Magentrix offers four distinct user license types, each designed for specific user populations and business needs. Understanding these license types is essential for proper user management, data security, and optimizing your license allocation. Each license type has different data access capabilities, CRM requirements, and licensing models.
Overview of Magentrix Licensing
User licenses in Magentrix control two critical aspects of portal access:
Data Visibility Scope: License types determine whether users can access all organizational data or only data related to their specific Account and Contact records.
CRM Integration Requirements: Different license types have different requirements for Account and Contact record associations in your connected CRM (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or HubSpot).
The license type assigned to each user works in combination with their Security Role to determine exactly what they can access and do within your portal. The license type establishes the scope of data they can see, while the Security Role defines their specific permissions within that scope.
Employee Licenses
Who Uses Employee Licenses
Employee licenses are designed for internal staff within your organization. These users are not associated with any specific Account or Contact record and have the potential to access data across your entire organization.
Data Access
Employee users have full organizational data access without account-based restrictions. They can view and manage organizational data that falls within their Security Role permissions, regardless of Account associations. This unrestricted data access makes Employee licenses appropriate only for trusted internal staff.
Capabilities
Employee users can be assigned various levels of access and administrative capabilities:
- Full Administrator System Role: Complete portal access including system settings, user management, portal design, and all modules
- Limited Administrative Permissions: Specific administrative capabilities such as creating courses, managing articles and FAQs, or handling specific content areas without full system access
- Standard Employee Access: Access to organizational data and modules based on Security Role configuration without any administrative permissions
CRM Requirements
Employee users do not require associated Account or Contact records in your CRM. This is a critical distinction from Partner and Customer users, and incorrect associations can cause data access issues.
License Limits
Employee users are subject to your Employee license allocation. Monitor license consumption through Company Preferences to track usage and plan for growth.
Important Considerations
Employee users assigned Employee Security Roles cannot later be changed to Partner or Customer roles due to fundamental differences in how these license types function. Plan user types carefully during initial creation to avoid this limitation.
Partner User Licenses
Who Uses Partner User Licenses
Partner User licenses are designed for external partners, distributors, resellers, or other business partners who need to access your portal. These users represent individuals from partner organizations that have business relationships with your company.
Data Access
Partner users can only access data related to their specific Account and associated Contact records. Data visibility is automatically filtered based on:
- The Account record they are associated with
- Account hierarchy relationships configured in your CRM
- Entity relationships to Account and Contact records
This account-based filtering ensures partners only see data relevant to their business relationship with your organization.
Capabilities
Partner users can:
- Access partner-specific modules and content
- View and manage records associated with their Account
- Collaborate within their account hierarchy (if configured)
- Participate in communities, training, and resources shared with them
Partner users cannot access administrative functions or data belonging to other partner organizations.
CRM Requirements
Partner users must have both Account and Contact records in your connected CRM (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or HubSpot). These associations are critical for proper data filtering and security. The system uses these records to automatically determine what data each partner user can access.
Licensing Model
Partner User licenses are priced in user-based tiers. Each active Partner user consumes one license from your allocation. You purchase licenses in tiers (e.g., 25, 50, 100 users) based on your partner user population.
For detailed pricing information, visit https://www.magentrix.com/pricing/partner-portal.
Ideal Use Cases
Partner User licenses work best when:
- You have a predictable number of partner users
- Partner organizations have small, consistent user bases
- You need precise control over individual user access
- User counts are relatively stable across partner organizations
Partner Account-Based Licenses
Who Uses Partner Account-Based Licenses
Partner Account-Based licenses are designed for external partners when you prefer to license by organization rather than by individual users. This license type is ideal for partners with large or unpredictable user bases.
Data Access
Like Partner User licenses, Partner Account-Based license users can only access data related to their specific Account and associated Contact records. Data filtering works identically to Partner User licenses, maintaining the same security boundaries.
