Applies to

Smartsheet
Smartsheet Advance Package

Smartsheet Control Center FAQ

Access the basics of Smartsheet Control Center to cover all the information you need if you want to create and work with a program in Smartsheet Control Center, modify projects, and more. 

Who can use this?

Plans:

  • Smartsheet
  • Smartsheet Advance Package

As a Primary Lead or Additional Lead, you can manage or make updates to existing Control Center programs.

The following FAQs cover the following:

  • Control Center login and access
  • Modifying existing projects
  • Project provisioning
  • Resource Management for Control Center

Can I create more than one program?

If you’re on an Advance plan, you have unlimited Control Center programs, so create as many as you would like!

How can I delete a program?

Submit a support request through the customer support portal to delete a program.

Can I copy or duplicate a program the same way I do with blueprints?

This feature is currently not supported, but we encourage you to submit your feedback and all your ideas to improve our product. 

How do I transfer a program to a new Program Lead?

Make sure the new owner meets the necessary prerequisites. Then, follow these steps to transfer the program. 

Who can create a program? Only System Admins or any paid user?

Any paid user on an Advance plan can create a program. 

How do I allow a stakeholder in my organization to access a project provisioned from Smartsheet Control Center?

Once you've provisioned a project with Smartsheet Control Center, use the standard Smartsheet sharing processes to make sure that stakeholders have access. 

Depending on the level of access that you grant, you can opt to share an entire project workspace or an individual Smartsheet item—a summary report or rollup sheet, for example.

Here are some resources with guidance and best practices about sharing in Smartsheet:

How do I update a template used in projects provisioned from Control Center?

You can make changes directly from Smartsheet to apply updates to newly provisioned projects.

  1. Locate the item to update (sheet, report, or dashboard) in the folder that contains the items used for the project type in the Admin workspace—this is the same workspace that hosts the Control Center Config file.
  2. Open the item, make the change, and save it.

The change appears in future projects provisioned out of Control Center.

How do I add a new template for projects provisioned from Control Center?

Use the blueprint builder in Control Center to include or exclude templates from a project type. You must be a Program Lead to add or remove templates from a project.

 

You can complete this task in two places:

Option 1: From Smartsheet
  1. Go to Home > All workspaces to open the workspace panel and locate the Admin workspace for your Control Center configuration.
    Admin Folder
  2. Open the folder containing the project where you want to add a new template.
  3. Create the item (sheet, report, or dashboard) you want to include in the project and save it.
Option 2: From the blueprint builder in Control Center
  1. Log in to Smartsheet Control Center, and select the Menu icon.

    View of the Menu in Smartsheet Control Center.
  2. Select the name of the program on the left and then select Manage Program.
  3. Select the blueprint to update.
  4. Navigate through the blueprint builder to the Source Template Settings page.

If you added or updated templates in your source folder, you receive a pop-up message noting that the blueprint builder has detected the new template.
 

  1. Select Yes to make the template available to the project type.
  2. Use the options in the Source Template Settings page to adjust how the template appears in the project.
  3. Select Next to reach the end of the blueprint builder and then select Update.

Seeing a confirmation signals that the template or template update is now part of the project type. The new template will be part of the project the next time you provision it.

Sheets in Control Center are linked to one another, so avoid changing cells that are linked to or from other sources and summary data.

Instead of modifying summary data directly, find the cells that contain the summarized data. For example, if you use a formula, such as =SUM(CHILDREN()), to gather summary information, you should modify the summary value by changing the data in the child rows to apply a change.

For more information, see Cell links: Consolidate or maintain data consistency and Create and edit formulas in Smartsheet.

How do I add or change project profile data?

Profile data in Smartsheet Control Center is the project profile information. In Smartsheet, the profile data appears in the Summary section of each project plan. 

Profile data facilitates project intake workflows, and you can track and summarize data from provisioned projects and reports.

View of the Program Metadata.

To add or update profile data from this point forward, go to the blueprint builder and follow these steps:

  1. Log in to Control Center and select the three-line Menu icon.
  2. Select the program you want to update and select Manage Program.
  3. Select the blueprint to update.
  4. Navigate through the blueprint builder to the Profile Data Selection and Customize Profile Data pages.
  5. On the Profile Data Selection page, select or deselect profile data fields you want included.
    View of the Add Field option.
  6. In the Customize Profile Data page, you can modify where the data comes from, if it’s required, add new fields, or add template specific profile data.
  7. Select Next when you’re ready.
  8. Navigate through the entire blueprint builder and select Save.

Once you add new profile data, it becomes available for association with the templates in your project, and you can include it in the project intake and provisioning processes.

How do I view logs in Control Center?

  1. Open the program containing the projects you want to review.
  2. Hover over the Actions options on the right of the item.
  3. Select the three-dot menu.
  4. Select View logs…



You can view logs for:

  • Projects
  • Global Updates
  • Archiving
  • Approval Automation (If enabled for your program)

How can I automate my project provisioning?

A Primary Lead can enable Approval Automation for a specific Control Center blueprint. With approval automation, you can provision projects when you mark the Approval value (configured in the blueprint builder's Intake Settings page) in the intake sheet after enabling the automation.

You can’t modify any blueprint settings while the automation is enabled.

To enable Approval Automation:

  1. Open the program where you want to set the automation.
  2. Go to Manage Program > Automations.
  3. Select New Automation.
  4. Select a blueprint, and then choose Create.

Once you’ve enabled the automation, your items are automatically provisioned when the approval value configured in your blueprint is set for rows on the intake sheet.

This feature is not enabled for Control Center programs by default. Contact your Smartsheet representative to discuss Control Center approval automation enablement.

Can I link Control Center to Resource Management?

Yes. To do so, follow these steps:

  1. In Control Center, open the program where you want to link Resource Management.
  2. Select Manage Program.
  3. Select the Integrations tab.

You can only create the integration if you’re also a Resource Management Admin.

  1. Select Update.
  2. Select Allow Control Center.

If you need to change a name or email, or if the organization name appears as not set, you can:

  1. Open a new browser tab and sign in to your Resource Management account.

Make sure you sign out of any other Resource Management accounts you might have.

  1. Select Update.
  2. Select Allow Control Center.

Can I link a template sheet to Resource Management?

Yes, but you can only link one template sheet to Resource Management.

  1. In Smartsheet, open the template sheet you want your resource plans to link to.
  2. Open the Resource Management panel.

Then connect the template sheet. You don’t have to connect all your projects, just the sheet. 

How can I create a resource plan through Control Center?

You must configure a blueprint to create a resource plan and any associated Smartsheet items.

  1. In Control Center, select Manage Programs > Blueprints.
  2. Select + New Blueprint or an existing blueprint.
  3. Scroll through the builder to Blueprint Components.
  4. Turn on the Resource Management panel option, and then select Next.
  5. On the Resource Plan Settings screen, select the columns on the intake sheet to use with Resource Management.
    • Optional: To change intake column mappings, select Edit Settings, save your changes, and select Next. Changes made to the mapping affect any blueprints using the intake sheet. 
  6. On the Connection Settings screen, select which sheet appears in the Resource Management panel after you provision the project. Typically, this is your project plan.

Complete the blueprint builder as usual.