Departments onboarded as tenants into the GT Tableau Server are provided with a dedicated tenant project space for their work. Permissions within each tenant’s project space are set at the project (folder) level and managed by Tableau Administrators. Each tenant space includes the following:
- Data Sources Project – Tenant developers with Creator licenses publish data sources here (extracts preferred). Once published, any data source in this project can be accessed by all Tableau Developers associated with the tenant.
- SANDBOX Project – A workspace for developers to publish and refine workbooks. No viewers are ever added to the SANDBOX to ensure unrestricted development.
- QA/LIVE Project Pairs –
- QA Projects – Used for testing; testers are assigned Viewer access.
- LIVE Projects – Used for production reporting; end-users are assigned Viewer access.
Tenant Space Structure & Permissions Overview
Standard Development & Publishing Workflow
This step-by-step guide outlines the standard publishing workflow for Tableau Server tenant departments — from developing reports to sharing validated content with end-users and keeping it up to date.
Step 0: Publish Your Data Sources
To publish new data sources, developers must use Tableau Desktop or Tableau Prep, which requires a Tableau Creator license. Once published, these data sources can be accessed by all Tableau Developers within the tenant space.
For step-by-step instructions, see How to Publish a Data Source.
Step 1: Develop in the SANDBOX Project
Begin by publishing new workbooks that are still in development to your department’s SANDBOX project.
- Only tenant developers have access to content in the SANDBOX.
- Use this space to build, explore, and iterate before sharing with testers.
- Keep your SANDBOX clean by removing outdated versions once the report moves forward.
The SANDBOX is your private workspace for tenant developers.
Step 2: Determine the Intended Audience
Before sharing your work outside of the SANDBOX, identify who needs access to the report – both for testing and for final distribution.
Then, review your existing QA/LIVE project pairs:
- If an existing project pair matches or can be adapted to fit the intended audience, use it.
- If no suitable project exists, request a new QA/LIVE project pair from the Tableau Admin team.
New project pairs are only created when necessary. For example, if the report’s audience is distinct enough that reusing an existing project pair would not be appropriate due to a data security risk.
To request a new project pair, email ea-tableau@office365.gatech.edu with your department name and intended audience.
Note: If the intended audience for a report is large and includes users outside of your department, the report may need to be certified and published by the enterprise reporting team to be shared broadly.
Step 3: Test and Validate in the QA Project
Once your report is ready for testing, move or publish a copy from the SANDBOX into the appropriate QA project.
- Each QA project has a specific group of testers that can view its content alongside tenant developers.
- Use this space to review and validate the report before releasing it to end-users.
- Once testing begins, the version in QA becomes your working version for any future updates.
Any previous versions in the SANDBOX may be removed to avoid confusion.
Step 4: Publish to the LIVE Project for End-Users
After validation is complete, publish a copy of the approved workbook from QA into the corresponding LIVE project.
- Reports in LIVE projects are shared with the final audience end-users.
- LIVE projects should only contain validated, production-ready content.
Step 5: Update Existing Workbooks
When updates are needed, make and test those changes in the QA project first. Once validated, publish a copy to the LIVE project, replacing the existing workbook.
- QA is the working version – make updates here without affecting end-users.
- Overwriting the workbook in LIVE keeps shared links intact and ensures users always access the latest LIVE version.