Role permissions

Moodle1.7

Roles and capabilities in Moodle 1.7 onwards enable possibilities such as teachers being given permission to override permissions for other roles.

Role capabilities

The following capabilities are related to roles:

• moodle/role:assign
• moodle/role:manage
• moodle/role:override
• moodle/role:safeoverride (1.9.3 onwards)
• moodle/role:switchroles
• moodle/role:unassignself
• moodle/role:viewhiddenassigns

Enabling teachers to override permissions

By default, only administrators are able to override permissions. To enable teachers to do so:

1. Access Administration > Users > Permissions > Define roles.
2. Edit the teacher role and change the capability moodle/role:override (or moodle/role:safeoverride in Moodle 1.9.3 onwards) to allow.
3. Click the button "Save changes".
4. Click the tab "Allow role overrides" (in Administration > Users > Permissions > Define roles).
5. Check the appropriate box(s) in the teacher row to set which role(s) teachers can override. Most likely it will just be the student role (you don't want teachers to be able to override admins!), so check the box where the teacher row intersects with the student column.
6. Click the button "Save changes".

Student unenrolment

By default, students are unable to unenrol themselves from courses.

To enable students to unenrol themselves from any course on the site that they are enrolled on:

1. Access Administration > Users > Permissions > Define roles.
2. Click the edit icon opposite the student role.
3. Change the moodle/role:unassignself capability from not set to allow.
4. Click the "Save changes" button at the bottom of the page.

To enable students to unenrol themselves from a particular course:

1. Follow the Assign roles link in the course administration block.
2. Follow the "Override permissions" tab. (Prior to Moodle 1.9, there is an "Override roles" link, rather than a tab.)
3. Select the Student role.
4. Set the capability moodle/role:unassignself to allow.
5. Click the "Save changes" button at the bottom of the page.

Note: Role changes will take effect immediately in Moodle 1.9, or when students next login in Moodle 1.7 and 1.8. Students will have an "Unenrol me from the course" link in the course administration block and an "Unenrol me from the course" button on their profile page.