Permissions control access to Projects, Collections, folders, and assets. They allow fine control over a user’s access to the functions of DF Studio.

Applying permissions to a container (such as a Project, Collection, or folder) allows administrators to designate which users can view, create, upload, download, share, edit, or write metadata in that location. Permissions may also be assigned globally to the entire DF Studio Library.

Configure User Permissions

Each user has a set of permissions which apply everywhere in the Library where custom permissions have not been assigned. These are referred to as “base permissions”, and can be modified from the Settings screen under “Users and Teams”. 

Users with “Admin” status control all operations in a DF Studio account, including setting permissions for other users. Access to view and modify account settings or billing information may also be granted on this page.

The Library section defines the user’s base permissions for the DF Studio account Library. (These permissions can be overridden for individual Library items, as described below.) The following roles grant a set of permissions automatically:

• Owner: Allows moving, deleting, and permission management on folders, Projects, Collections, in addition to all function-specific permissions in the list below.
• View Only: Users may view Projects, Project details, metadata, Activity, and Storage. They may collect images in the Bin, and can print contact sheets containing DF Studio previews.
• No Access: Logging in is allowed, but no visibility of Library assets unless explicitly granted (see Configure Local Library Permissions below).

In addition, it is possible to set the following function-specific permissions:

• Create Projects/Folders: Allows creating new folders and Projects, and uploading files to those Projects.
• Upload: Allows uploading new files.
• Share Collections: Allows creating Collections which can be viewed by others and putting assets into Shared Collections (see below).
• Organize Assets: Allows renaming assets, moving them into Setups within a Project, and changing Storage status (Active / Cold).
• Edit Selects: Allows creating Edits, setting select levels, modifying other users’ shared Edits.
• Write Metadata: Allows modifying details on Projects and metadata on images. Also allows managing Metadata Terms on individual Projects.
• Download: Allows downloading original assets.
• Send: Allows sending Messengers, creating Web Portfolios, and publishing to a remote service.

Admin users are not able to modify their own account permissions or base permissions.

Enable Asset API access for accounts that require programmatic access outside of the DF Studio user interface. (These accounts are rare; see the description of API Credentials for more information.)

Users may also be added into Teams, which can be useful in defining specific permissions for individual Library items (described below).

Click “Add Team” from the Users and Teams Settings page to create a new Team and add users.

Review Application Passwords

Individual DF Studio users can configure application passwords for use with plug-ins or external applications that access a DF Studio account. These application passwords can be viewed and managed on this page. For more information, see Manage Application Passwords and API Credentials.

Configure Local Library Permissions for Individual Items

A user’s base Library permissions apply to all items in the DF Studio account Library, and are inherited by folders, Projects, and Collections within the Library. These permissions may be overridden locally at any level of the folder hierarchy, using the Permissions overlay.

From this screen, permissions may be granted to a user or Team by typing the name into the Assign Permissions field and checking the appropriate boxes below.

Use the row of checkboxes to specify local permissions for the selected user or Team. To remove a user or Team from this local permissions list, click the “remove” icon at the right of that row.

To modify default local permissions for all user accounts not specifically defined above, click the “edit” icon to the right of the inherited permissions displayed under the “Everyone Else” heading.

Review Granted Permissions

A list of permission settings explicitly granted for any user or Team can be found in the Settings interface. Click the Settings icon in the top right corner of the DF Studio window, then click the link for “Users and Teams” beneath the User and Team Management heading.

Click any existing user or Team name, or use the “Edit” button alongside each. This will display the options for configuring the selected user or Team, as well as a section labeled “Granted Permissions” which displays all settings explicitly granted to the selected user or Team. (Inherited permissions, described below, are not included.)

Clicking the granted permissions will open the Permissions overlay for that item, which displays the granted permissions for all users and Teams for that item. Click the “Cancel” button to close, or make adjustments to the permissions settings and click the “Save” button.

Inherited Permissions

By default, permissions from containers higher in the Library hierarchy will be inherited, meaning the assigned permissions for any folder, Project, or Collection automatically match the permissions of the folder it resides in. These inherited permissions may be augmented by using the Assign Permissions process described above. (To adjust inherited permissions for a user or team already listed in the Assign Permissions section, click the “edit” icon at the right of the row.) If necessary, inheritance can be turned off by clicking “OFF” beneath “Inherit Permissions”.

This setting only applies to inheriting permissions from folders above the current Library item. By default, permissions granted on this screen will be inherited by any items created below it in the folder hierarchy. To clear all customized permission settings from any existing items below the current Library item—allowing their permission settings to inherit from the current item—check the box next to “Clear Enclosed Permissions” before clicking “Save”.

Control Access to the Permissions Settings

All admin users have the ability to open the Permissions overlay and adjust any of the settings, including the creation or removal of assigned permissions for specific users or teams. Owners of Projects and Collections can also modify these settings in the Permissions overlay for Projects and Collections that they own. To prevent Owners from making these modifications, switch the Locked toggle to “On”.

With the Permissions overlay locked, only admin users are able to change permissions. Individual users can be granted access to unlock the panel using the “Unlock” setting in the Assign Permissions section.

Like all settings in the Permissions overlay, the Lock setting is inherited when “Inherit Permissions” is turned on.

Visual Screen Protection (VSP)

Use the VSP toggle to require the display of the Visual Screen Protection overlay for all users viewing the current library item. The VSP setting is inherited exactly like the other settings configurable in the Permissions overlay.

When VSP is enabled, a new checkbox labeled “VSP Off” appears in the Assign Permissions section. When this box is checked, the specified user or team will see images without the VSP overlay. For more information, see Configure Visual Screen Protection.

Manage Access to Search Facets

The facets displayed when performing a search of the DF Studio account can be managed by admin users. For more information, see Configure Search Result Facets.

Collection Sharing and Local Library Permissions

Collections can be created in three sharing modes: Private, Shared, or Custom. This mode can be modified using the “Permissions” button.

Collections created with custom sharing settings will be able to configure local Library permissions for the Collection, exactly as described above.

Only Collections in the “Custom” permissions mode will inherit assigned permissions from their enclosing folder.

Private Collections can only be seen by their creator and admins, and can contain any assets the owner has access to view. Local Library permissions are not in effect. 

Shared Collections can be seen by any user who can navigate to the location of the Collection, but granular assigned permissions as described above are not in effect. Users are only able to add assets to a Shared Collection if they have ‘Share Collections’ permission over the assets in their source Project(s). Users’ access to assets within the Collection will be determined by their access to those same assets in the Project where the assets are stored.

For additional information, see Share a Collection.