Manage Directories FAQ

To allow for easier access and differentiation between contact and group types (or classifications), you now have access to the Manage Directories module. All of your contacts (formerly internal members) and groups can now be managed per classification. Admin and Public Subscriber management tools still have their dedicated links from the main navigation.

A user or group classification identifies the type of contact or group and determines which directory they will be placed in. Admins with permission to edit groups and contacts can modify the classification of groups and contacts from the details view if needed (see the following Contact and Group classification screenshots). Currently, there are two classifications available in the system: Internal and Public.

An Internal Contact, or Internal Member, is an individual who can receive alerts within your organization. Their only role is to receive and respond to alerts sent through the Mass Notification system. Internal Groups are only available for communication within the system, and users are assigned to them by an administrator

A Public Contact, or Public Member, is an individual who has subscribed to receive public communication from the Mass Notification system. Public Groups are available for public communication and allow users to manage their group membership.

Note:

For customers with split directory permission: For administrators with the ability to manage contacts, the Public Contacts and Public Groups menu items are restricted to administrators who are authorized to send alerts to public contacts.

Manage a Contact's Classification

On the Edit form for an internal or public contact, use the 'User Type' drop-down menu to select the contact's classification.

Manage a Group's Classification

On the Edit form for an internal or public group, use the 'Classification' drop-down menu to select the group's classification.

Note:

It is important to make sure that classifications are consistent when creating and managing child groups. For instance, if you have a parent group called Public Groups, and a child group called Emergency Alerts, they should both have the same classification.

A child group or subgroup is any group that is nested within another group. In the following screenshot, 'Internal' would be considered a parent group, and 'All Staff' and 'Fire Department' would be considered child groups.

Note:

When creating nested group structures, users should only be placed into the lowest level of nesting. Using the previous screenshot, you'll notice there are no contacts in the Internal or Fire Department groups. Since both groups contain child groups, all of the contacts are placed in groups at the lowest level within the group tree.

The classification of groups must be consistent throughout the entire group tree/structure. If you are not seeing all of your groups, there is likely a conflict with the missing group's classification. Luckily, there is built-in tooling to help resolve these issues. Use the following instructions to resolve any conflicts:

1. Look for any groups that have the warning (blue triangle and exclamation point) icon. This indicates that the highlighted group's classification does not match its parent's classification.

2. To resolve this, click on the highlighted group's name and edit the classification.

3. Then click the Save Changes button. When you return to the Groups page, you'll notice the group is now visible on the appropriate Internal or Public Groups page.

When navigating your group structure, you may see different icons before or after the group's name. The following is an overview of what each icon means.