FAQ: Custom Roles

FAQ: Custom Roles

Why would I create a custom role instead of using the built-in roles?

The built-in roles (Administrator, Finance, Operations) are broad and cover most teams. But every business is different. You might create a custom role if:

• You want to limit what junior staff can do (e.g., a junior accountant who can view and create invoices but cannot delete them).
• You need a specialized role for a specific task (e.g., an auditor who can view all reports but not create documents).
• You want to mix permissions in a way the built-in roles do not offer (e.g., a warehouse manager who needs both inventory access and customer contact viewing).

Can I use the same custom role for multiple users?

Yes, absolutely. In fact, that is the whole point of roles. Create one custom role and assign it to everyone who needs it. This makes it easy to manage—if you ever change that role's permissions, the change applies to all users who have that role.

What is the difference between editing a role and editing a user?

Editing a role changes the permissions for everyone who has that role. For example, if you remove "Delete Invoices" from your "Finance" role, all Finance users immediately lose the ability to delete invoices.

Editing a user changes only that one person's roles. For example, if you add the "Inventory Manager" role to Jane, only Jane gets that role—other users are unaffected.

Can I delete a custom role?

It depends on your system, but typically yes—you can delete a custom role you created. However, if any users have that role, you will need to assign them a different role first. You cannot leave a user with no roles.

How many custom roles can I create?

There is usually no limit, but keep it reasonable. Most organizations have 5–20 custom roles. Too many roles becomes hard to manage. If you find yourself creating many similar roles, consider consolidating them.

Can I copy or duplicate a role?

Some systems let you clone or duplicate a role (especially useful if you want to create a role very similar to an existing one). Check your system's Roles or Groups page—look for a Clone or Duplicate button. If you do not see one, create a new role and manually check the same permissions.

If I change a role, when do the changes take effect?

Changes to a role take effect immediately for future actions. However, users who are currently logged in will not see the change until they log out and log back in (or reload the page). If a user had permission to do something and you remove that permission, their current page will not update—but they will not be able to do that action again after they refresh.

Can users see what permissions they have?

Most systems do not show users a full list of their permissions—the interface is designed for administrators. However, users typically notice what they can and cannot do when they use the system (for example, they will not see a Delete button if they do not have delete permission). If a user is confused about what they can do, ask your administrator to check their role.

Is there a way to audit who has which roles?

Not in the Usystems UI itself, but you can:

1. Go to Settings → Users & Roles → Users and scroll through the list.
2. Click on each user to see their roles.
3. Keep a spreadsheet or shared document with each person's roles so you have a backup record.

This is helpful for security audits or when someone new takes over admin duties.

What happens if I give a user conflicting permissions?

Permissions are additive—they never conflict. If a user has Role A (which allows Create) and Role B (which allows Edit), the user can do both. There is no "deny" permission that overrides an "allow" permission. Every permission you grant is cumulative.