This article is for EarthRanger administrators. It explains what happens when your site upgrades to EarthRanger Identity, how to approve the migration, and what changes for you after it’s complete.
What migration does
Migration moves your site’s user to EarthRanger Identity, a secure email-based sign-in that each user sets up and controls themselves. The important thing to know before you proceed:
- Nothing is lost. Every user keeps their existing access, history and permissions.
- Users own their own sign-in after migration. Each user creates their own password. You will no longer be able to set or reset passwords for users who sign in with their email address.
- Users own their own email address. You will no longer be able to set or change their email address.
- Authorization stays in EarthRanger. You still control who can access your site and what they can do, through the same admin tools as before.
Before migration begins
The EarthRanger team will contact you to confirm timing and readiness. You’ll be asked to:
- Confirm you want to proceed with the upgrade.
- Flag any timing constraints
- Give your users advance notice so the change isn’t a surprise.
Nothing changes on your site until you confirm.
What to tell your users
Before migration runs, let your users know:
- They will receive an upgrade email with a personal link to finish setting up their sign-in.
- Clicking the link and completing the setup takes a few minutes and only needs to be done once.
- Their existing access, history and settings are not affected.
- After completing the setup, their sign-in will be using their email address and password they set themselves.
You can share the Setting up your EarthRanger sign-in article with your users as a quick guide for the process.
The upgrade email your users will receive
Once migration runs, each user receives a personal upgrade email. The email reads:
Hello,
Your EarthRanger site, [site name], is upgrading to a simpler, more secure way to sign in.
To finish the upgrade, follow the link below and create a secure sign-in using your preferred email — or, if you already have one, just sign in with that email. Your existing EarthRanger account, access, and history are then linked automatically; nothing moves or disappears.
[upgrade link]
If you have any questions, please contact support@earthranger.com
What changes for you after migration
Task |
Before migration |
After migration |
Setting or resetting a user’s password |
Site administrators sent users a password reset link via EarthRanger admin |
Users reset their own password using Forgot password? on the sign-in screen — site administrators can no longer do this |
Assigning roles and permissions |
Managed in EarthRanger admin |
Managed in EarthRanger admin — unchanged |
Activating or deactivating a user |
Managed in EarthRanger admin |
Managed in EarthRanger admin — unchanged |
Creating accounts for users without email |
- |
Coming soon |
If a user hasn't completed their upgrade
If a user's upgrade link has expired before they clicked it, they will be unable to sign in until the upgrade is complete. Upgrade links expire after 24 hours.
To resend the upgrade email to a specific user:
- Go to EarthRanger Admin.
- Select the user you want to upgrade.
- The option to resend the invitation will be available.
Once sent, the user will receive a new upgrade email with a fresh 24-hour link.
Once the user clicks the new link and completes the upgrade, their access is restored.
If a User’s Email Address Is Not Correct
If a user’s email address was incorrect, they likely didn’t receive the invitation email sent out when your site converted to use EarthRanger Identity.
Until a user has successfully linked their EarthRanger account with an EarthRanger Identity account, you can change their email address. Once you change that user’s email address, click the Resend EarthRanger Identity Invitation button to send an invitation to the newly-updated email address.