How It Differs from Partner User Licenses
The key difference is in the licensing model, not the functionality:
Partner User Licenses: Licensed per individual user (e.g., 50 user licenses = 50 active users total across all partner organizations)
Partner Account-Based Licenses: Licensed per partner Account (e.g., 10 Partner Account licenses = users from 10 different partner organizations can be activated with unlimited users per licensed Account)
Capabilities
Users under Partner Account-Based licenses have identical capabilities to Partner User license holders:
- Access to partner-specific modules and content
- View and manage records within their Account scope
- Collaboration within account hierarchy
- Participation in shared communities and resources
CRM Requirements
Partner Account-Based users must have both Account and Contact records in your connected CRM (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or HubSpot) for proper data filtering, just like Partner User licenses.
Licensing Model
Licensed by the number of Partner Accounts rather than individual users. For example, if you purchase 10 Partner Account licenses, you can activate users from 10 different partner organizations, with each licensed Account supporting any number of active users.
For detailed pricing information, visit https://www.magentrix.com/pricing/partner-portal.
Ideal Use Cases
Partner Account-Based licenses are ideal when:
- Partner organizations have large user bases (10+ users per partner)
- User counts are unpredictable or fluctuate significantly
- Partners need flexibility to add/remove users without licensing constraints
- You want to simplify license management by focusing on partner organizations rather than individual users
- Partners handle their own user management through Team Access
Example Scenario
If you have 10 Partner Account licenses:
- Account A can have 50 active users
- Account B can have 5 active users
- Account C can have 100 active users
- All users across these 10 licensed Accounts can access the portal simultaneously
- Adding users within a licensed Account does not require additional licenses
- Adding an 11th partner organization would require purchasing additional Account licenses
Customer User Licenses
Who Uses Customer User Licenses
Customer User licenses are designed for your customers who need to access support, resources, or community features through your portal. These users represent individuals from customer organizations.
Data Access
Customer users can only access data related to their specific Account and associated Contact records. Like Partner users, their data visibility is automatically filtered based on:
- The Account record they are associated with
- Account hierarchy relationships (if applicable)
- Entity relationships to Account and Contact records
Capabilities
Customer users can:
- Access customer support and service features
- View and manage support cases, tickets, or requests
- Access knowledge base articles and documentation
- Participate in customer communities
- View purchase history and account information (based on Security Role)
- Engage with customer success resources
Customer users cannot access administrative functions, partner-specific modules, or data belonging to other customer organizations.
CRM Requirements
Customer users must have both Account and Contact records in your connected CRM (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or HubSpot). These associations are essential for proper data filtering and ensuring customers only see their own data.
Licensing Model
Customer User licenses are priced in user-based tiers. Each active Customer user consumes one license from your allocation. Tiers typically accommodate different customer community sizes (e.g., 100, 500, 1,000+ users).
For detailed pricing information, visit https://www.magentrix.com/pricing/customer-portal.
License Limits
Customer users are subject to your Customer User license tier limits. When you reach your limit, you must upgrade your tier to activate additional users.
License Comparison Table
| Feature | Employee License | Partner User License | Partner Account-Based | Customer User License |
|---|
| Ideal User | Internal Staff | Individual Partners | Partner Organizations | Individual Customers |
|---|
| Data Scope | Organizational | Account-Based | Account-Based | Account-Based |
|---|
| CRM Record Required | No | Account & Contact | Account & Contact | Account & Contact |
|---|
| Licensing Model | Per User | Per User (Tiers) | Per Account (Tiers) | Per User (Tiers) |
|---|
License Assignment Methods
Magentrix provides two methods for assigning licenses to users, each suitable for different workflows and organizational needs.
Automatic License Assignment
For Partner and Customer users with CRM integration, you can configure automatic license assignment based on specific fields on the Contact object in your connected CRM (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or HubSpot).
How It Works: Configure two specific fields on your Contact records that determine user license type and activation status. When these field values meet your configured criteria, Magentrix automatically creates and activates the user with the appropriate license type.
Benefits:
- Streamlined user onboarding process
- Reduced manual administrative work
- Ensures consistent license assignment
- Users receive immediate access when criteria are met
- Activation emails sent automatically
Best For: Organizations with consistent CRM data management practices and high volumes of Partner or Customer users.
Manual License Assignment
Administrators can create users individually or in bulk directly within the Magentrix administrative interface.
Individual User Creation: Create users one at a time through the administrative interface, manually selecting the appropriate license type and Security Role for each user.
Bulk User Creation: Import multiple users via CSV file, assigning a default Security Role and license type to all users in the batch.
