Member Access and Permissions
Status: Available How member access to courses, groups, and blog content is controlled through purchases and
subscriptions.
Overview
TribeCrafter uses a permission-based access system to control which content each member can access. When a member
purchases a product or subscribes to a plan, they receive a permission that unlocks specific courses, groups, or blog
content. This article explains how the access model works.
How Access Works
Access to paid content in TribeCrafter always follows the same pattern:
1. Admin creates a product or plan and configures what content it includes.
2. Member purchases the product or subscribes to the plan.
3. The system creates a permission for that member, which records exactly what they have access to.
4. The member can now access the included content -- enrolling in courses, joining groups, or reading premium blog
posts.
Members never purchase courses, groups, or blog posts directly. All paid content is accessed through products and plans.
Types of Access
Specific Content Access
When setting up a product or plan, you can choose specific items to include:
- Specific courses
- Specific groups
- Specific blog access groups (bundles of blog posts)
Members who purchase that product or plan get access only to those specific items.
Wildcard Access
You can also grant blanket access to entire content types:
- All Courses -- Access to every course, including future courses you create.
- All Groups -- Access to every group, including future groups you create.
- All Articles -- Access to every premium blog post, including future posts.
Wildcard access is especially useful for premium subscription tiers where you want to offer all-inclusive access.
Access Duration
Product Access
Products can grant either:
- Lifetime access -- The member keeps access forever.
- Time-limited access -- Access expires after a set number of days (e.g., 90 days, 365 days).
Subscription Access
For subscription plans, access is tied to the subscription status:
- Active subscription -- Full access to all included content.
- Cancelled or expired subscription -- Access is revoked. The member sees a prompt to renew.
There is no per-content expiry for subscriptions -- all access is controlled by the subscription status.
Access Statuses
When a member has access to a group or course, their membership or enrollment has one of three statuses:
| Status | Meaning | What the Member Sees | |--------|---------|---------------------| | Active | Full access. The
member can participate fully. | All content is accessible. | | Expired | Their permission has expired, but they are
still enrolled/joined. | A prompt to renew their access. | | Suspended | An admin has manually blocked their access. | A
suspension message. Cannot regain access automatically. |
Important Rules About Suspension
- Suspended members cannot regain access automatically, even if they repurchase a product or renew a subscription.
- Only an admin can lift a suspension by manually changing the status back to active.
- The admin must provide a reason when suspending a member.
Auto-Enrollment
When configuring products and plans, you can enable auto-enrollment for specific content items. When auto-enrollment is
enabled:
- Courses -- The member is automatically enrolled in the course upon purchase.
- Groups -- The member is automatically added to the group upon purchase.
If auto-enrollment is not enabled, the member has the permission to access the content but must manually enroll in
courses or join groups.
Free Content
Not all content requires a purchase:
- Free courses -- Courses marked as "free" allow any registered member to enroll without purchasing anything.
- Public groups -- Public groups can be joined by any member.
- Public blog posts -- Blog posts with "public" access type are readable by anyone, including visitors who are not
logged in.
- Members-only blog posts -- Readable by any logged-in member without a purchase.
Key Settings
| Setting | Description | |---------|-------------| | Product access duration | Lifetime or a specific number of days |
| Auto-enrollment | Can be enabled per content item in a product or plan | | Wildcard access options | All Courses, All
Groups, All Articles | | Subscription limit | One active subscription per member | | Product limit | Unlimited products
per member |
Tips
- Use wildcard access on premium plans to ensure future content is automatically included without updating each plan.
- Enable auto-enrollment for the most important courses and groups so members get immediate access upon purchase.
- Remember that suspending a member is a permanent override -- even repurchasing will not restore their access until
an admin manually lifts the suspension.
- Keep your product and plan configurations clear so members understand exactly what they are getting access to.
- The "What's Included" section on product pages shows members exactly which courses, groups, and blog content they
will unlock.
Related
- Setting Up Products
- Setting Up Plans
- Managing Members
- Creating and Managing Groups
- Creating Courses