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This page is for MSP admins who control how projects look and who can see them. Open Settings > Projects to set client access, display fields, Kanban, status mappings, custom fields, project types, templates, forms, and client portals. The unified page has three top-level tabs. The page opens on Project Settings > Display Configuration. Your role controls which sections you see. Saved links open the section they point to.

Before you start

  • You need project-settings read access to view these settings and write access to change them.
  • The shared Templates and Forms libraries accept either Project Settings or Projects & Client Onboarding access.
  • Onboarding Portals and checklist administration need Projects & Client Onboarding access. See Permissions.
  • PSA selectors (boards, lines of business, custom fields) depend on the integrations connected to your portal. See Integrations.
The header Save button applies to Client project access, Display Configuration, Status Mapping, and Upcoming projects. Types, custom fields, templates, forms, and onboarding portal sections save on their own.

Choose what projects show

1

Open Display Configuration

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Display Configuration.
Display Configuration with an Off, MSP, or MSP plus clients choice for each project tab

Project configuration, reusable templates, and onboarding portal settings have separate top-level tabs.

2

Choose who sees each project tab

Under Project tabs, pick one choice for each tab on the project page:
  • Off hides the tab on every project, for your team and for company users.
  • MSP shows the tab to your team only.
  • MSP + clients also shows the tab to company users.
Client Dashboard is always shown. MSP Dashboard, Team, Client Portal, and Documents are for your team only, so they offer Off and MSP. Board is the ticket Kanban.Hiding a tab changes the project page only. Role permissions still decide what company users can open.
3

Turn sections on or off

Under Section Visibility, switch the sections shown on the project detail page. The choices are Timeline, Progress, Hours, Financials, Details, PSA Phases, Project Tickets, Time Entries, and Project Summary.
  • Project Tickets needs PSA Phases on.
  • Time Entries needs Project Tickets on.
  • PSA Phases is locked on for Halo PSA and shows a Required by Halo PSA badge.
  • The ticket Kanban is the Board row under Project tabs.
4

Tick the fields to show

Under Field Visibility, tick the fields shown on project cards and the project list. The choices are Project Name, Company, Status, Progress %, Start Date, Due Date, Estimated Hours, Actual Hours, Hours Variance, Summary, Project Lead, Timeline Comparison, and Last Changed. The Card Preview updates as you tick.Project field visibility checkboxes alongside the complete built-in card preview
5

Save

Select Save in the header. Display options only change what shows. They do not grant access to projects or replace role permissions.

Chat with the project manager in Teams

The contact guide shows the icon.
1

Open Display Configuration

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Display Configuration.
2

Turn on the switch

Switch on Chat with project manager in Teams. It is off by default.
3

Save

Select Save. A small Teams icon now appears beside Project Lead in a project’s Overview > Client Dashboard > Contacts.
To hide the icon again, switch it off and select Save. The icon uses the project manager’s email address, which must match their Teams sign-in address. It stays hidden when no valid address is available. Clients still need access to the project, and Teams must let them chat with the manager.

Control which projects clients see

This section controls which projects company users can see. MSP staff keep their own permitted project scope. Client project access choices and active/inactive project health status controls
1

Open Client project access

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Client project access.
2

Choose Filtered projects

Select Filtered projects to show the selectors.
3

Select the projects to include

Choose Project types, Project boards or Lines of business, and Specific projects. Use the search box to pick individual projects. Autotask uses lines of business instead of project boards.
4

Save the access rules

Select Save in the header. Then check the result as a user in the client role and company.
Filtered projects with nothing selected shows company users no projects. A project hidden on its own project page stays hidden even when it matches a filter. Global search follows the same rules.

Set project health status

1

Open Client project access

Stay on Client project access and scroll to Project health status.
2

Mark each status

Mark each exact PSA status Active or Inactive. New PSA statuses start as active.
3

Save

Select Save.
Inactive statuses are left out of health KPIs and Projects needing attention. This does not change the project’s status in your PSA, client access, or Kanban columns.

