Last updated Apr 26, 2024

Understand user roles in Compass

Compass has the following roles that determine the features one can use in the product:

  • Basic user
  • Full user
  • Product admin

This topic describes the roles in Compass and gives an overview of the features you can access with each role.

There are different ways to invite users to Compass and assign them Compass roles. Learn more about managing users and their Compass access

Basic user

A basic user is a non-billable user with access to a fixed set of Compass features, regardless of the features available in your plan (Free or paid). Basic users need an Atlassian account. Everyone in your organization can access Compass without consuming a paid seat. A Compass site can have unlimited basic users.

Basic users are primarily catalog consumers. They can access most catalog information and gain insight into some operational data.

Full user

A full user is a billable user with access to all Compass features available in your plan (Free or paid), except administrative capabilities within the product. Full users consume a paid seat, and your plan determines the number of full users you can have in Compass.

Full users are not simply catalog consumers. They use Compass for the development, maintenance, and operational practices of software components they own. They can use everything Compass offers, including component catalog, health, templates, customization, apps, and extensibility tools, and participate in team rituals.

Product admin

A product admin is a billable user with access to all Compass features and administrative capabilities within the product, available in your plan (Free or paid). A user with the product admin role accounts toward the paid, full user seats in Compass.

In addition to the full user capabilities, a product admin configures the product settings and performs admin-only functions, for example, installing and configuring apps in Compass.

Roles and feature access in Compass

The below table provides a high-level feature access comparison for each role. Finer feature access restrictions may apply for different roles within the product experience.

FeatureBasic userFull user Product admin
Software component catalog (search, create, edit, view)YesYesYes
Activity feed, dependencies, config-as-code, Jira integrationView-onlyYesYes
AnnouncementsNoYesYes
Import and bulk operationsNoYesYes
Templates (create and use)NoYesYes
Templates (search and view components of the template type)YesYesYes
Metrics (predefined and custom)NoYesYes
Scorecards (built-in and custom)Built-in onlyYesYes
Custom fields (create, configure, and add or edit values)Add or edit values onlyYesYes
Teams (search, create, edit, view)YesYesYes
CheckOpsNoYesYes
HealthNoYesYes
Apps (view, install, configure, uninstall)NoView apps list onlyYes
App UI extensionsNoYes (some extensions)Yes (all extensiosn)
Star, watch componentsNoYesYes
Notifications bell, helpYesYesYes
SettingsNoYesYes
Compass emails (ownership, CheckOps, Announcements, Weekly email, etc.)Ownership emails onlyYesYes

Rate this page: