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Control Panel Overview: Navigating VZO Admin Control Panel

When an administrator logs into VisualZen, they land on the Control Panel Dashboard—a permission-based, real-time snapshot of the system. This screen offers quick access to frequently referenced tools, a status view of system-wide reservations, and a centralized view of communication configuration activity.

This guide outlines each part of the Control Panel landing page and how it connects to broader system functionality.

Permission-Based Access

What each user sees in the Control Panel is based on their assigned user permissions.
If a user does not have access to a specific function—such as Events, Reports, or Messaging—that tab or section will not appear for them at all.

Note: If your screen looks different from what’s shown in this article or in training, it may be due to differences in your permission level.

Page Layout Overview

1. Top Tab Navigation (Blue Ribbon Menu)

This horizontal menu allows users to navigate key areas of the system:

  • Check-In – Manage day-of arrival workflows (if enabled)

  • Events – Set up and manage orientation or optional sessions

  • Reservations – Search, view, and manage student registrations

  • Imported Students – View records received from institutional data files

  • Reports – Generate exports, summaries, and rosters

  • Housing – Administer roommate requests and assignments (if used)

  • Archives – Access previous systems that have been archived

  • Communication Configurations – Set up and manage automated email/SMS triggers

  • My Account – Update your profile and password

  • Sign Out – Log out of the system

2. Left Sidebar Navigation

This vertical panel links to additional tools and configuration areas:

  • Home – Returns to the Control Panel landing view

  • Contents – Manage editable content including instructions and FAQs

  • FootPrints – View user activity and system interaction logs

  • Messages – Respond to student-submitted inquiries

  • Public Files – Upload and share documents like schedules or PDFs

  • StickyNotes – Internal notes saved on system elements or records

  • Student Data –
    This section houses configuration tables and settings, not individual student records. Examples include:

    • Majors

    • Colleges

    • Campuses

    • Student Types

    • Online Orientation modules (if enabled)

    • Task Lists and Task List Items

  • Users – Manage admin user accounts, permissions, and login credentials

Control Panel Dashboard Panels

Upon login, users see two core dashboards that provide a real-time system overview.

Communication Configuration Status

This panel displays all communication triggers configured in the system, such as reservation confirmations, payment reminders, and event follow-ups. Each entry includes the message type, audience, and current status.

  • Enabled = The message is active and will send when triggered

  • Disabled = The message is inactive and will not send

This area is commonly used to confirm whether messaging workflows are properly activated for a given term.

Reservation Overview Summary

This section shows the number of students in each reservation status category:

  • Pending – The student has accessed VZ but has not begun their reservation

  • Pending Submission – A date has been selected but the form is not submitted

  • Submission Received – The reservation is complete and payment has been received

  • Submission Received – Owes Money – Payment is incomplete due to post-submission edits

  • Cancelled – The reservation has been manually flagged as inactive

  • Total Reservations – All statuses combined

The data in this panel refreshes continuously and provides a quick, accurate snapshot of current registration volume.

Pre-Production and Archive Systems

In addition to the Production environment, VisualZen provides separate instances for setup, testing, and historical access:

  • Pre-Production – A sandbox version of the system used to test setup, configuration, and messaging

  • Archive – A locked snapshot of a prior term’s production system used for reporting and data reference

These environments are independent of each other. Changes made in one will not carry over unless a formal copy is requested and processed by the VisualZen team.