User Manager
User Manager is used to maintain the users allowed to log into Q_Panel and to specify which databases and areas of the system they have access to. New users can be added, user details such as email address or password can be changed, and users can be deleted.
Although more than one person can log into the same user account, it is recommended that you provide each person who uses Q_Panel with his or her own account. The Admin user account should not be used on a regular basis.
Select User Manager from the Security menu and a list of users for your installation will be displayed.
The Admin user is a special user and this is shown by the System checkbox.
To view details of a user, select the user by clicking on the user name, or by checking the box next to the user and then selecting Properties from the toolbar.
The following information is shown:
| Username | This is a mandatory field to uniquely identify the user. |
| Service Account | Service accounts may be required for some Q_Panel services to allow data to be saved to the database. Service accounts cannot be used to login directly to Q_Panel. |
| Description | This is a description of the user and is optional. For a standard Q_Panel user it should contain their full name. |
| This is the email address of the user and is optional. If entered the user may be selected as a recipient for email notification when a sample is run. | |
| Network Id | This field may be required, for service accounts only, to allow trusted login for some Q_Panel services and applications such as Q_Community. |
| Password | This contains the password and is optional. This field can only be entered when creating a new user or resetting a password. Existing passwords will not be displayed. |
| Confirm Password | This contains the password confirmation and is mandatory if the password field has been entered. This field can only be entered when creating a new user or resetting a password. Existing passwords will not be displayed. |
| Reset Password | For an existing user, check this box to allow the password fields to be re-entered in order to reset a password. |
| API Token | This field displays the API Token for this user. This information is required when using the Q_Panel API Service. (The API Token is displayed for v7.04 only, older versions display the Session field instead showing whether the user has an active session or not). |
| Security Groups/Member Of | This shows which security groups the user is a member of, and therefore which databases and areas of the system they have access to. Users, by default, have no access rights: they are granted access privileges only through the groups they are members of. |
Adding new users
To add a new user, click on the New button from the toolbar.
For a standard Q_Panel user enter the username, description, email address (if required) and password (if required). Give the user the appropriate system rights by making them a member of the security groups they require. It can be helpful to look at an existing user with the same rights to see which groups they are a member of.
Add the security groups by clicking on the required group(s) from the Security Groups box and clicking on the single arrow (>). Or add all the security groups at once by clicking on the double arrow (>>). You can select more than one security group at a time by holding down the Ctrl key while clicking with the mouse.
Similarly you can remove security groups from the Member Of box by using the arrows pointing in the other direction (<) or (<<).
New user checks
When a new user has been added it can be a good idea to login as the new user to ensure they have access to the correct database(s) and areas of the system they require. This is particularly important if new security groups have been defined.
The following settings will/may be required:
- When a new user logs in for the first time, they will need to select the required database from User Settings at the top of the screen.
- New users who wish to view existing sample jobs will need to change the Modify Group Filter within Sample Manager to ensure Show All Owners is checked.
Both of these settings will be retained the next time the user logs in.
Changing user passwords
To change a user password click on the user name to open the Edit user dialog, and click on Reset Password. Both password fields will become enabled. Enter the password and confirm password fields and click on OK.
Deleting users
To delete a user select the user by checking the box next to the user name and selecting Delete from the toolbar.
Users are not permanently deleted from the system. Deleted users can be viewed by checking the Show Deleted button on the toolbar. Deleted users will appear in red and can be un-deleted using the Undo Delete button on the toolbar.
Resetting user connections if locked out (older versions)
In older versions users could sometimes become locked out of the system temporarily if their browser window was shut down in the middle of session.
The Session field (on v7.03 and earlier versions) shows whether the user is 'Active' or 'Inactive'. An admin user can clear the session by editing the user and clicking on the Clear button. This button will only be enabled if the session shows as ‘Active’.
