Why care about User Classes?

With recent version of Dynamics GP, the user security model shifted away from user classes to security roles, tasks, and operations.  So, I am often asked why worry about user classes now? 

Microsoft Dynamics GP-Tools-Setup-System-User Classes

Users are assigned to a class in Setup-System-Users

Well, user classes still have a number of benefits in Dynamics GP.  I thought I would take you through some of them.

1. You can assign shortcuts to an entire user class.  Simply log in to Dynamics GP as 'sa', and you will see on your navigation pane a folder for each user class.  Add a shortcut in to one of those folders, and it will appear on the navigation pane for all users that belong to the class.
2. If you are using Account Level Security/Organizational Structures, you can assign an entire class to a branch of the organization structure, Cards-System-Organizational Tree.  This is especially useful when users are added to Dynamics GP, you can place them in to the correct class and they will automatically receive the associated account level security rather than having to assign their user individually to the organizational structure.
3. If you use project accounting, you can restrict access to certain processes and activities in project accounting by user class.  Microsoft Dynamics GP-Tools-Setup-Project-User Classes.  You can control things like being able to change project status, change the billing type of a line item, or add a budget line item "on the fly" from a transaction.

Please feel free to share your own continued uses for User Classes.  These functions may not be important on all implementations, but in some cases User Classes can still be very helpful!

Christina Phillips is a Microsoft Certified Trainer and Dynamics GP Certified Professional. She is a supervising consultant with BKD Technologies, providing training, support, and project management services to new and existing Microsoft Dynamics customers. This blog represents her views only, not those of her employer.