Tableau Site Roles & Tableau Licenses

In Tableau, site roles define the level of access and permissions that users have within a Tableau Server or Tableau Online environment. These roles are hierarchical, with each role granting different levels of access and capabilities. Here’s a breakdown of the typical site roles in Tableau, arranged in a hierarchical manner:

Site Roles:

Server Administrator:

• As the highest level of authority, Server Administrators have full control over the Tableau Server or Tableau Online environment.
• They have the ability to manage users, groups, projects, and content, as well as configure server settings, schedules, and permissions.
• Server Administrators can also perform administrative tasks such as server monitoring, backup, and maintenance.

Site Administrator:

• Site Administrators have administrative privileges limited to a specific site within the Tableau Server or Tableau Online environment.
• They can manage users, groups, projects, and content within their assigned site, but they do not have access to server-wide settings or configurations.
• Site Administrators can configure permissions, schedules, and other site-specific settings.

Project Leader:

• Project Leaders have administrative privileges limited to a specific project within a site.
• They can manage users, groups, and content within their assigned project, but they do not have access to site-wide or server-wide settings.
• Project Leaders can configure permissions, schedules, and other project-specific settings.

Publisher:

• Publishers have the ability to publish workbooks and data sources to the Tableau Server or Tableau Online environment.
• They can create, edit, and delete content within their assigned projects, but they do not have administrative privileges.
• Publishers can share content with other users and groups and set permissions for accessing published content.

Interactor:

• Interactors have the ability to view and interact with published workbooks and data sources on the Tableau Server or Tableau Online environment.
• They can filter, drill down, and explore data within published content, but they cannot create or edit content.
• Interactors can also create and save their own views and subscriptions based on published content.

Viewer:

• Viewers have the most limited access level and can only view published workbooks and data sources on the Tableau Server or Tableau Online environment.
• They cannot interact with the data or create any content themselves.
• Viewers are typically used for stakeholders or users who only need to consume information without making any changes.

These roles provide a structured approach to managing access and permissions within Tableau environments, ensuring that users have the appropriate level of access based on their responsibilities and requirements.

_______________________________________________________________

Licenses:

Licenses in Tableau refer to the type of user subscription or entitlement that grants access to Tableau Server or Tableau Online. Tableau licenses are typically categorized as Creator, Explorer, and Viewer licenses, each with different sets of features and capabilities.

Creator License:

• Provides full access to Tableau Desktop and Tableau Server functionalities.
• Users with Creator licenses can create, publish, and interact with Tableau content.
• They can develop visualizations, build dashboards, connect to data sources, publish their work to Tableau Server or Tableau Online, and collaborate with other users.

Explorer License:

• Offers access to Tableau Server or Tableau Online for data exploration, analysis, and interaction.
• Users with Explorer licenses can view and interact with published content but do not have content creation capabilities.
• They can explore visualizations, apply filters, drill down into data, create their own views, and share insights with colleagues.

Viewer License:

• Provides viewing-only access to Tableau content published on Tableau Server or Tableau Online.
• Users with Viewer licenses can view and interact with published dashboards and reports but cannot create or edit content.
• They have read-only access to the visualizations and cannot modify any aspects of the content.

_______________________________________________________________

Example:

Let’s consider an organization with a Tableau Server deployment that includes multiple sites: Finance, Marketing, and Sales. Within the Finance site, there are users assigned different site roles:

• A Server Administrator oversees the entire Tableau Server instance.
• Site Administrators manage users, groups, and content within the Finance site.
• Project Leaders oversee specific projects within the Finance site.
• Publishers create and publish financial reports and dashboards.
• Interactors analyze financial data and interact with published content.
• Viewers have read-only access to financial reports.

Conclusion:

Each user’s role within the Finance site is determined by their Tableau license, whether they have Creator, Explorer, or Viewer licenses. For example, users with Creator licenses can publish content, while those with Viewer licenses can only view content.

For More Details — Tableau : Tableau Server vs Tableau Site | by Kanchandendge | Apr, 2024 | Medium