Control what clients can see in Tasks

Set board, section, task, and parent-task access without exposing private client work.

A client can see a task only when every access layer allows it. Check the account, board, section, task, and parent tasks.

Before you start

Only team members can set task, section, and board client-access rules.
Access is resolved for each account member. Two clients can see different work in the same account.
A collaborator or assignee role does not bypass access rules.

Check every visibility layer

A portal member needs all of these:

Active membership in the client account.
Access to the active task board.
Access to the section.
A task that is not private.
Access to every parent task when the item is a subtask.
A task-board view that is enabled and visible to clients when opening that view.

If one layer blocks access, the task does not appear. Direct links repeat the same checks.

Control board access

Open the board menu, then Task board settings or Manage all task boards. Set Portal access to:

Everyone for team members and portal users in the account;
Team only to hide the board from all portal users; or
Custom to choose specific account members.

After joining the account, the workspace owner can open a board limited to Specific people. Other team members and clients must be selected.

Control section access

Open the section menu and its visibility settings. Choose:

Visible;
Hidden from portal; or
Restricted access for selected people.

Section restricted access applies to team members and clients. The workspace owner is exempt. A hidden-from-portal section stays visible to allowed team members.

Use the section's read-only setting when clients should see its tasks but not change them.

Hide one task or stop client edits

Open the task's client-access controls.

A private task is hidden from clients.
A read-only task is visible but cannot be changed by clients.
A read-only section makes all its visible tasks read-only for clients.

Read-only does not mean no interaction. A client can still leave comments on a task they can see. Clients cannot change privacy or read-only settings.

When a board or section becomes more restricted, Sydnee removes people who no longer have access from the assignee and collaborator roles on affected tasks. The change prevents later task updates from being sent to people who can no longer open the work.

Archived boards are unavailable to both team members and clients until restored. Removed boards and their tasks cannot be restored through the product.

Why a client sees Blocked without a blocker name

A client-visible task may depend on a private or restricted task. Sydnee can show the safe Blocked state without sending the hidden task's title or details. The client can continue after the blocking task is completed, while the private work stays private.

Why View Portal can differ from one client's access

View Portal opens the account's portal. It does not choose and act as one client for you. Access is tied to a real account user. Custom board and section access, parent-task visibility, and client-hidden views can produce a different result for each client.

Check the exact client's account membership and access lists when you need to confirm their view.

What your client sees

Clients see active allowed boards, client-visible views, allowed sections, and non-private tasks. On editable work, they can use supported task fields. On read-only work, they can view and comment but cannot change the task.

Fix a common problem

If a client cannot see a task:

Confirm their account membership is active.
Check board Portal access.
Check the section's hidden and restricted settings.
Check whether the task is private.
Check each parent task.
Check whether the selected board view is hidden from clients.