Task types and individual task controls

Set defaults for a task type

1

Open Task types

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Types and select Task types.
2

Find the task type

Filter the list by Task Name, Board, Internal only, or Include in scheduling.
3

Flip the switches

Turn Internal only or Include in scheduling on or off for the type. Each switch saves at once. The header Save button is not used.
  • Internal only hides the task from company users everywhere in MSPortal.
  • Include in scheduling is on by default. It shows the task on the Dispatch board and in its planner, in the project Gantt, and in Smart Schedule. Turn it off to keep a task out of all of them.
  • A type default applies to existing and future tasks of that type. Individual task overrides are kept.
  • An excluded task is not deleted. It keeps its ticket, its PSA bookings and its saved dependency links, and all of them come back when scheduling is turned on again.
  • To reverse a setting, flip the switch back. These controls live in MSPortal only; nothing is written to ConnectWise, Autotask or Halo.

Override a single task

1

Open the task controls

In a project’s Phases tab, select the Visibility and scheduling gear icon on the task row.
2

Change the switches

Turn Internal only or Include in scheduling on or off. Changes save at once.
3

Go back to the type default

Select Use type default to remove the override. The type default applies again.
If no synced task types appear, you can still set controls on individual tasks. Only MSP staff see these controls.

Set up Kanban

Kanban technicians in Display Configuration with technician column modes, PSA groups, and specific technician selectors
1

Open Display Configuration

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Display Configuration.
2

Turn on the board

Under Project tabs, set Board to MSP or MSP + clients to show the ticket board on eligible project workspaces.
3

Choose the technician columns

Under Kanban technicians, pick Only technicians with tickets or Everyone in the roster.
4

Narrow the roster

Select PSA groups and Specific technicians to limit who can be assigned tickets. Leave both empty to allow every active PSA agent.
5

Save

Select Save in the header.
ConnectWise projects stay limited to the ConnectWise project team. The roster settings can narrow that team further.

Map statuses to columns

Configure Project Statuses and Ticket Statuses separately. Project Statuses group whole projects. Ticket Statuses group tickets inside the project Kanban. Status Mapping with one row per group, unmapped statuses on top, and Smart Match beside the heading
1

Open Status Mapping

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Status Mapping.
2

Choose raw statuses or groups

Switch on Use Raw PSA Statuses to show the original PSA names. To group statuses, leave it off and review the columns.
3

Place unmapped statuses

Select an unmapped status and pick a group, or drag the status onto a group’s row. Smart Match places the rest. Generate with AI drafts the groups. Review either result before you save.
4

Review columns and defaults

Add a group with Add custom category…. Rename, reorder, or delete a group from its menu. Mark a status as the default for a column to set where a board move lands. A status belongs to one group at a time.
5

Save the mappings

Check both Project Statuses and Ticket Statuses, then select Save.
Check the Unmapped Statuses list before you save. Projects with an unmapped status are hidden from the dashboard. Clear All clears the current mapping, so review it before you save.

Add PSA custom fields

Show ConnectWise, Halo, or Autotask custom fields on projects and project tickets, and choose who can see and edit them. Custom Fields settings with the added-field search and configured project fields
1

Open Custom Fields

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Custom Fields.
2

Add a field

Under Project fields or Project ticket fields, select Add field, search the PSA fields, and add one. Open the added field to configure it.
3

Set visibility and access

Turn on Show on projects. For project fields, turn on List and filters to add a column and a filter to the project list. Set Who can view and Who can edit to Staff only or Selected roles. Selected roles with no roles chosen gives no access.
4

Allow edits if needed

Turn on Allow edits for a field that supports it. The edit is written back to the PSA. The person editing also needs view access to the field, project edit permission, and edit access to the field.
Field definitions refresh from your PSA every day, so a field you add in your PSA appears here within a day. Project fields appear on the project overview. Project ticket fields appear when a ticket is expanded on the Phases tab.
Custom field changes save at once. Set role access before you turn on Show on projects.

Manage project types

1

Open Project Types

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Types. Project Types opens first.
2

Create a type

Select New project type, enter a Name, switch Onboarding on or off, and select Create.
3

Turn onboarding on or off

Use the Onboarding switch in the table. It saves at once.
4

Rename or archive a type

Open Project type actions on a row. Select Edit to rename an MSPortal type, or Archive to take it out of the list used for new templates.
5

Restore an archived type

Change the table’s Status filter to Archived, open Project type actions, and select Restore.
  • PSA types come from your synced projects. Their names cannot be changed here.
  • Onboarding types keep the client portal, dates, pages, and invitations when you pick them in a template.
  • Any other type builds a plain project. The template hides the portal sections and shows a Default status field.
  • A template with no type uses Client onboarding (default).
  • Existing records keep their saved type when you archive it.

