Defining a Super-Admin | laravel-permission | Spatie

 SPATIE

  Laravel Permission
=====================

spatie.be/open-source

  [Docs](https://spatie.be/docs)  [Laravel-permission](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4)  Basic-usage  Defining a Super-Admin

 Version   v7   v6   v5   v4   v3

 Other versions for crawler [v7](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v7) [v6](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v6) [v5](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v5) [v4](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4) [v3](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v3)

- [ Introduction ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/introduction)
- [ Support us ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/support-us)
- [ Prerequisites ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/prerequisites)
- [ Installation in Laravel ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/installation-laravel)
- [ Installation in Lumen ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/installation-lumen)
- [ Upgrading ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/upgrading)
- [ Questions and issues ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/questions-issues)
- [ Changelog ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/changelog)
- [ About us ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/about-us)

Basic Usage
-----------

- [ Basic Usage ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/basic-usage)
- [ Direct Permissions ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/direct-permissions)
- [ Using Permissions via Roles ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/role-permissions)
- [ Wildcard permissions ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/wildcard-permissions)
- [ Blade directives ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/blade-directives)
- [ Defining a Super-Admin ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/super-admin)
- [ Using multiple guards ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/multiple-guards)
- [ Using artisan commands ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/artisan)
- [ Using a middleware ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/middleware)
- [ Example App ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/basic-usage/new-app)

Best Practices
--------------

- [ Roles vs Permissions ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/best-practices/roles-vs-permissions)
- [ Model Policies ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/best-practices/using-policies)
- [ Performance Tips ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/best-practices/performance)

Advanced usage
--------------

- [ Testing ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/testing)
- [ Database Seeding ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/seeding)
- [ Exceptions ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/exceptions)
- [ Extending ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/extending)
- [ Cache ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/cache)
- [ UUID ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/uuid)
- [ PhpStorm Interaction ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/phpstorm)
- [ Other ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/other)
- [ Timestamps ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/timestamps)
- [ UI Options ](https://spatie.be/docs/laravel-permission/v4/advanced-usage/ui-options)

      You are viewing the documentation for **an older version** of this package. You can check the version you are using with the following command:

 `                                    composer show spatie/laravel-permission                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    `

Defining a Super-Admin
======================

We strongly recommend that a Super-Admin be handled by setting a global `Gate::before` or `Gate::after` rule which checks for the desired role.

Then you can implement the best-practice of primarily using permission-based controls (@can and $user->can, etc) throughout your app, without always having to check for "is this a super-admin" everywhere. Best not to use role-checking (ie: `hasRole`) when you have Super Admin features like this.

`Gate::before`
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you want a "Super Admin" role to respond `true` to all permissions, without needing to assign all those permissions to a role, you can use Laravel's `Gate::before()` method. For example:

```
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Gate;

class AuthServiceProvider extends ServiceProvider
{
    public function boot()
    {
        $this->registerPolicies();

        // Implicitly grant "Super Admin" role all permissions
        // This works in the app by using gate-related functions like auth()->user->can() and @can()
        Gate::before(function ($user, $ability) {
            return $user->hasRole('Super Admin') ? true : null;
        });
    }
}
```

NOTE: `Gate::before` rules need to return `null` rather than `false`, else it will interfere with normal policy operation. [See more.](https://laracasts.com/discuss/channels/laravel/policy-gets-never-called#reply=492526)

Jeffrey Way explains the concept of a super-admin (and a model owner, and model policies) in the [Laravel 6 Authorization Filters](https://laracasts.com/series/laravel-6-from-scratch/episodes/51) video and some related lessons in that chapter.

`Gate::after`
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alternatively you might want to move the Super Admin check to the `Gate::after` phase instead, particularly if your Super Admin shouldn't be allowed to do things your app doesn't want "anyone" to do, such as writing more than 1 review, or bypassing unsubscribe rules, etc.

The following code snippet is inspired from [Freek's blog article](https://murze.be/when-to-use-gateafter-in-laravel) where this topic is discussed further.

```
// somewhere in a service provider

Gate::after(function ($user, $ability) {
   return $user->hasRole('Super Admin'); // note this returns boolean
});
```