> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.couchdrop.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.couchdrop.io/~/changes/210/administration/user-and-group-management/user-roles.md). # User Roles Learn how Couchdrop uses roles to control how users access and manage your account. ## Overview Couchdrop uses a small number of roles to control what users can access and manage. There are four roles:

Role	What they can do
Owner	Has access to all Couchdrop functionality and account settings, including billing and advanced security settings. Each Couchdrop account has one Owner.
Administrator	Can access the Admin Panel and manage users, groups, settings, and permissions, excluding Owner-only functionality. Use this role for people who need to administer the Couchdrop account and team members.
Team Member	Can use Couchdrop operational features without access to the Admin Panel. Team Members are useful when someone needs to perform tasks such as creating External Users, Mailboxes, Shared Links, or Automations without access to billing, security settings, or other account administration. Their access to individual features can be controlled through permissions.
External User	A restricted account for a customer, partner, application, or automated system. External Users can be given access to specific folders and connection methods such as SFTP, FTP, or the Web Portal without access to Couchdrop administration.

A role is selected when a user is created and can be changed later. ## Internal and External Users Couchdrop users fall into two broader user types. ### Internal Users **Owners, Administrators, and Team Members** are Internal Users. Internal Users are people within your organization who either administer Couchdrop or use its operational features. The distinction between the roles is primarily how much account-level access they have: * **Owners** have full account access. * **Administrators** can manage the Couchdrop account through the Admin Panel. * **Team Members** can work with permitted Couchdrop features without access to the Admin Panel. For example, you might give a support or operations user the **Team Member** role so they can create and manage External Users, including SFTP users, without giving them access to billing or administrative settings. {% hint style="info" %} Internal Users are managed from **Administration > Users**. Managing Internal Users requires the **Owner** or **Administrator** role. {% endhint %} ### External Users **External Users** are accounts normally created for customers, partners, applications, and automated systems that need to send or receive files. They can be restricted to specific folders and connection methods without being given administrative access. For example, an External User might be created for a business partner that needs to upload files over SFTP to a specific folder. {% hint style="info" %} External Users can be managed from **SFTP & FTPs Users** in User Mode by users with the appropriate permissions, or from **Administration > Users** by an Owner or Administrator. {% endhint %} ## Feature access A role determines a user's overall level of access. Permissions determine which individual Couchdrop features they can use. Feature access can be configured at three levels:

Level	Configuration location	Description
Account	Administration > Security Settings	Sets default feature access across the Couchdrop account.
Group	Administration > Groups	Applies feature access to members of a group.
User	Administration > Users	Applies feature access to an individual user.

This is particularly useful for Team Members. For example, two users can both have the **Team Member** role while one is allowed to create External Users and Mailboxes, while the other can only work with Shared Links. Their role remains the same, but their feature permissions determine what they can actually do.