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Knowledge Base — Groups (Admin) — User Guide

Knowledge Base — Groups (Admin) — User Guide

Module: HSE (Health, Safety & Environment)
Audience: HSE administrators
Version: 1.0.0
Last updated: 2026-07-22

Overview

KB groups (shown in the UI as KB Categories) organise Knowledge Base articles into sections such as Health, Safety, and Environment. Groups determine how articles appear in the admin kanban view, list filters, and on the customer portal category pages.

This guide covers administrator group management. Article authoring and the customer portal are separate guides.

Prerequisites

Role Access
Administrator Full groups page, create, edit, delete, active toggle
HSE content author (non-admin) Can reorder kanban columns and change column colours only; cannot open the groups page or save group create/edit

Pre-use checklist:

  • HSE module is activated
  • Logged in as an administrator for create, edit, delete, and the dedicated groups page

Accessing KB groups

There is no separate sidebar menu for groups. Use one of these paths:

Dedicated groups page (recommended)

  1. Open HSE → Knowledge Base.
  2. Click KB Groups in the toolbar (layer-group icon).

Expected: A table listing all categories with article counts, active toggles, and edit/delete actions.

Note: The KB Groups button is visible to users with HSE Create or Edit permission, but only administrators can open the page. Non-admins see access denied.

From the Knowledge Base kanban

  1. Open HSE → Knowledge Base.
  2. Switch to kanban view (list/grid toggle).
  3. Click a column header name to edit that group (administrators only for saving changes).
  4. Drag column headers to reorder (requires HSE Edit permission).
  5. Use the dropdown arrow on a column header to change its colour (requires HSE Edit permission).

Understanding default groups

On install, three groups are created automatically:

Group Typical content
Health Health policies, guidelines, SOPs
Safety Safety procedures, risk assessments, emergency plans
Environment Environmental compliance and best practices

Each group has a name, description, colour, display order, and URL slug used on the customer portal.

Creating a group

From the groups page

  1. Go to HSE → Knowledge Base → KB Groups.
  2. Click + New group.
  3. Complete the modal:
    • Name (required)
    • Colour — used for kanban column header and list badges
    • Description (optional)
    • Order — position in kanban (higher numbers sort later; default is next available)
    • Disabled — check to create an inactive group
  4. Click Submit.

Expected: Success message; new group appears in the table and as a kanban column on the Knowledge Base page.

While creating an article

  1. On the article form, click + next to the Group dropdown.
  2. Complete the same modal and submit.

Expected: New group is added to the dropdown and selected automatically. Administrators only — other users must pick an existing group.

Editing a group

  1. From the KB Groups table, click the edit (pen) icon, or click the group name on a kanban column header.
  2. Update fields in the modal.
  3. On edit, a Slug field appears (URL identifier for portal category links).
  4. Click Submit.

Expected: Success message; changes reflect in kanban headers, list filters, and portal category URLs.

Important: The slug is derived from the group name when you save. Changing the slug field alone without renaming the group may not persist.

Disabling a group

Two methods:

Method Where
Disabled checkbox Create/edit modal
Active toggle (on/off switch) Groups table Active column

Expected when disabled:

  • Group remains visible in admin list and kanban
  • Articles in the group are unaffected (use article Disabled to hide individual articles from the portal)

Deleting a group

  1. On the KB Groups page, click the delete (trash) icon for the group.
  2. Confirm the deletion.

Expected:

  • Group removed if it has no articles
  • Deletion blocked if any articles belong to the group — reassign or delete those articles first

There is no recycle bin.

Reordering groups (kanban)

Users with HSE Edit permission can drag kanban columns left or right on the Knowledge Base page.

Expected: New column order saves automatically and persists on refresh.

View-only users cannot drag columns.

Changing group colour (kanban)

  1. On the Knowledge Base kanban view, click the dropdown arrow on a column header.
  2. Pick a colour from the palette.

Expected: Column header updates immediately; colour also appears on article group badges in list view.

Common issues

Symptom Likely cause What to do
KB Groups button → access denied Not an administrator Log in as admin
Cannot save group from kanban edit Not an administrator Use admin account or ask admin to edit
Cannot delete group Articles still assigned to it Move articles to another group or delete them
Slug change did not apply Slug tied to name on save Rename the group or contact admin for a data fix
Empty group missing on portal Portal hides categories with no active public articles Add articles or ignore if intentional
+ on article form fails Not an administrator Select existing group or ask admin to create one
Non-admin cannot toggle Active on groups page Cannot reach groups page Admin manages active status

Related features

Test execution sign-off (QA)

Section Description
1 Access KB Groups page (admin)
2 Create group from groups page
3 Edit group (name, colour, description, order)
4 Disable and re-enable group (modal + toggle)
5 Delete empty group
6 Delete blocked when articles exist
7 Kanban column reorder (edit permission)
8 Kanban column colour change (edit permission)
9 Inline create from article form (admin)
10 Permission checks (admin vs non-admin editor)

Record Pass/Fail per section when executing QA.

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