Admin Panel Overview

The admin panel is where you configure and manage all aspects of AD Group Manager Web. Only users listed in AdminUsers or members of groups listed in AdminGroups in appsettings.json have access to the admin panel.

When an admin user logs in, they are redirected directly to the admin panel (Settings page) instead of the All Groups page.

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Admin navigation

The admin panel has the following sections, accessible via the navigation bar at the top:

Section	What it does
Logging	View and search the audit log of all membership changes, group edits, and member edits.
Fields	Configure which Active Directory attributes are visible and editable for groups and members.
License	Enter your license key, manage your trial, and view license status.
Settings	Configure core application behavior: logging, domain, editing permissions, search, exports, object types, group visibility, bulk operations, time-limited membership, and branding.
Notifications	Set up SMTP, instant email notifications for membership changes, and scheduled reports.
Interface Customization	Translate all UI text elements, apply language presets (French, German), and customize branding text.
Group Discovery	Enable and configure the self-service group discovery and access request feature.
Access Requests	Review, approve, or deny pending group access requests from users.

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Getting started with configuration

If you have just installed AD Group Manager Web, here is a recommended order for initial configuration:

1. License — enter your license key or start your trial.
2. Settings — enable audit logging, configure search restrictions, set editing and export permissions.
3. Fields — choose which AD attributes managers can see and edit.
4. Notifications — configure SMTP and enable email alerts for membership changes.
5. Interface Customization — translate the UI or customize branding if needed.
6. Group Discovery — optionally enable self-service group discovery.

After this initial setup, test the application by logging in as a group manager to verify the experience matches your expectations.

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Admin vs. manager roles

Capability	Admin	Manager
Access admin panel	Yes	No
Configure settings, fields, notifications	Yes	No
View audit logs	Yes	No
Manage license	Yes	No
View managed groups	No (redirected to admin panel)	Yes
Add/remove group members	No	Yes
Edit group/member properties	No	Yes (if enabled)
Export data	No	Yes (if enabled)
Process access requests	Yes (all requests)	Yes (only for their groups)

Admin users and manager users are separate roles. A user who is both an admin and a manager will be redirected to the admin panel on login. To test the manager experience, use a separate non-admin account.