The “Startup” User
For newly installed PhixFlow instances a special user called “Startup” with password “Startup” is created specifically for the creation of the first users. After setting up initial users (and of course at least one user with the “Administer Users, User Groups and Roles” privilege) the ‘Startup’ user must be blocked from logging in by unchecking its ‘Login Allowed’ flag on the user details form or by deleting the user from the system entirely.
Should you accidentally disable or delete all users with the ability to administer other users, please contact your PhixFlow support team.
Create User
Users are added through the “User list” which shows all users configured in PhixFlow. To add a new user please carry out the following (note that you must have the privilege “Administer Users, User Groups and Roles”):
Open the User List
Open the user list by clicking on the users button on the left hand side of the main PhixFlow menu. ‘Pin’ the User menu open by pressing theicon.
Please note you may find it useful to open and pin the list of available User Groups at this stage too (although User Groups are not required until later), this is done by clicking the button either in the current window or along the left hand side of the PhixFlow main window. ‘Pin’ the User Group menu open by pressing theicon.
From the user list you can open the detailed user list by pressing
Add a User
To add a user press the green ‘plus’ sign which brings up the ‘User Editor’ form. The following fields must now be completed:
Field | Description | Example Value |
First Name | User's first name | John |
Last Name | User's last name | Smith |
Language | Select a value from the drop-down list | English |
Default Dashboard | Select a value from the drop-down list | <null> |
Email address | User's email address | |
Send Alerts By Email | Check if the user wishes to receive updates by email when specific Alarms are raised | Checked |
Mobile Number | User's mobile number | <null> |
Send Alerts By SMS | Check if the user wishes to receive updates by SMS when specific Alarms are raised | Not checked |
Login Name | The name that the user will log in to PhixFlow with | jsmith |
Password | The password that the user will log in to PhixFlow with | A53yu9PLEd89 |
Confirm Password | Second entry of password to confirm spelling. | A53yu9PLEd89 |
Allow Login | Check when the configuration is complete and this user is ready to go live. Uncheck when you want to remove the right of this user to login. | Checked |
Before moving on to the next section you must apply the changes you have made so far by pressing the ‘apply’ icon . Please note, you could also use the ‘OK’ icon but this would close the User window and you would have to open it again to proceed.
Associate User Groups
Select the ‘User Groups’ tab on the user details form to specify the User Groups which should contain the newly created User.
User Groups are added to the User by dragging and dropping the required User Group from the list of all User Groups.
To associate a User Group to a User, open the list of available User Groups (if not already open) by clicking the button either in the current window or along the left hand side of the PhixFlow main window. ‘Pin’ the User Group menu open by pressing the icon.
Drag and drop the required User Groups onto the User Groups view in the User Editor form. Once done, click OK and the User creation process is complete.
The screen shot below shows a User Group (Operators) being dragged over to the User window, the User Group being dragged is circled in red. The solid arrow shows the path the Users have travelled. Once it has reached the User Group tab (path shown by dotted arrow) it will be released.
The screen shot below shows the User Group once it has been added:
Associate Multiple Users to a User Group
If you are creating multiple new users who require the same User Group then these Users can be added in bulk to the User Group by the following method:
- Create each user individually
- Open the User Group you wish to associate all the users to
- Highlight all the users you wish to add from the User list (hold down the Control key and select them all) then drag and drop into the Group Members tab of the User Group.
Please note, in this method you are dragging and dropping Users onto the User Group window rather than User Groups onto the User window. The overall effect is the same in PhixFlow, this method is just described as it may be easier when creating a large number of users all associated to the same User Group.
The screen shot below shows 3 Users (A Test, Administrator and Albert Einstein) being dragged over to the Group Members tab of the User Group window. The Users being dragged are circled in red. The solid arrow shows the path the Users have travelled. Once they have reached the Group Members tab (path shown by dotted arrow) they will be dropped.
The screen shot below shows the 3 Users once they have been added:
Delete Users
Note that Users are referenced in several places within PhixFlow e.g. they have assigned alarms and user tasks. Users are also referenced on rules in Alarm Generators and Workflow Transitions e.g. who should an alarm be assigned to, who should emails be sent to etc. If a user is deleted, all references to that user will be removed. Note however that log messages and audit trails will still maintain a record of the actions performed by a deleted user.
To delete a user open the User list by clicking on the Users button on the left hand side of the main PhixFlow menu. Select one or more users and press the red cross on the top of the list. A warning will appear advising you that you are about to delete the user:
- Press “Cancel” to quit without deleting the User
- Press “Permanently Delete” to remove the User
Note: Please contact your PhixFlow support group if you occidentally delete a user.
Change User Passwords
A user with the “Set User passwords” Privilege can change user passwords (even if they have no other Privilege). To change a user password:
Open the user list by clicking on the users button on the left hand side of the main PhixFlow menu and double click on the user whose password should be changed.
- Enter the new password in the “Password” field.
- Enter the new password again in the “Confirm Password” field
- Do not change any other field (unless you have the “Administer Users, User Groups and Roles” privilege).
- Press the ‘apply ‘ ’ or the ‘OK’ icon
The user should now log in from another terminal with the new password.