What is changing with user roles in ShopView?
ShopView is rolling out a big improvement to how user permissions work. Until now, every user had one of 15 fixed roles that couldn't be changed. Soon you'll be able to create your own custom roles, or choose from one of the 11 roles we've created for you.
Your existing users will be migrated automatically to the closest matching new role, so nothing breaks. A few roles have been renamed, combined, or adjusted. This article walks through what changes for each current role so there are no surprises.
Do I need to do anything before the update?
No, the migration is automatic. Here are a couple things to look out for:
Owners: The Owner role is retiring and Owners become Admins. Decide which users should hold App Settings access, since Admin accounts are no longer specially protected from other Admins.
Reporting users: The Reporting role is being deprecated. These users' experience changes the most. Check out this article for details: Custom Roles and Permissions: Complete Guide (Live on Thursday, July 16th)
What changes apply to all roles?
A few things now work the same way across every role:
Financial visibility is now a single switch ("See Financial Data"). When it's off, prices, costs, and margins are hidden consistently everywhere.
Customer balances and payments are a separate switch ("See & Manage AP/ AR") it controls the payment/transaction tabs, aging reports, and sensitive customer financial fields.
Reports and Settings access have been decoupled. You can individually control who has access to Reports and who has access to Settings.
Anything a new role removes, you can add back by modifying the new roles or creating a custom role.
What changes for each role
Find your current role below to see the new role it becomes, what you gain, and what changes.
I'm an Owner, what changes for me?
New role: Admin (the Owner role is retiring).
You gain: the ability to create and customize your own roles.
What changes: Former Owners become Admins with the same day-to-day access. Admin accounts are no longer specially protected from other Admins.
Action needed: Decide who should hold App Settings access.
I'm an Administrator, what changes for me?
New role: Admin.
You gain: editing a part's cost and part number on a work order; creating and customizing roles; Customer Portal and Billing Portal access.
What changes: Nothing is removed. No action needed.
I'm a Service Manager, what changes for me?
New role: Service Manager (same name).
You gain: opening the parts catalog and adjusting inventory; full vendor and purchase-order management; picking and ordering parts; taking customer payments and seeing balances; deleting customers; Billing Portal and Customer Portal; managing staff and roles.
What changes: The Parts, Finance, and Data Import settings screens are no longer included (App Settings and Wages remain). No action needed.
I'm a Service Advisor, what changes for me?
New role: Senior Service Advisor (renamed and expanded).
You gain: deleting work orders; picking and ordering parts and creating purchase orders; adding and editing catalog/inventory; full vendor and order management; editing timesheets; Customer Portal; and See & Manage AP/AR payment tabs, reports, taking and reversing payments, and sensitive customer financial fields.
What changes: Nothing is removed. No action needed.
I'm a Service Advisor (No Reports), what changes for me?
New role: Senior Service Advisor (roles combined).
You gain: editing timesheets; Customer Portal; viewing history logs.
What changes: Nothing is removed. No action needed.
I'm a Service Advisor Technician, what changes for me?
New role: Service Advisor.
What changes: Your day-to-day access carries over to the new Service Advisor role. No action needed.
I'm a Service Advisor (Limited View), what changes for me?
New role: Service Advisor.
You gain: Customer Portal; viewing history logs.
What changes: Nothing is removed. No action needed.
I'm a Foreman, what changes for me?
New role: Foreman (same name).
You gain: ordering parts (this fixes the old "can't receive parts" limitation); picking parts; adding and editing catalog/inventory; vendor and order management (view/edit); creating invoices and processing payments; viewing part and order history; sending work orders to the Customer Portal.
What changes: Timesheets become view-only. No action needed.
I'm a Technician, what changes for me?
New role: Technician (same name).
You gain: moving parts between work orders.
What changes: The Schedule is now view-only (you can't create or reschedule appointments), and the Work Order timesheets page is no longer accessible. No action needed.
I'm a Parts Manager, what changes for me?
New role: Parts Manager (same name).
You gain: full work-order create/edit including reassigning the lead technician or advisor; editing part cost and part number; deleting part sales, customers, catalog and vendor records; all reports; Customer Portal; Finance and Data Import settings; reversing invoices.
What changes: You can no longer manage staff or user accounts. No action needed.
I'm a Parts Technician, what changes for me?
New role: Parts Technician (same name).
You gain: managing customers (create and edit); creating catalog and inventory items; creating and emailing purchase orders and ordering parts; taking part-sale deposits and payments; viewing history logs; viewing the schedule.
What changes: You can no longer manage part requests on a work-order line; invoicing is limited to the part-sale path (no full invoice access); you cannot reverse or delete invoices.
Good to know: On older accounts, catalog access may be briefly unavailable right after the update while it finishes applying.
I'm an Office User, what changes for me?
New role: Office User (now a fixed role, clone it to customize).
You gain: deleting customers and their vehicles; creating and editing timesheets; creating and customizing user roles; the paid-invoice list now loads correctly.
What changes: Work Orders and Part Sales are no longer accessible. Catalog/Inventory and Vendor/PO screens become view-only. You can still manage payments, deposits, and credits, and edit or reverse existing invoices from the customer/accounts side, but you cannot create new invoices. Office Users can no longer be assigned as Lead Technician or Service Advisor. No action needed.
I'm a Sales Representative, what changes for me?
New role: Sales Representative (same name).
You gain: a dedicated "See & Manage AP/AR" switch; you can view work orders, view and edit customers, and view part sales.
What changes: Nothing is removed. No action needed.
I'm a Reporting user, what changes for me?
New role: Sales Representative (the Reporting role is retiring).
The Reporting role is being deprecated. Reporting users will be moved to the new Sales Representative role, which provides full reporting access with financial and AR/AP data.
I'm a Time Clock User, what changes for me?
New role: Time Clock User (now a fixed role).
You gain: viewing Work Orders, the Schedule, and your own Timesheets (read-only); you now land on a valid page after login.
What changes: The pricing column on work orders is removed (it was showing by mistake). No action needed.
Frequently asked questions
Will my team lose access when the update happens?
No. Every user is migrated automatically to the closest matching new role, so nothing breaks. The role-by-role sections above list the specific adjustments.
A capability my team relied on was removed. Can I get it back?
Yes. Anything a new role removes can be added back. Modify the new role or create a custom role with that capability switched on.
What is a custom role?
A role you create yourself. Start from one of the built-in role templates, then switch individual capabilities on or off to fit exactly how your shop works. Check out this article for details: Custom Roles and Permissions: Complete Guide (Live on Thursday, July 16th)
Why can't a user see prices or costs anymore?
Financial visibility is now controlled by a single switch called See Financial Data. When it's off for a role, prices, costs, and margins are hidden consistently everywhere. Turn it on for that role to restore financial visibility.
Why can't a user see customer balances or payment tabs?
Customer balances and payments are controlled by a separate switch called See & Manage AP/AR. It covers the payment/transaction tabs, aging reports, and sensitive customer financial fields.
What happened to the Owner role?
The Owner role is retiring. Former Owners become Admins with the same day-to-day access, plus the ability to create and customize roles. Note that Admin accounts are no longer specially protected from other Admins, so decide who should hold App Settings access.
What happened to the Reporting role?
It is being deprecated. Reporting users move to the new Sales Representative role, which provides full reporting access with financial and AR/AP data. We'll reach out to affected users directly.