B-11 · ApplicationOS Portal Administration¶
Book B — Agency Administrator Guide · draft v1 (2026-08-29)
What it is: the online application portal applicants use (
portal.goapplicationos.com, or your agency's landing page/a/‹agency›). Staff work submissions in HousingOS's ApplicationOS Inbox (▸ C-4) and Workroom (▸ C-8). The web admin (this chapter) is where the agency configures it. Existing detail: ApplicationOS-Client-Setup.pdf and HousingOS Portal Configuration.pdf in Claude Manuals — this chapter is the agency-facing summary of both.
Roles (three tiers)¶
| Role | Sees | Can |
|---|---|---|
| Agency super admin | everything | agency settings, programs, team, landing page; always all programs |
| Case worker | work-queue home | review applications, request documents, notify applicants, change status — for the programs assigned |
| Read only | work-queue home | view only, for assigned programs |
Case workers and read-only users are scoped to programs ("All program applications" or a checked subset); new programs are not auto-granted unless All. Seats count toward your licence.
Inviting staff¶
Team ▸ Add user — name, email, role, programs. HousingOS emails an invitation (no live link by design; the invitee signs in with the magic-link / passkey flow using the invited email). Resend invite if it's lost. Remove a user to free the seat.
Agency settings¶
- Agency profile — name, logo, colours, contact details shown to applicants.
- Programs — which programs accept applications, their descriptions, eligibility text, applicable forms (which of the program's forms an applicant must read/agree to), document checklist (what applicants must upload — pay stubs, bank statements, IDs, ownership…), disclosures (platform-required, agency, program), and the pre-application (waiting list) option.
- Landing page — the photo-hero sign-in page; off by default (applicants use the general portal); turn on and upload the hero photo when you want a branded entry point.
- Bilingual — Spanish toggle for the applicant side.
- Sample documents / demo persona — for training, the demo agency has one-click sample uploads.
Connecting HousingOS to the portal¶
Set once at onboarding by Housing Programs in Default Settings (portal URL, client key, licence feature applicationos). If the Inbox says "Portal import is not configured yet" or "ApplicationOS is not part of this HousingOS subscription", that's the setting/licence — contact Housing Programs (▸ B-15).
City web filters¶
Some city networks block the portal domains or the emailed links. Symptoms: blank Inbox panels, applicants' links "not opening". Housing Programs maintains a bridge host and submits categorisation requests; tell them the filter product (Fortinet, Palo Alto, …) — ▸ A-7.
Watch-outs¶
- Only super admins see settings — a case worker asking "where did settings go" has the right role.
- Seat limits — you'll be told when adding a user would exceed the licence.
- Document retention — uploaded files are removed from the portal after HousingOS downloads them; the copy in the project folder is the record.
Screenshot shot list¶
| Shot | What |
|---|---|
| B11-01 | web admin Team page |
| B11-02 | Programs editor (document checklist) |
| B11-03 | Landing page toggle |
Open items for John¶
- Confirm the sign-in method to describe for staff (magic link + passkeys) and the admin URL to print.