Access Management

Updated

SearchStax Site Search offers secure Access Management to tailor users' permissions to the tasks they need to perform. For example:

  • Marketers want to see usage data and optimize the search experience to improve conversions.
  • Developers need access to SearchStax UI Kits and APIs for website integration and data source onboarding.
  • Executive stakeholders may want to see search trends and dashboards without the distraction of technical tools.

Note: Access Management is an optional add-on feature. For Premium and Advanced customers, Access Management includes App-Level Permissions for granular App-level access control. Contact support to enable Access Management for your account.

Access Management offers compliance and security benefits to your Site Search project.

App-Level Permissions

Note: For Premium and Advanced customers, Access Management includes an additional governance layer called App-Level Permissions. This feature lets Owners and Admins control which users can access specific Apps, rather than managing only roles at the account level.

With App-Level Permissions enabled:

  • You can restrict user access to specific Apps
  • User Roles still apply (permissions are limited by role)
  • Account Owners have access to all Apps
  • Newly created Apps automatically include the App creator, Account Owner, and all Account Admins
  • You can manage access via "Users by App" or "Apps by User" views

Note: This default access behavior applies only when App-Level Permissions is enabled. Accounts without App-Level Permissions use account-wide access behavior.

See App-Level Permissions for complete details about this feature.

Site Search User Roles

Roles give Site Search users preset permissions appropriate to their missions.

User Role Description
Owner
Profile portrait of a man with gray hair and beard wearing a light green shirt. 		The Owner has full control over all Site Search tools and activities. This is the only user who can create or terminate an account or transfer ownership to another user. The Owner can create and delete Apps. The Owner can add or remove users and assign roles to them. There can be only one Owner at a time.
Admin
Professional headshot of a man in a light blue shirt against a neutral background. 		An Admin has the same universal access as the Owner, but can't create or terminate an account, nor transfer account ownership.
Developer
Generic profile headshot of a person wearing a light blue shirt. 		Owns the technical implementation of the search experience on the website, such as search fields, faceting, and ranking settings. Has access to APIs and JS Accelerators. Can't create, terminate, or transfer ownership of the account. Can't create or delete Apps. Can't manage users. Can view Subscriptions when the plan and permissions allow access.
Marketer
Decorative profile photograph without direct technical relevance. 		Has full access to Analytics history. Performs day-to-day tuning of the website search experience through features such as auto-suggest, related searches, results configuration, stopwords, synonyms, spell check, promotions, faceting, sorting, and Smart Match Assist. Can't change relevance or ranking settings. Can't view user or billing information.
Billing Member
Decorative profile photo without functional relevance. 		The Billing Member can view subscription information on the Subscriptions page. This user can't see any other part of the Site Search UI.
Team Member
Decorative profile photo for documentation. 		The Team Member is a read-only role for executive stakeholders who want to monitor search analytics. Can't view any other parts of the Site Search UI.

Managing Users

The account's owner and administrators can manage the account users.

Note: The Access Management screen has two tabs: Users and App Access. The Users tab is visible, but the App Access tab only appears after you create your first App. If you don't see the App Access tab yet, see Creating your first Search App.

Add a New User

Go to the Account menu in the upper right corner of the SearchStax Site Search screen. Pull down the menu and select Access Management.

Account menu dropdown with Access Management option highlighted.

You'll see a list of your team members with a button for inviting a coworker to enroll as a team member.

Team members table with columns for name, email, role, and invite status.

Inviting a team member requires the person's name, email address, and role assignment.

Invite User dialog with form fields for first name, last name, email, and role selection.

Once invited, the new member receives an email asking them to follow a link to register a password securely. Two-factor authentication and SSO are options. After they complete that step, they can log into Site Search with their new credentials.

When a user registers a password, it must meet the following requirements:

  • Be 15-64 characters long
  • Include letters and numbers
  • Include at least one uppercase letter
  • Include at least one special character (for example, !@#$&)

The Invite Status shows "pending" for 24 hours. If the user doesn't respond within that time, the status changes to "Expired." To reinvite a user who missed the deadline, check the box beside their name and click the "reinvite" icon Reinvite button icon for resending member invitation emails..

Transfer Ownership

The account Owner is the only user who can transfer ownership.

Go to the Account menu in the upper right corner of the SearchStax Site Search screen. Pull down the menu and select My Profile.

My Profile page with Personal Information section and Transfer Ownership option highlighted in the Role dropdown menu.

Click the Transfer Ownership button to open a dialog box.

Transfer ownership dialog with new owner selection field and warning that this change can't be undone.

Select the new owner from the dropdown list of available users and Save the result. The former owner becomes an account Administrator.

Change a User's Role

Both the Owner and account Administrators can update user roles.

Go to the Account menu in the upper right corner of the SearchStax Site Search screen. Pull down the menu and select Access Management.

Click a user from the team list to open the User Profile.

User profile page showing Personal Information section with role dropdown menu.

Open the Role dropdown and select a new role for the user. Be sure to Save the result.

Delete a User

The Owner and account Administrators can remove a user.

Go to the Account menu in the upper right corner of the SearchStax Site Search screen. Pull down the menu and select Access Management.

Team Members table with delete and bulk action options highlighted.

Locate the user in the team list and check the associated checkbox. Click the trashcan icon Delete button for removing a user account. to remove the user from the account.

Activity Logs

Activity Logs give you visibility into user actions and system events within the SearchStax Site Search platform. This feature helps you track configuration changes, troubleshoot issues, and maintain audit trails for compliance purposes.

Viewing Activity Logs

Access to Activity Logs is role-based:

  • Administrators and Owners: View the complete Activity Log for all users across the account. This gives you full visibility into all actions and events.
  • Other users: View only your own activity log to track your personal actions within the system.

[SCREENSHOT PLACEHOLDER: Activity Logs interface showing list of events with timestamps and user actions]

What Activity Logs Include

Activity Logs capture important system events and user actions, including:

  • Configuration changes to Apps and Search Profiles
  • User management actions (adding, removing, or modifying users)
  • Publishing and draft save operations
  • System-level activities and administrative actions
  • Timestamps and event details for each action

Use Cases

Activity Logs support several important use cases:

  • Audit trails: Track who made changes and when for compliance requirements
  • Troubleshooting: Identify when specific configuration changes occurred
  • Security monitoring: Monitor user activity for security purposes
  • Accountability: Maintain clear visibility into user actions across teams
  • Compliance: Meet audit requirements for regulated industries (part of FedRamp 20X Low Phase 2 compliance)

For detailed information about accessing and using Activity Logs, see Viewing Activity Logs.

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