We have just installed Moodle 1.7 and are stoked with the improvements and new features. Thank you to every one who has and continues to, work so very hard on this project.
One thing we are trying to get our heads around is the new roles system and how we can use it to create a 'Staff Only' section of our installation.
We've created a 'Staff' course category and a role called 'Staff Member' and we understand how to assign that role to all of our staff members in the site/category/course contexts, but are still unsure how to prohibit all roles below 'Non-editing Teacher' from accessing the section.
How do you specifically prevent a particular role from accessing a given context?
David,
Could you use your "staff only" course and assign members as "teachers"? This will give them the ability to interact (edit) resources.
You might want to use an enrolment key that only allows members you want access to the course.
Just a few thoughts.
Jeff
Could you use your "staff only" course and assign members as "teachers"? This will give them the ability to interact (edit) resources.
You might want to use an enrolment key that only allows members you want access to the course.
Just a few thoughts.
Jeff
Hi David,
For normal courses (or course categories), if you do not assign user any roles in the course (or course category, or site), they can do nothing in the course. i.e. user with no assignment in any course can not participate in the course, just do not let anyone enrol (set up an enrolment key or something) and you are fine.
For example, if I make a course, assign a bunch of users as student as the course, then only these users can access that course anyway. In the unlikely event that you have users assigned at a related higher context level, say a course category, or site, then you can explicitly write an override for these roles (the tab next to assign), just set everything to prevent will do. Nomrally you do not need prohibit.
Prohibit is designed to be used at top level, it is carried down to all child contexts. e.g. a naughty student role assigned at a course category level where prohibit is set on forum post will prohitbit this user from posting in *all* courses under that course category regardless of his role assignment and role overrides in lower contexts.
Summary: If you want to create a fresh staff only course category, just make it and assign those stuff roles into the category context, and do not allow enrolment. Your normal students/non-editting etc will not be able to access the courses.
Cheers,
Yu
For normal courses (or course categories), if you do not assign user any roles in the course (or course category, or site), they can do nothing in the course. i.e. user with no assignment in any course can not participate in the course, just do not let anyone enrol (set up an enrolment key or something) and you are fine.
For example, if I make a course, assign a bunch of users as student as the course, then only these users can access that course anyway. In the unlikely event that you have users assigned at a related higher context level, say a course category, or site, then you can explicitly write an override for these roles (the tab next to assign), just set everything to prevent will do. Nomrally you do not need prohibit.
Prohibit is designed to be used at top level, it is carried down to all child contexts. e.g. a naughty student role assigned at a course category level where prohibit is set on forum post will prohitbit this user from posting in *all* courses under that course category regardless of his role assignment and role overrides in lower contexts.
Summary: If you want to create a fresh staff only course category, just make it and assign those stuff roles into the category context, and do not allow enrolment. Your normal students/non-editting etc will not be able to access the courses.
Cheers,
Yu
Thanks Yu,
This sounds a lot more cumbersome than I had first hoped. We have over 1,100 users (including about 100 staff so far) and the list box does not let you sort by name or email address so its very tricky to select all the staff members and not miss someone out. Also when new staff arrive they would need to be assigned a staff role in every context that is staff only.
I was hoping roles would enable us to specify at the site level, or even in each users profile, which of our users are staff, academic staff, support staff etc, and then, for any context, simply prohibit or allow those roles access.
Say for example we wanted to add a feedback or forum to the frontpage that is only visible to 'support staff'. That would not be possible with the current implementation of roles?
One more question...we have about 12 courses in a staff category. How do i, as you say, prevent enrolment in that category?
Cheers
This sounds a lot more cumbersome than I had first hoped. We have over 1,100 users (including about 100 staff so far) and the list box does not let you sort by name or email address so its very tricky to select all the staff members and not miss someone out. Also when new staff arrive they would need to be assigned a staff role in every context that is staff only.
I was hoping roles would enable us to specify at the site level, or even in each users profile, which of our users are staff, academic staff, support staff etc, and then, for any context, simply prohibit or allow those roles access.
Say for example we wanted to add a feedback or forum to the frontpage that is only visible to 'support staff'. That would not be possible with the current implementation of roles?
One more question...we have about 12 courses in a staff category. How do i, as you say, prevent enrolment in that category?
Cheers
Oops, never mind. I've just had a closer look at 'overrides' and it seems that it is indeed possible to 'prohibit' specific roles from accessing a given context.
Thanks again!
Thanks again!