NetSuite Roles Overview

A role is a defined access configuration. To set up and manage user access to your NetSuite account, you must have the Administrator role to set up roles that can be assigned to users. Roles include sets of permissions for viewing and editing data. Roles and their permissions determine the pages that users can see in the NetSuite interface and the tasks that they can complete. Each role is associated with a center, a user interface designed for a particular business area.

Note:

You can designate a user's role as Web Services Only. When a user logs in with a role that has been designated as Web Services Only, validation is performed to ensure that the user is logging in through web services and not through the user interface. For details, see Setting a Web Services Only Role for a User.

Standard Roles

NetSuite provides many standard roles with predefined permissions. Most of these roles map to common employee positions, such as Accountant and Sales Rep. Standard roles also are available for vendors, partners, and customers who have account access. For more information, see Standard Roles Permissions Table.

Custom Roles

Standard roles cannot be modified, so it is a good idea to use these roles as templates to create your own customized roles that you assign to users in your account. The process for customizing a standard role is easier than creating a new role. If you assign custom roles rather than standard roles to users, you can make permission changes to users' assigned roles as needed. The ability to modify a role without having to change multiple users' role assignments simplifies maintenance.

Note:

Because of thy are intended as limited access roles, Retail Clerk roles, unlike other standard NetSuite roles, cannot be customized. For details, see Retail Clerk Roles.

Manage Roles Page

To see a list of roles available in your account, go to Setup > Users/Roles > Manage Roles to open the Manage Roles page. This page indicates the center associated with each role and whether the role is standard or custom. For information about center types, see Centers Overview.

Click Customize to create a custom version of a standard role. Click Edit to make changes to a custom role.

Manage Roles page.

Show Permission Differences Between Roles Page

NetSuite provides a management tool that enables you to see at a glance the differences among multiple roles' permissions. Go to Setup > Users/Roles > Show Role Differences to open the Show Permission Differences Between Roles page. For more information, see Showing Role Permission Differences.

Role Permission Differences page.

Role Search

You can use the role search to find a particular role or set of roles, or to return a list of roles and their characteristics. To access this search, go to Setup > Users/Roles > Manage Roles > Search. Role fields also are available as criteria filters and results for Employee searches. For more information, see Use Searches to Audit Roles.

Note:

To see a list of all users assigned a particular role, go to Setup > Users/Roles > Manage Users, and select the role from the Role dropdown list at the bottom of the Manage Users page.

Related Topics

General Notices