Workspace Users & Permissions
Workspace Users & Permissions
Manage who can access each workspace, add or remove users, and understand how organization-level permissions affect workspace actions.
Control membership and boundaries for your workspaces so teams have the right access at the right time.
Covered features
Add & remove users
Invite organization users to a workspace, assign them to workspaces, and remove them when they no longer need access.
Set a default workspace
Choose which workspace is the default for new actions and where resources land by default.
Understand permission boundaries
Learn how organization-level roles limit workspace operations and what to do when you hit those limits.
Protect workspace continuity
Avoid common mistakes (like removing the last admin) and keep workspaces functional.
Audit & troubleshooting
Where to check activity, who changed what, and how to recover from common problems.
Best practices
Tips on membership hygiene, role assignment, and using defaults to simplify workflows.
Intro This page is a step-by-step guide for non-technical users to manage workspace membership: how to add and remove users, set a workspace as the default, and understand the permission boundaries enforced by organization-level roles. It covers practical edge cases, common gotchas, and recommendations to keep your workspace operating smoothly.
Quick orientation
Workspaces group projects, documents, and teams. Membership is controlled at two levels: organization roles (who can perform high-level changes) and workspace membership (who can access the workspace). Think of organization-level permissions as the outer gate and workspace membership as the room keys.
Workflow: Add a user to a workspace
Open the Workspaces or Organization menu
Navigate to the area in your product where Workspaces or Organization settings are listed. Often this is under a top navigation menu called “Settings”, “Organization”, or “Workspaces”.
Select the target workspace
From the list of workspaces, click the workspace you want to add a user to. This opens the workspace overview or membership pane.
Open the Workspace Members or Users panel
Click the “Members”, “Users”, or “People” tab for that workspace. This shows current members and roles.
Choose Add or Invite user
Click the “Add user”, “Invite user”, or “+” button. If prompted, choose whether you are adding an existing organization user or sending an invitation to an external email.
Search and select the user
- For existing organization users: type their name or email and select them from the results.
- If they are not yet in your organization, use the “Invite” flow and enter their email (they will receive an invitation to join).
Assign role or permissions
Pick the appropriate role or permission level within the workspace (e.g., Viewer, Editor, Workspace Admin). Tip: assign the least privilege needed for their tasks.
Confirm and notify
Click “Add”, “Invite”, or “Confirm”. The user will be added or sent an invite and usually receives an email notification. Verify the user appears in the member list with the correct role.
Verify access
Ask the user to sign in and confirm they can access the workspace. If they can’t, check organization-level restrictions and retry.
If invitation never arrives
- Ask the user to check spam/junk.
- If they still don’t receive it, re-send the invite from the member list or contact your organization admin to confirm invitation limits or email restrictions.
Workflow: Remove a user from a workspace
Open the workspace's Members panel
Go to the workspace, then to the “Members”, “Users”, or “People” tab to see current members.
Locate the user
Find the person you want to remove (use search/filter if the list is large).
Review their role and ownership
Before removing, check if the user owns or is the primary contact for important items (documents, templates, or integrations). If they do, plan how to transfer ownership or reassign tasks first.
Click Remove or Revoke access
Click the “Remove”, “Revoke access”, or similar action next to the user’s name. Confirm when prompted.
Handle any ownership transfer
If the system asks you to select a workspace or owner to transfer items into, choose an appropriate recipient so resources aren’t left without an owner.
Verify removal and validate effects
Confirm the user no longer appears in the member list and check that items they owned are still accessible by others as expected.
If the removed user needs limited future access
Consider creating a “read-only” or “archived” access pattern if the user still needs occasional visibility but should not interact with the workspace.
Workflow: Set a workspace as the default
Open Workspaces list
Navigate to the place where all workspaces are listed (often under Organization or Workspaces).
Choose the workspace to mark default
Find the workspace you want to become the default and open its settings or the three-dot menu next to it.
Pick 'Set as default' or 'Mark as default'
Select the action labeled “Set as default”, “Make default”, or similar. Confirm when prompted.
Understand the impact
This will typically make the workspace the default target for new projects, templates, or uploads. Notify your team if this changes where their new content is saved.
Change back if needed
To unset, repeat the steps on a different workspace or use the same menu to deselect default—most systems allow only one default workspace at a time.
Workflow: Review workspace members and resolve permission issues
Open the workspace Members or Permissions screen
Go to the workspace and open the membership or permissions area.
Export or view audit activity
Look for an activity log, audit trail, or recent changes list to see who changed membership or roles and when.
Compare organization role vs workspace role
If a user can’t perform a workspace action (e.g., delete workspace, change default), confirm whether organization-level permissions restrict that action. Organization roles (Admin, Owner) often supersede workspace-level actions.
Fix by adjusting roles
- If you have permission, change the user’s workspace role.
- If the problem is organization-level (for example, only Org Admins can delete workspaces), contact an Org Admin to request the change.
Test from a user perspective
Ask the affected user to try the action again or use an alternate account to verify the change resolved the issue.
Document the change
Record the decision and role change in your team notes or admin log so the reason for the change is clear for future audits.
Tip: Keep an admin roster
Maintain a short list of people who are organization and workspace admins. This speeds up approvals and reduces the chance of orphaned workspaces or blocked operations.
- Can usually create/delete workspaces, set defaults, and manage all users across the organization.
- Use this role to manage organization-wide defaults, enforce security settings, and resolve any access issues that exceed workspace-level permissions.
- Best practice: restrict this role to a small, trusted group.
Before: No default workspace set
- New items can end up in different places depending on creator settings.
- New users may be confused about where to start.
After: Default workspace set
- New items default to a single workspace, making onboarding and templates consistent.
- Easier to teach new users where to create content.
Edge cases to watch for
- User is part of organization but not listed in workspace invite results: they may not have been fully onboarded or their account email differs from what you expect.
- Invited user never activated their account: their invite remains pending and they won’t appear as an active member until they accept.
- User belongs to multiple workspaces: changing their role in one workspace does not change roles in others.
Advanced scenario: Removing a workspace (transfer and cleanup) — checklist
Check who can delete a workspace
Confirm you have the required organization-level permission to delete a workspace. If not, request the action from an Org Admin.
Inventory workspace resources
List templates, documents, and integrations tied to the workspace. Decide what needs to be migrated or archived.
Choose a transfer destination
If your product requires a destination for resources, select an appropriate workspace to receive transferred items.
Notify members and schedule the deletion
Give affected users notice and a deadline. Consider exporting or archiving content for legal or compliance purposes before deletion.
Perform deletion and validate
Execute the deletion/transfer. Afterward, confirm resources were transferred and members removed as expected.
Update documentation and defaults
If the deleted workspace was the default, set a new default workspace and inform the team.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick checklist before major membership changes
- Confirm you have the right organization permissions.
- Ensure at least one active workspace admin remains.
- Transfer ownership of critical items before removing users.
- Notify affected users in advance.
- Document the change for auditing and future reference.
Need help with a complex membership change?
If you’re unsure about permissions, default settings, or how to safely transfer ownership, contact an organization-level administrator or your internal support team before making changes.