# Users and permissions

A user is anyone with a sign-in to your Diarybook account. Each user's permissions decide which
appointments they can see and edit, whether clients can be booked to see them, and which parts of
the account they can change.

## Why this matters

Permissions are how an account keeps clinical information limited to the people who need it. A
receptionist can book for a whole department without seeing another department's list, and access
ends when a user is disabled. Every change is made by an administrator, so access is always under
the account's control.

## Before you start

- Managing users needs **Account Owner** or **Account Administrator**. Unlike most **Settings**
  screens, **Change Settings** on its own isn't enough. The **Users** area is only shown to account
  owners and administrators.
- Set up [departments](/docs/setting-up/departments/) and
  [reminder settings](/docs/reminders/how-reminders-work/) first if you want to choose them on the
  user record. See [Your First Week](/docs/start-here/your-first-week/) for the full order.
- Your subscription sets the number of users an account can have. The **User Details** form shows
  how many user slots are free.

## Adding a user

1. Select **Users**  in the area menu. **User List** opens.
2. Select **Add New** in the toolbar.
3. Enter **First Name**, **Last Name** and **Email Address**. All three are required. An invitation
   is sent to the email address.
4. Optionally enter a **Phone Number**, and choose a **Department**, **Time Zone** and **Use
   Reminder**. The time zone is pre-filled from your computer's settings.
5. Set the permissions (see below). A new user starts with **Send SMS**, **Can Take
   Appointments** and **Can Use Schedules** turned on.
6. Select **Save**.

The new user receives the welcome email and sets their own password from it. The
[Welcome Tutorial](/docs/start-here/welcome-tutorial/) takes them through it.

**Use Reminder** sets a default reminder setting for the user. When someone makes an appointment
and this user is the first or only service provider in **To See**, that reminder setting is
selected automatically. It can still be changed on the appointment.

## Permissions

Permissions are switches on the **User Details** form, in four groups.

### General Permissions

| Permission | What it allows |
|------------|----------------|
| **Account Administrator** | Access to the whole account, including adding and editing users |
| **Change Settings** | Changing the account's **Settings** screens |
| **Access Billing** | Using the **Billing** area |
| **Send SMS** | Sending text messages by hand, for example from the appointments list or a waiting list |
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**Account Owner** has no switch. It shows as a tick on the user view of the account owner.
Only the account owner can change [account policies](/docs/setting-up/policies/).

### Appointment Management

| Permission | What it allows |
|------------|----------------|
| **Can Take Appointments** | The user can appear in the "to see" field of an appointment, so clients can be booked with them. These docs call such a user a **service provider** |
| **Can Use Schedules** | The user can have [schedules](/docs/setting-up/schedules/), busy times that show on the calendar |
| **Can view All Appointments** | Seeing every appointment on the account |
| **Can edit All Appointments** | Changing every appointment on the account |
| **Can view Department Appointments** | Seeing appointments for other users in the same department |
| **Can edit Department Appointments** | Changing appointments for other users in the same department |
| **Can double-book others** | Booking another user into a time that clashes. See [Time Conflicts](/docs/appointments/time-conflicts/) |
| **Prevent edit of own** | Stops the user editing their own appointments. The user view shows this as **Can't Edit Own** |
{.table}

### Files and Secure Client Files

Each group has **Can View Files**, **Can Upload New Files** and **Can Delete Files**, and they can
be combined in any way. **Files** covers general document storage. **Secure Client Files** covers
documents held on client records; see [Client Files](/docs/clients/client-files/).

### Permissions that switch on together

Some switches turn others on and lock them:

| Turning on | Also turns on and locks |
|------------|-------------------------|
| **Account Administrator** | **Change Settings**, **Access Billing**, **Send SMS**, **Can view All Appointments**, **Can edit All Appointments**, **Can double-book others** |
| **Can Take Appointments** | **Can Use Schedules** |
| **Can view All Appointments** | **Can view Department Appointments** |
| **Can edit All Appointments** | **Can view Department Appointments**, **Can edit Department Appointments** |
{.table}

Department permissions only matter for a user who belongs to a department. A user can belong to
one department.

## Managing existing users

Select a user in **User List** to open the **User** view. Its side menu has **General Details**,
**Work Hours**, **Groups**, **Devices** and **Activity**. The **General Details** toolbar has
**Edit**, **Enable User** and **Disable User**.

To act on several users at once, tick them in **User List**, then select **User Menu**:

| Option | What it does |
|--------|--------------|
| **Add New User** | Opens the **User Details** form |
| **Resend New-User-Welcome Email** | Sends the invitation again, for a user who lost or didn't receive it |
| **Disable Users** | The users can no longer sign in. A disabled user shows a red ban icon  in the list |
| **Enable Users** | Lets disabled users sign in again |
| **Delete Users** | Permanently deletes the users from the account, after a confirmation |
{.table}

Disabling is the reversible choice, so use it when you might want to restore access later — for
example, for staff on leave. Deleting is permanent.

The **Devices** section shows the devices the user has signed in from, and lets you revoke one.
See [Devices](/docs/your-user-profile/devices/).

### User groups

**Users** → **User Groups** holds named groups of users, for easier management. Add users to a
group from the **Groups** section of the **User** view, using **Select Groups**.

## What to watch for

**"Can't alter your own status"**
You can't disable, enable or delete your own user. Ask another administrator.

**A new user can't be added: "no user slots available"**
The account has used every user slot its subscription includes. Delete a user you no
longer need, upgrade the subscription, or contact support.

**A colleague doesn't appear in the appointment's "to see" list**
They don't have **Can Take Appointments**.

**A user sees too much, or too little**
Check the department on their record as well as the permissions. **Can view Department
Appointments** has no effect for a user with no department. Turning on **Account Administrator**
grants all-appointment access, whatever the other switches were.

**The invitation never arrived**
Check the email address on the user record, then use **Resend New-User-Welcome Email**.

**A warning about "Older Diarybook Versions"**
The form warns you not to change permissions for anyone still using the Desktop application. Those
users could lose access to other people's appointments.

## Related

- [Your First Week](/docs/start-here/your-first-week/)
- [Departments](/docs/setting-up/departments/)
- [Schedules](/docs/setting-up/schedules/)
- [Work Hours](/docs/your-user-profile/work-hours/)

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Source: https://diarybook.com/docs/setting-up/users-and-permissions/