--- stage: Create group: Source Code info: "To determine the technical writer assigned to the Stage/Group associated with this page, see https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/product/ux/technical-writing/#assignments" type: reference --- # Control access and visibility **(FREE SELF)** GitLab enables users with administrator access to enforce specific controls on branches, projects, snippets, groups, and more. To access the visibility and access control options: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. ## Define which roles can create projects Instance-level protections for project creation define which roles can [add projects to a group](../../group/manage.md#specify-who-can-add-projects-to-a-group) on the instance. To alter which roles have permission to create projects: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. For **Default project creation protection**, select the desired roles: - No one. - Maintainers. - Developers and Maintainers. 1. Select **Save changes**. ## Restrict project deletion to administrators **(PREMIUM SELF)** > User interface [changed](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/352960) in GitLab 15.1. By default both administrators and anyone with the **Owner** role can delete a project. To restrict project deletion to only administrators: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with administrator access. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Scroll to: - (GitLab 15.1 and later) **Allowed to delete projects**, and select **Administrators**. - (GitLab 15.0 and earlier) **Default project deletion projection** and select **Only admins can delete project**. 1. Select **Save changes**. ## Deletion protection **(PREMIUM SELF)** > - [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/255449) in GitLab 14.2 for groups created after August 12, 2021. > - [Renamed](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/352960) from default delayed project deletion in GitLab 15.1. > - [Enabled for projects in personal namespaces](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/89466) in GitLab 15.1. > - [Disabled for projects in personal namespaces](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/95495) in GitLab 15.3. Instance-level protection against accidental deletion of groups and projects. ### Retention period > [Changed](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/352960) in GitLab 15.1. Groups and projects will remain restorable within a defined retention period. By default this is 7 days but it can be changed. Setting the retention period to `0` means that groups and project are removed immediately and cannot be restored. In GitLab 15.1 and later, the retention period must be between `1` and `90`. If the retention period was `0` before the 15.1 update, then it will get automatically changed to `1` while also disabling deletion protection the next time any application setting is changed. ### Delayed project deletion > User interface [changed](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/352960) in GitLab 15.1. Administrators can enable [delayed project deletion](../../project/settings/index.md#delayed-project-deletion) by default for newly-created groups. Group owners can choose to disable this and existing groups will retain their existing setting. When enabled deleted groups will remain restorable within a retention period. To configure delayed project deletion: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with administrator access. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Scroll to: - (GitLab 15.1 and later) **Deletion projection** and select keep deleted groups and projects, and select a retention period. - (GitLab 15.0 and earlier) **Default delayed project projection** and select **Enable delayed project deletion by default for newly-created groups.** Then set a retention period in **Default deletion delay**. 1. Select **Save changes**. Deletion protection is not available for projects only (without being also being enabled for groups). In GitLab 15.1, and later this setting is enforced on groups when disabled and it cannot be overridden. ### Delayed group deletion > User interface [introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/352960) in GitLab 15.1. Groups will remain restorable if the retention period is `1` or more days. In GitLab 15.1 and later, delayed group deletion can be enabled by setting **Deletion projection** to **Keep deleted**. ### Override defaults and delete immediately Alternatively, projects that are marked for removal can be deleted immediately. To do so: 1. [Restore the project](../../project/settings/index.md#restore-a-project). 1. Delete the project as described in the [Administering Projects page](../../admin_area/index.md#administering-projects). ## Configure project visibility defaults To set the default [visibility levels for new projects](../../public_access.md): 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Select the desired default project visibility: - **Private** - Project access must be granted explicitly to each user. If this project is part of a group, access is granted to members of the group. - **Internal** - The project can be accessed by any logged in user except external users. - **Public** - The project can be accessed without any authentication. 1. Select **Save changes**. ## Configure snippet visibility defaults To set the default visibility levels for new [snippets](../../snippets.md): 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Select the desired default snippet visibility. 1. Select **Save changes**. For more details on snippet visibility, read [Project visibility](../../public_access.md). ## Configure group visibility defaults To set the default visibility levels for new groups: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Select the desired default group visibility: - **Private** - The group and its projects can only be viewed by members. - **Internal** - The group and any internal projects can be viewed by any logged in user except external users. - **Public** - The group and any public projects can be viewed without any authentication. 