Getting Started for Release Administrators
Release Administrators configure and maintain Digital.ai Release at the application level. This guide covers setting up users, roles, and permissions, configuring system settings, managing plugins and licenses, and maintaining the release archive.
This guide covers application administration tasks performed through the Release UI and Settings pages. For server-level tasks such as installation, clustering, authentication setup, and security hardening, see Getting Started for System Administrators.
Who This Guide Is For
This guide is for users who:
- Create and manage internal user accounts in Release.
- Define global roles and assign global permissions.
- Configure folder-level teams and permissions.
- Configure system-wide settings (notifications, risk profiles, task settings, report settings).
- Install, update, and remove plugins using the Plugin Manager.
- Manage the Release license.
- Configure and monitor the release archive.
- Perform first-line troubleshooting of Release issues.
Access and Prerequisites
Administrator tasks require the Admin global permission in Release. To verify this, go to Settings > Users and Permissions > Permissions and confirm that your role is listed next to the Admin action.
If the server has just been installed and no admin account has been set up yet, use the default admin credentials provided during installation, then change the password immediately. See Password Configuration.
Managing Users, Roles, and Permissions
Release uses a layered access control model:
| Layer | Scope | Configured By |
|---|---|---|
| Global permissions | Actions available across the entire instance | Release Administrator |
| Global roles | Groups of users assigned global permissions | Release Administrator |
| Folder teams | Access to templates and releases within a folder | Release Administrator or Folder Owner |
| Release teams | Access to a specific release | Release Engineer or Release Manager |
For the full overview of how these layers interact, see Users, Roles, Teams, and Permissions.
Managing Users
Release supports two types of users:
- Internal users — Created and managed directly in Release. See Manage Users.
- External users — Authenticated through LDAP or an OIDC identity provider. External users are created in Release automatically on first login. See Set up LDAP Authentication and Set up OIDC Authentication.
To create an internal user, go to Settings > Users and Permissions > Users and enter a username, email address, and password. For user account settings (password policy, profile options), see User Settings.
Configuring Global Roles
A role is a named group that you assign to users. Global permissions are then assigned to roles, not to individual users.
To create a role, go to Settings > Users and Permissions > Roles, enter a role name, and add users or LDAP groups to the role in the Principals field. For more information, see Global Roles.
Assigning Global Permissions
Global permissions control what actions a role can perform across the entire Release instance.
| Permission | What It Allows |
|---|---|
| Admin | Full access to all settings and administration functions |
| Edit Security | Manage users, roles, and permissions |
| Create Template | Create new release templates |
| Create Release | Create new releases |
| Create Workflow | Create new self-service workflows |
| View Reports | Access reports and dashboards |
| Create Environments | Create deployment environments |
To assign permissions, go to Settings > Users and Permissions > Permissions and enter the role name in the Roles column for each action. For more information, see Global Permissions.
Configuring Folder-Level Teams and Permissions
Folder teams control access to all content within a folder: templates, releases, workflows, and connections. Setting permissions at the folder level avoids configuring permissions on each individual template.
To configure a folder team, go to Overview > Folders, select the folder, and open Teams & Permissions. Add teams, assign users or roles to each team, and set template-level and release-level permissions per team. For more information, see Folder Teams and Permissions.
Configuring System Settings
System settings are configured under Settings > System Settings. Changes take effect immediately unless noted otherwise.
General Settings
Configure instance-wide options including the application title, the default landing page, and the server URL (used in notification emails). See General Settings.
Release and Trigger Settings
Configure defaults that apply to all releases: the default release owner, concurrency limits on running releases, and trigger polling behavior. See Release and Triggers Settings.
Task Settings
Configure default task behavior: task expiry settings, automated task retry behavior, and the default task failure handling policy. See Task Settings.
Risk Profile Settings
Risk profiles define the criteria used to calculate a release's risk level. Adjust risk thresholds and weights to match your organization's standards. See Risk Profile Settings.
Notification Settings
Configure the SMTP server for outbound email notifications and set the default notification templates. Release sends notifications for task assignments, task failures, and release state changes. See Configure Notifications and Configure an SMTP Server.
Report Settings
Configure data retention for reports and set the time zone used in report date fields. See Report Settings.
Advanced Settings
Configure scripting engine settings, audit log retention, and other low-level system behaviors. See Advanced Settings.
AI Settings
Enable or disable the in-process MCP server that powers AI Assistant, and optionally restrict it to read-only tools. See AI Settings. For model provider selection, see Production Deployment Using Docker.
Managing Plugins
The Plugin Manager lets you install, update, and remove plugins. Container-based plugins are available immediately after installation without restarting the Release server. Jython (JVM-based) plugins require a server restart to take effect. Plugins add new automated task types, connection types, and integrations.
The Manage plugins page is accessible to users with the Admin or Edit security global permission. Users with Edit security but without Admin permission have view-only access and cannot install, upgrade, or remove plugins.
