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Let members find projects they are not on

All plans Owner to turn on; any member to browse

By default, a Member sees only the projects they own or have been added to, on the Projects page and in search. That keeps project contents private, but it also means a Member cannot ask to join a project they have never heard of: the request-access page only appears when someone sends them a link.

The project directory closes that gap. When your organization turns it on, Members get an All projects tab on the Projects page listing the projects they are not on, each with a Request access link. It is controlled by one permission, Browse all project names.

What turning it on discloses

Section titled “What turning it on discloses”

Read this before you turn it on. Every Member who can browse the directory learns that a project with that name exists and who runs it. For most projects that is harmless and is the whole point. For some, the name is sensitive on its own, for example a restructuring or an acquisition code name. That is what the per-project hide is for: a hidden project is left out of the directory entirely, while access to it stays exactly as it was.

Who can browse

Section titled “Who can browse”
  • Members, once the organization grants Browse all project names. It is off for Members by default. The Open and Standard posture presets turn it on.
  • Never Guests, whatever the matrix says. A Guest is told when they are invited that they see only their own project, so the matrix shows Never in the Guest column for this permission.
  • Not Owners, Admins, or Portfolio Managers, in practice. They already hold View all org projects by default and can open every project, so there is nothing for the directory to add. They do not see the All projects tab, and their directory is empty by design.

Turn on the project directory

Section titled “Turn on the project directory”

Only an Owner can save changes to the permission matrix.

  1. Open Organization Settings and go to the Permissions tab.

  2. In the organization-level table, tick Browse all project names in the Member column. Applying the Open or Standard posture does the same.

  3. Select Save Changes. Because this save makes project names browsable, Onplana first shows Turn on the project directory?. It says how many projects Members will be able to see, and lists every project with its owner.

  4. Select Hide next to any project whose name should stay out of the directory, then Hide N and turn it on. If nothing needs hiding, select Turn it on. The hides are saved before the permission, so a hidden name is never browsable, not even for a moment.

To turn the directory off again, untick the cell and save. Nothing needs reviewing in that direction, and any projects you hid stay hidden.

Browse and request access

Section titled “Browse and request access”

  1. Open Projects and select the All projects tab.

  2. Search by name with Search project names…, or scroll the list, which is in alphabetical order. Select Show more for the next page.

  3. Select Request access next to the project you need. The project opens on the You don’t have access to this project page, where you add an optional note and select Request access, exactly as when someone sends you a link. See Request access.

The list leaves out projects you are already on, projects hidden from the directory, and finished projects (marked Completed and at 100% progress). The filters, sort, and saved views on the Projects page apply to the My projects tab only.

Hide a project from the directory

Section titled “Hide a project from the directory”

Anyone who can edit a project’s settings can hide it: the Project Owner and Project Managers, and organization Owners, Admins, and Portfolio Managers by default.

  1. Open the project and select Edit next to its name.

  2. Tick Hide from the project directory.

  3. Select Save Changes.

The checkbox appears only while the directory is on for your organization, or when the project is already hidden, so it can always be unticked again. Hiding changes the listing and nothing else: members keep their access, and anyone who already has the link can still ask for access from the request page.

FAQs

Section titled “FAQs”

Does hiding a project stop people from requesting access? No. It only removes the project from the All projects list. Someone who has the project’s link still sees the request-access page and can ask.

Why is there no All projects tab for me? Either your organization has not turned the directory on, you are a Guest, or your role can already open every project (Owners, Admins, and Portfolio Managers by default). In the last case the My projects list already shows everything.

As an Owner, how do I see what Members will see? Your own directory is empty, because you can open every project. The Turn on the project directory? review lists every project with its owner before anything becomes browsable, and a Member sees that list minus the hidden projects, minus finished ones, and minus the projects they are already on.

Can I give Guests the directory? No. The Guest cell for Browse all project names is fixed at Never. If an external collaborator needs to find projects on their own, invite them as a Member instead.

Does the directory reveal anything else, such as tasks or members? No. A row carries the name and the owner only. Everything else still requires being on the project.

Section titled “Related”