Benefits:
- Complete control over user creation timing
- Flexibility to customize each user's configuration
- Useful when automatic criteria don't fit your workflow
- Allows review before activation
Best For: Smaller user populations, special cases that don't fit automatic criteria, or organizations without robust CRM field management.
Managing License Limits
Monitoring License Consumption
Track your current license usage through Company Preferences in your administrative interface. The User Licenses table displays:
- Employee Licenses: Current allocation and usage for internal staff
- Partner User Licenses: Allocation and consumption for partner user access
- Customer User Licenses: Allocation and consumption for customer user access
- Partner Account-Based Licenses: Account-level licensing allocation and usage
Regular monitoring helps you anticipate when additional licenses may be needed and track adoption patterns across user types.
License Limit Management
Understanding how license limits work is critical for planning user onboarding:
At Capacity: When you reach your license limits, the system prevents activating additional users. You can still create inactive user accounts beyond your limits for future activation.
Activation Restrictions: Active users consume licenses from your allocation. Inactive users do not consume licenses and cannot log in to the portal.
Freeing Up Licenses: To activate additional users when at capacity, you must either:
- Deactivate existing users to free up licenses
- Upgrade your license tier through Magentrix sales
Important Notes:
- Users cannot be deleted from the system, only deactivated
- When users are deactivated, their license is released and becomes available for other users
- Deactivated users can be reactivated later, consuming a license again
- For permanent data removal, users can be anonymized for privacy compliance
No Automatic Warnings
The system does not currently provide advance warnings when approaching license limits. Administrators should proactively monitor license consumption to avoid hitting limits during critical onboarding periods.
Expansion Process
To add additional licenses or upgrade your tier, contact your Magentrix account manager or sales team. Plan ahead for anticipated growth to ensure licenses are available when needed.
Security and Permissions
User access in Magentrix is controlled through two complementary mechanisms:
License Type - Data Scope
The license type determines the fundamental scope of what data a user can see:
- Employee Licenses: Organizational data access (all data within Security Role permissions)
- Partner/Customer Licenses: Account-based data access (only data related to their Account and Contact)
- Partner Account-Based Licenses: Account-based data access (functionally identical to Partner User licenses)
Security Role - Specific Permissions
Within the data scope determined by license type, Security Roles define:
- Which entities (objects) the user can access
- What actions they can perform (Read, Create, Edit, Delete)
- Which fields are visible or editable
- Which modules and features are available
- Whether administrative capabilities are enabled
For detailed information about configuring Security Roles and permissions, see About Security Roles.
Best Practices for License Management
Plan License Allocation
- Monitor license usage regularly through Company Preferences
- Anticipate when you'll need additional licenses based on growth projections
- Review usage quarterly to ensure optimal allocation across license types
- Plan for seasonal variations in user activity
Test User Access
- Create test users in each license type before full deployment
- Validate that data filtering works correctly for Partner and Customer users
- Test Security Role permissions with sample users
- Verify CRM associations produce expected data access results
Limit Administrator Access
- Only assign full Administrator System Role to users who need complete system access
- Use limited administrative permissions for Employee users who need specific administrative capabilities
- Regularly audit users with administrative access
- Remove administrative permissions when no longer needed
Leverage CRM Integration
- Use automatic user creation for Partner and Customer users to reduce manual overhead
- Maintain clean CRM data to ensure proper automatic license assignment
- Establish clear field criteria for automatic user activation
- Document your automatic assignment rules for future reference
Regular Account Cleanup
- Periodically review active user accounts and deactivate unused ones
- Monitor login activity to identify inactive users
- Deactivate users who have left partner or customer organizations
- Optimize license usage by freeing up unused licenses
License Type Planning
- Evaluate whether Partner User or Partner Account-Based licenses better fit your partner ecosystem
- Consider partner organization sizes when choosing licensing models
- Plan for growth by choosing scalable license types
- Document your license assignment strategy for consistency
CRM Data Management
- Ensure Account and Contact records are properly maintained for Partner and Customer users
- Validate Account hierarchy relationships support your security requirements
- Regularly audit CRM associations for accuracy
- Coordinate with CRM administrators on data quality initiatives
See Also