Set upcoming project rules

This section shows only when a PSA with sales opportunities is connected.
1

Open Upcoming projects

Go to Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Upcoming projects.
2

Pick opportunities

Turn on Include sales opportunities. Choose Opportunity types or enter phrases under Opportunity name contains (optional), one per line. An opportunity matches a selected type or a phrase. Leave both empty to include every open opportunity.
3

Narrow by stage and status

Pick Sales stages and Opportunity statuses to narrow the list.
4

Add planner items

Pick Planner item statuses to list planner items next to opportunities. Leave it empty to leave planner items out.
5

Save

Select Save in the header.
The Upcoming Projects list and its schedule both use these rules.

Create and manage templates

1

Open Templates

Go to Settings > Projects > Templates > Templates.
2

Start a template

Select New Template, set the Project type, and select Create Template. If a PSA is connected, Import from PSA brings in an existing template instead.
3

Build the structure

Add phases, items, and actions. Each has its own editor and saves on its own.
4

Save the details

Select Save Changes to save the template’s name and other details.
Use Templates > Checklists for reusable checklist definitions. This section needs Projects & Client Onboarding access.

Restore an archived checklist

Archived checklist definitions are available in the unified Projects settings.
  1. Open Templates > Checklists and choose Archived.
  2. Select the checklist, then select Restore. It returns to Active and is available in checklist pickers.
  3. To hide it from the pickers again, open it under Active and select Archive.
Archived checklist selected in Project Settings with the Restore control and its checklist items

Select an archived checklist to restore it.

Once a template is saved, select Projects > New project and choose MSPortal only to create native delivery work. Templates live in MSPortal, so editing one never changes an existing PSA project. Choose a PSA destination, or use Apply template on a PSA project, to create the phases and tasks in your PSA. After that, status and date changes made in MSPortal write back to ConnectWise and Autotask. See What writes back to your PSA, Project Templates, Onboarding Templates, and Native Projects.

Manage forms

1

Open Forms

Go to Settings > Projects > Templates > Forms.
2

Maintain form definitions

Create, edit, archive, and restore the reusable forms your projects use.
3

Share a form with clients

Staff share each form before clients can use it. In a project’s Forms tab, pick the form and switch on Share this form with clients.
Staff and clients both fill forms from a project’s Forms tab, including projects without an onboarding portal. See Project Forms for Save progress, Submit, sharing, and response links. Onboarding clients can also fill forms attached to portal tasks. See Forms. Responses to an archived form are read-only.

Give roles access to forms

In the role editor, open Projects and set these permissions. Plain Write access to Projects does not include Submit and edit form responses or Share forms with clients. Select them separately. Project and company access still apply. Give client roles the view and submit permissions they need.

Set up onboarding portals

This tab needs Projects & Client Onboarding access. It has Portals, Client roles, Pages, and PSA projects when a supported PSA is connected. Each section has its own controls and saves on its own. These are reusable settings and the portal directory. To manage one portal, open its linked project and use Overview > MSP Dashboard and the Client Portal section.

Save, leave, or reset

  • The header Save applies your changes across Client project access, Display Configuration, Status Mapping, and Upcoming projects. You can switch between these sections, visit Templates or Onboarding Portals, and return to the same unsaved changes.
  • If you leave with unsaved changes, the app asks you to confirm.
  • Reset puts the product defaults in the form. Nothing is saved until you select Save. Reset does not undo custom field changes, which save at once.

Troubleshooting

Frequently asked questions

Open Settings > Projects > Project Settings > Client project access and choose Filtered projects. Select Save in the header.
Custom Fields, Types, and Templates save on their own. The header Save does not apply to them.
No. Halo PSA projects need phases, so the switch is locked on.
It hides the task from company users everywhere in MSPortal. It does not change the task in your PSA.
On Types > Project Types, change the Status filter to Archived. Select Restore from Project type actions to bring one back.
No. It only fills the form with defaults. Your saved settings stay until you select Save.

Projects

Review the portfolio and project health.

Project workspace

Use project tabs and collaboration tools.

Project calendar

Review schedules and supported date changes.

Integrations

Configure your PSA connection.