Channel Permissions
Status: Complete
Chatalot uses a role hierarchy to control who can perform which actions in a channel. Permissions flow down from the Community level through Groups to individual Channels.
Role Hierarchy
There are four role levels at the channel/group level:
| Role | Level | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | 3 | Full control over the channel and all its settings |
| Admin | 2 | Can moderate members and manage most channel settings |
| Moderator | 1 | Can delete messages, pin/unpin, kick/ban members (lower roles only) |
| Member | 0 | Can send messages and use standard features |
At the Community level, there are additional roles:
| Role | Description |
|---|---|
| Owner | Full control of the community |
| Admin | Community-wide administration |
| Moderator | Moderation across the community's groups |
| Member | Standard community member |
Permission Inheritance
Permissions flow through the hierarchy:
Community Role
└── Group Role (owner of group, or inherited from community role)
└── Channel Permissions (inherited from group role)
- If you are a Community admin, you receive admin-level permissions in all Groups within that Community.
- If you are the Group owner, you have owner-level permissions in all channels within that Group.
- A Community moderator receives admin-level permissions in personal (assigned) groups.
Permission Matrix
Message Permissions
| Action | Member | Moderator | Admin | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Send messages | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Send messages (read-only channel) | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Send messages (slow mode active) | Rate-limited | Exempt | Exempt | Exempt |
| Send messages (archived channel) | No | No | No | No |
| Edit own messages (within 15 min) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Delete own messages | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Delete others' messages | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Channel Management
| Action | Member | Moderator | Admin | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edit channel topic | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Rename channel | No | No | No | Yes |
| Toggle read-only | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Set slow mode | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Archive/unarchive | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Delete channel | No | No | No | Yes |
Moderation
| Action | Member | Moderator | Admin | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick members | No | Members only | Moderators and members | Admins, moderators, and members |
| Ban members | No | Members only | Moderators and members | Admins, moderators, and members |
| Unban members | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Change member roles | No | No | No | Yes (owner-only — only Owner can promote/demote within a channel) |
| Pin/unpin messages | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Kick from voice | No | Members only | Moderators and members | Admins, moderators, and members |
Important: Moderation actions follow a strict hierarchy. You can only moderate users with a strictly lower role level than your own. A moderator cannot kick another moderator; only an admin or owner can.
Member Management
| Action | Member | Moderator | Admin | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| View member list | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Transfer ownership | No | No | No | Yes |
How Roles Are Determined
When you interact with a channel, your effective role is determined by checking (in order):
- Group ownership: If you are the Group owner, you have owner-level permissions.
- Personal group assignment: If you are the assigned member of a personal group, you have owner-level permissions in that group's channels.
- Community role: Your Community role (owner, admin, moderator, member) is inherited as a group-level role.
- Explicit channel role: If you have been given a specific role in the channel (admin or member), that role applies.