Managing Users
Kanera has two common ways people get access to work:
- Workspace users: people in your organisation who are added to a workspace.
- Guests: people outside your organisation who are invited to selected boards only.
The distinction matters. Workspace users can work across the workspace according to their role. Guests are narrow board-level collaborators for external people such as clients, contractors, vendors, or partners. Guests must use a different email domain from the organisation owner.
Open user settings
- Open the workspace.
- Go to Workspace settings.
- Choose Members to manage workspace users.
- Choose Guests to manage external board guests.
Main concepts
| Person type | Belongs to your org? | Counts toward seats? | Access scope | Where to manage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Organisation user | Yes | Yes | Can be added to one or more workspaces. | Organisation user settings, then workspace Members. |
| Workspace user | Yes | Yes | Workspace access, including the boards that workspace role can reach. | Workspace settings -> Members. |
| Guest | No | No for one or two boards. Yes for three or more boards on hosted Pro. | Specific board access only. The guest email domain must differ from the organisation owner's domain. | Workspace settings -> Guests. |
The most important rule is simple: guests are external and board-only. If someone should be part of your organisation's operating team, add them to the organisation and then to the workspace instead.
Workspace users are organisation users, so they count toward your organisation's seats. Guests are external board-only collaborators. On hosted Pro, guest access to one or two boards is included; guest access to three or more boards requires a paid seat licence.
When to use members vs guests
| Situation | Use |
|---|---|
| Employee, internal teammate, or long-term collaborator | Organisation user + workspace member |
| Project manager who needs Assigned Work across boards | Workspace member |
| Client who only needs one delivery board | Guest |
| Contractor who only needs one or two boards | Guest |
| External partner who needs three or more specific boards | Guest with a paid seat licence |
| External partner who needs broad workspace access or ongoing team access | Organisation user + workspace member |
| Someone who only needs to read a board | Observer role, either as workspace member or guest depending on whether they are internal or external |
When in doubt, ask whether the person is part of your organisation's operating team. If yes, add them to the organisation and workspace. If no, invite them as a guest. If that guest needs three or more boards on hosted Pro, assign a paid seat licence.
If the person uses the same email domain as the organisation owner, add them as an organisation user instead of a guest.