user groups, choose the user or group from which you want to copy the assigned Permissions.
Step 2. At the bottom of the list, click the Copy button.
The 'Copy Permissions To' window appears.
Step 3. From the list of users or groups, choose the user or group to which you want to copy the Permissions.
Step 4. In the list of Permissions, select which type of Permissions should be copied.
Step 5. Click Copy.
The Permissions are copied.
List of features
The following table shows the list of default Capabilities in Elvis. Shown are the name as it appears in the Management Console as well as the internal name used for configuring the requiredRole setting of a plug-in (where applicable).
Note: The list in the Management Console can also contain custom Capabilities as defined in Action plug-ins or Panel plug-ins. If such a plug-in is made active therefore, you might see more Capabilities listed in the Management Console than shown in the table.
| Feature | Available in | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Share upload (Formerly known as 'Create upload requests') |
Pro client |
Allows users to create a Share Link to which a user can upload files. Also requires the Share feature to be enabled (see below). |
|
| Action plug-ins | Pro client |
Allows users to use plug-ins in the Pro client. |
|
| Download as ROLE_DOWNLOAD_AS |
Allows users to choose the format in which to download the preview of an asset in (JPG, PNG or TIFF format) and specify settings for the size, resolution and metadata of that downloaded preview. A preview can only be downloaded for images for which the View Preview rule is set. |
||
| Share ROLE_SHARE |
Allows users to create a Share Link, used for sharing assets with others. |
||
| Image manipulation ROLE_IMAGE_MANIPULATION |
Pro client |
(Requires Elvis 6.9 or higher) Allows users to rotate or flip images in the Pro client without having to open the image in an external editor. Requires 'View' and 'Edit metadata' Permission types to be assigned. |
|
| Download ROLE_DOWNLOAD |
Allows users to download assets in the following ways:
An asset can only be downloaded when the Use original permission is set for the user. Previews can only be downloaded when the View Preview permission for the user. |
||
| Used in ROLE_USED_IN |
Pro client | Makes the 'Used in Enterprise' panel available which allows users to see where in Enterprise an asset is used. | |
| Collections ROLE_COLLECTIONS |
Pro client | Allows a user to create and manage Collections. | |
| Import ROLE_IMPORT |
Management Console |
Allows the user to import assets, for example by using the Bulk Import feature. The user can only import assets into folders for which they have "CREATE" permissions. Files can only be imported into folders for which the user has Create permission. |
|
| User zone ROLE_USER_ZONE |
Grants the user access to a private user folder to which they have full access. This folder is located in the /Users folder and the user account name is used as the folder name. All users that have access to the Pro client will automatically have a private folder available.
|
||
|
Share Rendition presets (Formerly known as 'Share Download presets') |
When enabled, any Download Presets are shared with all users within the group(s) that the user is a member of. Also required when using the 'Share upload' feature (see above). |
||
| Regenerate thumbnail ROLE_REGENERATE_THUMBNAIL |
Pro client |
Requires Elvis 6.6 or higher. Makes the 'Regenerate thumbnail' command available in the context menu of an asset. Allows the user to regenerate the thumbnail and preview of an asset. |
|
| Checkout ROLE_CHECKOUT |
Pro client |
Allows users to open files for editing by checking-out the file, editing it in some way and checking-in the file again. The user can only check out assets for which they have Edit permission. |
|
| Versions ROLE_VERSIONS |
Pro client |
Allows users to view and restore versions of an asset. To promote or revert a version, Edit permission is required. To delete a version, Delete permission is required. This feature is not needed to create a version. Version creation happens automatically when a file is checked in. |
|
| Share approve ROLE_SHARE_APPROVE |
Allows the user to create a Share link, used for letting another user approve or reject assets. Also requires the Share feature to be enabled. |
||
| Taxonomy ROLE_TAXONOMY |
- | Deprecated, not used in Elvis 6. | |
| Send email ROLE_SEND_EMAIL |
API | Allows the user to send e-mails by using the E-mail API. |
Document history
- 29 January 2019: Updated section 'List of features' by setting 'Taxonomy' to deprecated.
Comment
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5 comments
Can you give an example as to when you would assign an unspecified license type to a group? I can see why you may want to on the individual user level as they could be added to multiple groups that have different levels. I just can't quite think of a scenario where that option makes sense for a group.
Hi Sergey,
This is correct, the Taxonomy capability has no effect on the Pro client UI.
It was indeed meant to enable the Air client left side panel.
Since this panel has not been implemented in the Pro client, the capability has become obsolete.
We will update the documentation to match this.
Thank you for pointing it out,
Vincent
Hello Vincent,
Besides documentation, ‘Taxonomy’ capability should be reviewed in app too.
Regards,
Sergey
Can you explain what ‘Taxonomy’ capability permits in Elvis 6? In v5, it might enable tagging via ’Taxonomy’ panel located left side in Air client. In v6, there is no such special panel, left panel work as filter only while taxonomy in right panel is enabled regardless of this capability permission.
Hello Spencer,
This can be useful when having multiple groups assigned to a user, each responsible for a part of the permission set.
For example if you have multiple departments in organisation you can have one group that handles view rights for the full department, and another group that handles which clients the user can use depending on his role within the department.
The first one should have unspecified set as it will apply to any role within the department.
The permissions of the group add up to eachother. In case of conflicting permissions highest will win.
I hope this answers your question,
Regards,
Vincent
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