Workspace And Access
How organizations, library workspaces, project source sets, the Library page, roles, and access boundaries fit together.
Most unexpected MARCUS results begin with one of two issues: the wrong workspace is active, or the user does not have the access needed for the intended action. This page explains the boundaries to check before working with documents or answers.
Audience
This page is for clinicians and other institutional users who need to find the correct workspace, understand what they can view or change, or ask an administrator for the right access. Organization owners, administrators, and project managers can use it when assigning access.
Availability
Organization membership is required to use an institutional workspace. Project visibility and write controls depend on organization role, project access, and configuration.
The interface may hide a page or control when you do not have permission. A direct link may also return an access error. Advanced Library views, collections, knowledge tools, sharing, analytics, and integrations may be permission- or configuration-dependent.
Workspace boundaries
Where access and information are separated
MARCUS separates work by signed-in workspace, organization, and project before it uses project information.
Signed-in workspace
The clinician's session establishes identity and available memberships.
Organization
Membership, roles, and organization settings define the next boundary.
Selected project
Project authorization is checked before project data is used.
Project source set
Sources and searchable passages available to the project.
Conversation context
Questions can use the selected project; saved conversations remain organization-scoped.
The Boundaries, In Order
| Boundary | Plain-language meaning | What belongs inside it |
|---|---|---|
| Organization | The institution or team space | Members, roles, projects, organization settings, and accessible cross-project surfaces |
| Library workspace (project) | A focused evidence workspace inside one organization | A project source set, conversations, project settings, and project-level knowledge artifacts |
| Project source set | The documents attached to one library workspace | Uploaded or connected sources, their processing states, briefings, and passages used for project-scoped questions |
| Question scope | The sources MARCUS is allowed to review for one request | Usually the active project source set, or another explicitly selected scope when that option is available |
| Library page | A cross-project exploration surface within the active organization | Accessible indexed sources from more than one project, with search and filters where available |
| Collection | An optional grouping with its own membership and organization rules | Selected sources or organizational groupings; collection access does not replace organization or project access |
These terms are not interchangeable.
Organization
The organization is the highest user-visible institutional boundary. It determines which projects, members, settings, and organization-wide surfaces can be considered. Switching organizations changes the institutional context; it is not a simple visual filter.
Library workspace (project)
The focused working area is called a project in routes and administrative controls. Clinicians may also encounter it as the selected Library workspace in application navigation. This handbook uses “library workspace (project)” when the distinction matters.
A project should contain documents that belong together for a defined clinical, educational, quality, or operational purpose.
Project source set
The project source set is the document inventory attached to one project. It is the first place to check when an answer cites unexpected material or misses an expected source.
The presence of a file is not enough. It must also finish source preparation before MARCUS can reliably search it.
Cross-project Library page
The Library page helps users search and inspect accessible sources across projects in the active organization. It is useful for discovering where a document lives and comparing source metadata.
Opening or finding a source there does not automatically add it to the active project's source set. It also does not automatically widen the evidence scope of an existing conversation.
Access Types
MARCUS combines organization roles with project-level access. The exact controls you see are the practical indication of your current permissions.
| Access concept | Typical meaning | Important limit |
|---|---|---|
| Organization owner or administrator | Manages organization settings, people, and access; generally manages projects | Access does not authorize prohibited data or unapproved use |
| Organization member | Uses the workspace functions made available by the organization | Project visibility may depend on configuration or an explicit project grant |
| Limited organization visibility | Can see selected organization-level information without general workspace use | Does not imply project access |
| Project read-only access | Can inspect and ask questions about the project without changing its contents | Cannot add, replace, remove, or otherwise mutate project material |
| Project read-write access | Can use the project and perform allowed changes | Does not grant organization administration or permission to manage other users |
| Collection role | Controls access inside an optional collection | Collection owner, editor, or viewer is a separate vocabulary from organization roles and project read/write access |
| Analytics access | Allows selected oversight views | Does not by itself grant access to project documents or workspace actions |
Some organizations may allow broad project access to members; others may require explicit project assignment. Owners and administrators can confirm the active policy. Do not interpret an absent project as deletion until access has been checked.
Key Workflow: Enter The Correct Workspace
- Sign in through the approved method. Use only your own account; never share credentials.
- Confirm the organization. Check the organization name before opening a project or asking a question.
- Select the library workspace. Choose the project whose purpose matches the task.
- Inspect the project source set. Confirm that expected sources are present and ready or indexed.
- Check your access level. If you need to add or manage sources, confirm that the relevant controls are available and that you have read-write access.
- Set the question scope. Verify the active project or other allowed scope before submitting the question.
- Review citations in the same context. A citation should resolve to a source you are authorized to inspect in the selected institutional context.
Key Workflow: Use The Library Page Without Losing Scope
- Open the Library page in the correct organization.
- Search for a topic, title, source type, or local term.
- Check which project contains each relevant source.
- Open the source and inspect its title, status, briefing, and provenance fields.
- Return to the intended project before asking a project-scoped question.
- Confirm that the source belongs to that project's source set. If it does not, ask an authorized user to review whether it should be added; do not assume cross-project discovery changed the project.
Expected Result And Verification
Before asking a question, you should be able to verify:
- the correct organization is displayed;
- the intended library workspace is active;
- the source inventory matches that workspace's purpose;
- important sources are ready or indexed;
- your visible controls match the action you intend to take;
- the question scope is explicit; and
- opened citations remain inside an expected, authorized source context.
Before changing a workspace, verify that you have read-write access and that the change is part of your assigned role. Before inviting or sharing with another person, confirm the intended recipient, access level, and institutional approval.
Common Problems
The project does not appear
Confirm the active organization, then ask an owner or administrator whether the project exists and whether you have access. Project access may require an explicit assignment.
You can read but cannot upload or edit
You may have read-only project access or an organization role that does not permit the action. This is expected access behavior, not necessarily an application failure.
A document appears on the Library page but not in the project
The Library page can show accessible sources across projects. Check the source's project membership. An authorized user must deliberately add or connect approved material to the intended project when appropriate.
The answer cites an unexpected project or source
Stop relying on the answer. Record the active organization, project, conversation, source title, and citation, without copying prohibited content. Report the possible scope problem through the approved support or security process.
An invitation or link does not work
Confirm that you are signed in with the intended institutional account, that the invitation has not expired or been revoked, and that the active organization matches the invitation. Ask an administrator to verify the recipient and access level before issuing a replacement.
A feature exists for a colleague but not for you
Compare organization, project, role, and configuration before treating this as a defect. Analytics, administration, integrations, knowledge tools, collections, and sharing may have different availability.
Safety Note: Access Does Not Authorize Data
MARCUS currently supports only an institutional non-PHI workspace, and there is no PHI lane. Access to an organization, project, Library page, connector, collection, or sharing control does not authorize you to enter or connect sensitive data.
Do not enter, upload, paste, connect, or transmit PHI, patient identifiers, patient-specific clinical facts, credentials, secrets, or other prohibited data. Use only approved institutional non-PHI material. Never share credentials, and do not use another person's session or access link.
If you see material that appears outside your expected organization or project boundary, do not continue inspecting, copying, or sharing it. Stop and report the possible access issue through the approved institutional process.
Continue
- Previous: System components
- Next: Sources and the Library
- Related: Create and Scope a Project, Managing Projects, and Using the Library