Restrict add, move, and delete while allowing edit access to Experience Fragment components in AEM
This article explains how to configure Adobe Experience Manager so that users can edit the content of existing Experience Fragment components while preventing them from adding, moving, or deleting components using supported out-of-the-box features.
Description description
Environment
Adobe Experience Manager (all versions)
Issue/Symptoms
Some organizations require that certain users can edit the content or properties of existing components within Experience Fragments but should not be able to:
- Add new components to an Experience Fragment.
- Move or reorder existing components within an Experience Fragment.
- Delete components from an Experience Fragment.
At the same time, these users must retain the ability to modify the content or properties of components that have already been placed by an administrator.
Cause
AEM’s out-of-the-box permission model does not provide fine-grained separation between editing component content and adding, moving, or deleting components within Experience Fragments. The recommended approach is to use editable templates with structure locking and folder-based access controls to achieve the desired governance without custom code.
Resolution resolution
Follow these steps to resolve the issue:
- Create editable Experience Fragment templates where administrators design the layout and place all required components.
- Lock the structural containers or components that should not be changed by non-admin users.
- Allow users to author only in unlocked content areas (dialog fields); they will not be able to add, move, or delete locked components.
- Organize Experience Fragments into folders based on responsibility (for example, separating admin-only and editor-accessible fragments).
- Assign permissions so that designated users can edit content in specific Experience Fragments but cannot change critical fragments.
- Combine locked template structures with folder-based access controls for robust governance.
Verify that users can edit only the intended content and are unable to add, move, or delete components in locked areas.