Overview
User Group Reservation Policies allow Platform Administrators to control how specific groups of users interact with the reservation system. These policies define which space types a group can access, how long reservations can last, how many reservations a user can make per day, and whether reservations require manual approval.
Policies are configured within the Access Policies section of each user group's settings page. Each user group can have its own set of reservation rules, enabling institutions to tailor the booking experience for different populations (such as faculty, students, or staff).
Who Should Read This
- Platform Administrators responsible for configuring reservation rules for different user populations
Prerequisites
- Platform Admin role
- At least one user group created (or the default group)
- Space types configured in the platform
What User Group Reservation Policies Control
User group policies control two categories of rules: space type access and booking behavior.
Space Type Access Restrictions
Space type access determines which types of spaces the user group can see and book.
- No checkboxes selected (default) = The group has access to all space types. This is the most permissive configuration.
- One or more checkboxes selected = The group has access only to the selected space types. This is a restrictive configuration.
Important: The checkbox behavior is intentionally designed so that leaving all checkboxes unchecked grants the broadest access. Selecting checkboxes narrows access to only the chosen space types. When a user in a restricted group searches for spaces, the system will filter the Space Types dropdown to show only the space types their group has access to.
Booking Behavior Rules
In addition to space type access, the following rules can be configured per user group:
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Reservation Duration | The shortest allowed reservation length, in minutes. | No minimum (0) |
| Maximum Reservation Duration | The longest allowed reservation length, in minutes. | No maximum (--) |
| Maximum Total Time Per Day | The total number of minutes a user in this group can reserve across all bookings in a single day. | No limit (--) |
| Maximum Reservations Per Day | The maximum number of separate reservations a user in this group can create in a single day. | No limit (--) |
| Auto-Approve Reservations | When enabled, reservations made by users in this group are automatically approved if the time block is open, bypassing the manual approval workflow. | Off |
| Enforce Building Hours | When enabled, users in this group cannot book outside of the building's configured operating hours. | Off |
Note: Numeric values have a maximum of 9,999.
Step-by-Step: Configuring Reservation Policies for a User Group
- Navigate to Users > User Groups in the Admin panel.
- Click on the user group to configure.
- Scroll down to the Access Policies section below the group's name and description.
- Configure space type access:
- To grant access to all space types, leave all checkboxes unchecked.
- To restrict access to specific space types, select the checkboxes next to the desired space types.
- Configure booking behavior rules:
- Set Minimum Reservation Duration if a minimum booking length is required.
- Set Maximum Reservation Duration to cap how long a single reservation can be.
- Set Maximum Total Time Per Day to limit total daily booking time.
- Set Maximum Reservations Per Day to limit the number of bookings per day.
- Check Auto-Approve Reservations to skip the approval workflow for this group.
- Check Enforce Building Hours to prevent bookings outside operating hours.
- Click Save.
The policies take effect immediately for all users in the group.
Common Policy Configurations
The default group should be configured with the most restrictive baseline access. Custom groups like Faculty and Student then expand access as appropriate for each population.
Faculty Group
Faculty members typically need the broader access — more space types, longer durations, and fewer restrictions compared to the default group.
| Setting | Recommended Value |
|---|---|
| Space type access | No checkboxes selected (access to all space types) |
| Minimum reservation duration | No minimum |
| Maximum reservation duration | No maximum or a generous limit (e.g., 480 minutes / 8 hours) |
| Maximum total time per day | No limit |
| Maximum reservations per day | No limit |
| Auto-approve reservations | Enabled |
| Enforce building hours | Disabled (faculty may need after-hours access) |
Student Group
Students typically need expanded access beyond the default group, but with reasonable limits to ensure fair access across the student population.
| Setting | Recommended Value |
|---|---|
| Space type access | Select specific space types (e.g., Study Rooms, Group Work Rooms) |
| Minimum reservation duration | 30 minutes |
| Maximum reservation duration | 120 minutes (2 hours) |
| Maximum total time per day | 240 minutes (4 hours) |
| Maximum reservations per day | 2 |
| Auto-approve reservations | Enabled or disabled depending on institutional preference |
| Enforce building hours | Enabled |
Settings Reference
Space Type Access Checkboxes
| Configuration | Behavior |
|---|---|
| No checkboxes selected | Group can access ALL space types (most permissive) |
| Some checkboxes selected | Group can access ONLY the selected space types (restrictive) |
Duration and Limit Fields
- All duration fields are entered in minutes.
- A value of 0 or -- (blank) means "no limit" for maximum fields, or "no minimum" for minimum fields.
- The maximum allowed value for any numeric field is 9,999.
- If a minimum duration is set, the maximum duration must be greater than or equal to the minimum.
Special Rules
- Auto-Approve Reservations: Overrides the default approval workflow. Reservations are approved immediately if the requested time block is available. Admins making reservations via the Admin panel are not subject to approval workflows regardless of this setting.
- Enforce Building Hours: Prevents users from creating reservations that start or end outside the building's configured operating hours.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Resolution |
|---|---|
| A user cannot see certain space types when making a reservation | The user's group may have space type restrictions configured. Check the group's Access Policies section to verify which space types are selected. |
| A user receives a policy violation error when creating a reservation | The reservation may exceed a duration limit, daily limit, or booking window restriction configured for the user's group. Review the group's policy settings. |
| Changes to policies are not taking effect | Policies apply based on the user's current group membership. Verify the user is assigned to the correct group under Users > All Users. |
| Auto-approve is enabled but reservations still require approval | Confirm the checkbox is checked and saved in the user group's Access Policies. Also verify the user is assigned to the correct group. |