For more information, see Plugin Management.
Installing an Official Digital.ai Plugin
Official Digital.ai Release plugins are available directly from the Plugin Manager. Search for the plugin by name and install it.
Installing an Uploaded Plugin
To install a plugin that is not in the official catalog — for example, a custom or third-party plugin — upload the .jar file through the Plugin Manager and review the compatibility check results before confirming.
Updating a Plugin
For official plugins, the Plugin Manager indicates when an update is available. For uploaded plugins, upload the new version — the Plugin Manager detects the version change and applies the update.
Removing a Plugin
Find the plugin in the installed plugins list and remove it using the options menu.
Any automated tasks of that plugin's task type that exist in templates or active releases will no longer function after the plugin is removed.
Air-Gapped Environments
In environments without internet access, use the Plugin Manager CLI or copy the plugin file directly to the plugins directory. See Plugin Management in Air-gapped Environments and Plugin Manager CLI.
Plugin Synchronization in Clusters
In cluster mode, plugins must be synchronized across all nodes. See Plugin Synchronization.
Storing Plugins Using Artifactory
To manage plugin binaries through JFrog Artifactory as an internal repository, see Store Plugins Using Artifactory.
Configuring Email Servers for the Remote Completion Plugin
The Remote Completion plugin lets tasks be completed via email reply. To configure the email server it polls, see Configure Email Servers for Remote Completion Plugin.
Managing the License
Release requires a valid license to run. Use the following procedures to install or check the status of your license.
Installing a License
The license is installed during initial setup, but you may need to update it when it expires or when your entitlement changes.
To install or update a license, go to Settings > License and upload the license file or paste the license key. For information on license types and how to obtain a license file, see Release Licensing.
Checking License Status
The License tab of the System Information page (Settings > View system information) shows the current license edition (Essentials, Pro, or Premium), the expiry date, and the number of concurrent release users allowed. Monitor this page ahead of your license renewal date to avoid service interruption.
Managing the Release Archive
Archiving manages the lifecycle of completed and aborted releases. It is a two-stage process:
- Pre-archiving — When a release completes or is aborted, the archiving job copies it to the archive database while keeping a copy in the operational database. Pre-archived releases remain visible in dashboards and reports.
- Final archiving — After the configured archiving age is reached, the release is removed from the operational database. It is then only accessible from the Archive tab on the Releases page.
Archived releases are read-only. They appear in reports but cannot be commented on or modified.
For a full explanation of the archiving process, see How Archiving Works.
Configuring the Archive Database
Configure a separate database for archived releases to keep the operational database lean and performant. See Archive Database.
Configuring the Archiving Schedule
The archiving job runs on a configurable schedule (default: every minute). Adjust the archiving age and schedule under Settings > System Settings > Report Settings.
Cleaning Up Stale Releases
To remove releases that were never completed or properly closed, use the stale release cleanup tool. See Clean up Stale Releases.
Purging Archived Releases
To permanently delete archived releases from the archive database, use the purge function. See Purging Archived Releases.
Export Hooks
Export hooks run when a release is archived and can push release data to an external database or reporting system. Two types are available:
- Create an Export Hook — For generic external targets.
- Create a JDBC Export Hook — For JDBC-compatible databases.
Managing Global Variables
Global variables are key-value pairs available to all templates and releases across the instance. Use them for values shared across teams, such as a shared Jira project key or a common environment URL.
To create a global variable, go to Configuration > Global Variables and enter a name and value. Global variables are referenced in templates and tasks using the syntax ${global.variableName}. For more information, see Configure Global Variables.
Managing Global Connections
Global connections are configured at the instance level and are available to all templates and releases. They store credentials and endpoint URLs for external tools (Jenkins, Jira, ServiceNow, and others).
To add a global connection, go to Configuration > Connections, select the connection type, and fill in the endpoint URL and credentials. For more information, see Connections. For folder-scoped connections (where different teams use different tool instances), see Getting Started for Release Engineers.
Troubleshooting
Use the following resources to diagnose and resolve common Release issues.
Log Files
The main Release log is located at XL_RELEASE_HOME/log/xl-release.log. Check it first when diagnosing issues. For log configuration, see Configure Logging.
Common Troubleshooting Steps
- Verify that the Release service is running and that the database connection is healthy.
- Check the log file for stack traces or error messages around the time the issue occurred.
- Verify that the affected user has the correct role and permissions for the action they are attempting.
For a full troubleshooting reference, see Troubleshoot the Release Service.
Support Accelerator
To collect diagnostic information for a Digital.ai support case, use the Support Accelerator. It bundles log files, configuration, and system information into a single archive. See Using the Support Accelerator.
For folder structure and permissions, coordinate with your Release Engineers. See Getting Started for Release Engineers. For authentication setup, coordinate with your System Administrator. See Getting Started for System Administrators.