Roles and Responsibilities in Posit Workbench

It is important to understand the types of Posit Workbench users and the roles and responsibilities of each type of user. Posit Workbench has four types of users:

  1. Workbench Users
  2. Workbench Administrators
  3. Workbench Administrator Superusers
  4. Server Administrators

This guide focuses on the first user type, Workbench Users. If you are a Server Administrator, you are likely looking for the Posit Workbench Administration Guide.

Workbench Users

The most common user type is a Workbench User, who utilizies Workbench for data science development.

You are responsible for:

  • Organizing and maintaining the files in your user’s home directory.
  • Installing R and Python packages within your user’s home directory.
  • Launching, quitting, and suspending sessions for your user.

You are not responsible for and should avoid:

  • Installing new versions of Python or R.
  • Installing R or Python packages in the system libraries.
  • Editing or deleting any files outside of your user’s home directory.

Workbench Administrators

Workbench can have Workbench Administrators. These users have the additional privilege of accessing the administrative dashboard, which can be found using the following URL example:

http://<server-address>/admin
Note

The administrative dashboard is disabled by default. To enable the administrative dashboard, contact your Server Administrator. They can enable the dashboard by following the instructions from the Posit Workbench Administrator Guide.

You are responsible for:

  • Workbench Administrators share all of the same responsibilities as described above for Workbench Users.

Workbench Administrator Superusers

In addition to having access to the administrative dashboard, Workbench Administrative Superusers have the following additional privileges:

  • Suspend or terminate active sessions.
  • Assume control of active sessions (for example, for troubleshooting).
  • Log in to Workbench as any other server user.

Administrative Superusers don’t have root privileges on the system. Instead, they have a narrow set of delegated privileges that are useful in managing and supporting the server.

You are responsible for:

  • Organizing and maintaining the files in your user’s home directory.
  • Installing R and Python packages within your user’s home directory.
  • Launching, closing, and suspending sessions for your user.
  • Helping other users:
    • Manage sessions as required. For example, to help them with troubleshooting.
    • Manage files as required. For example, to help them with troubleshooting.

You are not responsible for and should avoid:

  • Installing new versions of Python or R.
  • Installing R or Python packages in the system library.

For more information on Administrator Superusers, please refer to the Posit Workbench Administrator Guide.

Server Administrators

A Server Administrator is responsible for installing and maintaining the Workbench server(s). Typically, this person has SSH access to the server and root privileges. Often, the person in this role works in IT and is not a Workbench user.

You are responsible for:

  • Installing and updating Workbench.
  • Configuring Workbench settings.
  • Installing and updating R and Python.
  • Determining the package management strategy for R and Python.
  • Configuring network access.
  • Many other tasks! Please refer to the Posit Workbench Administration guide for more details.
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