1. Select **Save changes**. For more details on group visibility, see [Group visibility](../../group/index.md#group-visibility). ## Restrict visibility levels To restrict visibility levels for projects, snippets, and selected pages: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. In the **Restricted visibility levels** section, select the desired visibility levels to restrict. If you restrict the **Public** level: - User profiles are only visible to logged in users via the Web interface. - User attributes via the GraphQL API are: - Not visible in [GitLab 15.1 and later](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/88020). - Only visible to authenticated users between [GitLab 13.1](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/33195) and GitLab 15.0. 1. Select **Save changes**. For more details on project visibility, see [Project visibility](../../public_access.md). ## Configure allowed import sources You can specify from which hosting sites users can [import their projects](../../project/import/index.md): 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Select each of **Import sources** to allow. 1. Select **Save changes**. ## Enable project export To enable the export of [projects and their data](../../project/settings/import_export.md#export-a-project-and-its-data): 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Select **Project export enabled**. 1. Select **Save changes**. ## Configure enabled Git access protocols With GitLab access restrictions, you can select the protocols users can use to communicate with GitLab. Disabling an access protocol does not block port access to the server itself. The ports used for the protocol, SSH or HTTP(S), are still accessible. The GitLab restrictions apply at the application level. To specify the enabled Git access protocols: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. Select the desired Git access protocols: - Both SSH and HTTP(S) - Only SSH - Only HTTP(S) 1. Select **Save changes**. When both SSH and HTTP(S) are enabled, users can choose either protocol. If only one protocol is enabled: - The project page shows only the allowed protocol's URL, with no option to change it. - GitLab shows a tooltip when you hover over the URL's protocol, if user action (such as adding a SSH key or setting a password) is required: ![Project URL with SSH only access](img/restricted_url.png) GitLab only allows Git actions for the protocols you select. WARNING: GitLab versions [10.7 and later](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-foss/-/merge_requests/18021), allow the HTTP(S) protocol for Git clone or fetch requests done by GitLab Runner from CI/CD jobs, even if you select **Only SSH**. ## Customize Git clone URL for HTTP(S) > [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/18422) in GitLab 12.4. You can customize project Git clone URLs for HTTP(S), which affects the clone panel: For example, if: - Your GitLab instance is at `https://example.com`, then project clone URLs are like `https://example.com/foo/bar.git`. - You want clone URLs that look like `https://git.example.com/gitlab/foo/bar.git` instead, you can set this setting to `https://git.example.com/gitlab/`. ![Custom Git clone URL for HTTP](img/custom_git_clone_url_for_https_v12_4.png) To specify a custom Git clone URL for HTTP(S): 1. Enter a root URL for **Custom Git clone URL for HTTP(S)**. 1. Select **Save changes**. NOTE: SSH clone URLs can be customized in `gitlab.rb` by setting `gitlab_rails['gitlab_ssh_host']` and other related settings. ## Configure defaults for RSA, DSA, ECDSA, ED25519, ECDSA_SK, ED25519_SK SSH keys These options specify the permitted types and lengths for SSH keys. To specify a restriction for each key type: 1. Select the desired option from the dropdown. 1. Select **Save changes**. For more details, see [SSH key restrictions](../../../security/ssh_keys_restrictions.md). ## Enable project mirroring This option is enabled by default. By disabling it, both [pull mirroring](../../project/repository/mirror/pull.md) and [push mirroring](../../project/repository/mirror/push.md) no longer work in every repository. They can only be re-enabled by an administrator user on a per-project basis. ![Mirror settings](img/mirror_settings.png) ## Configure globally-allowed IP address ranges > - [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/87579) in GitLab 15.1 [with a flag](../../../administration/feature_flags.md) named `group_ip_restrictions_allow_global`. Disabled by default. > - [Generally available](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/366445) in GitLab 15.4. [Feature flag `group_ip_restrictions_allow_global`](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/366445) removed. This setting allows you to set IP address ranges to be combined with group-level IP allowlists. It helps administrators prevent aspects of the GitLab installation from being blocked from working as intended when an IP allowlist is used. For example, if the GitLab Pages daemon runs on the `10.0.0.0/24` range, specify that range in this field, as otherwise any group-level restrictions that don't include that range cause the Pages daemon to be unable to fetch artifacts from the pipeline runs. To add a IP address range to the group-level allowlist: 1. Sign in to GitLab as a user with Administrator access level. 1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**. 1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > General**. 1. Expand the **Visibility and access controls** section. 1. In **Globally-allowed IP ranges**, provide a value. 1. Select **Save changes**.