> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://usepike.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Private projects

> How public and private projects work in Pike - visibility, membership, settings, and inherited access.

# Private projects

By default, projects in Pike are **public** - visible to every member of the workspace. When a project is marked as **private**, it becomes visible only to its members and workspace admins.

Private projects are useful when:

* Work is sensitive and should be limited to specific people (e.g. executive planning, acquisitions, personnel matters).
* A client engagement requires strict confidentiality between team members.
* You want to reduce noise by keeping certain projects out of everyone's list of projects.

***

## Creating or changing a private project

### Set to private when creating

When creating a new project, look for the **Private** toggle in the project creation form.

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/adjera/OgEnBvv5hPat65VO/images/docs/private-project-create.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=OgEnBvv5hPat65VO&q=85&s=adc6fdeac280edde4d205153d30216cb" alt="Private toggle in the project creation form" width="2880" height="1351" data-path="images/docs/private-project-create.png" />

### Change privacy after the project exists

After a project is created, you can change privacy by editing the project and clicking the **Private** badge, or through the options in the three dot menu on the projects list or the top right of the project overview page.

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/adjera/OgEnBvv5hPat65VO/images/docs/private-project-change-privacy.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=OgEnBvv5hPat65VO&q=85&s=5db85df316ec066265f997aba2bea5c7" alt="Change privacy on an existing project" width="2880" height="1214" data-path="images/docs/private-project-change-privacy.png" />

<Note>
  Only Admins and Managers can create projects. To make an existing public
  project private, edit the project and enable the **Private** toggle. Existing
  data inside the project will immediately become hidden from non-members.
</Note>

***

## How visibility works

**Public project** - Visible to everyone in the workspace. All workspace members can see it in navigation, search, and the workspace overview.

**Private project** - Visible only to:

* **Admins** - always have full visibility
* **Explicit project members** - users added to the project with a Member or Lead role

Non-members of a private project cannot:

* See the project in the sidebar or workspace overview
* Find it through search
* Access it via a direct link or API call
* See tasks, comments, attachments, or any other data belonging to that project

<Note>
  The core rule is simple: if you are not a member of a private project and you
  are not an Admin, that project does not exist for you.
</Note>

### Visibility by workspace role

This table shows what each role can see based on project privacy and membership.

|             | Public project (member) | Public project (not a member) | Private project (member) | Private project (not a member) |
| ----------- | ----------------------- | ----------------------------- | ------------------------ | ------------------------------ |
| **Admin**   | Visible                 | Visible                       | Visible                  | Visible                        |
| **Manager** | Visible                 | Visible                       | Visible                  | Hidden                         |
| **Finance** | Visible                 | Visible                       | Visible                  | Hidden                         |
| **HR**      | Visible                 | Visible                       | Visible                  | Hidden                         |
| **Basic**   | Visible                 | Hidden                        | Visible                  | Hidden                         |
| **Guest**   | Visible                 | Hidden                        | Visible                  | Hidden                         |

<Warning>
  A Manager who is not a member of a private project **cannot** see, edit, or
  delete it - even though their role normally allows managing projects. The
  private project boundary takes precedence.
</Warning>

### Child content inherits visibility

Tasks, comments, attachments, phases, and all other data inside a private project inherit its visibility. You do not need to mark individual tasks as private.

If a task belongs to a private project, non-members cannot see that task - not in task lists, not in search, not via direct URL.

Tasks that are **not** associated with any project are always visible to all workspace members (subject to normal role permissions).

***

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What happens when I make an existing project private?">
    All content inside the project immediately becomes hidden from non-members.
    Only users who are already project members (and Admins) will continue to see
    it.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can someone find a private project by guessing the URL?">
    No. Private projects are filtered at the API level. Attempting to access a
    private project you are not a member of returns a "not found" response - the
    same as if the project did not exist. There is no way to confirm whether a
    private project exists.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do I need to mark individual tasks as private?">
    No. Tasks inherit visibility from their project. If the project is private,
    all tasks inside it are automatically hidden from non-members.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What about tasks that are not in any project?">
    Tasks without a project association are visible to all workspace members,
    subject to normal role permissions.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can a Guest be added to a private project?">
    Yes. If a Guest is added as a project member, they can see that private
    project and its contents through guest-accessible features (e.g. viewing tasks
    and projects they are assigned to).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

<Card title="Workspace roles" icon="user-gear" iconType="solid" href="../members/workspace-roles">
  See how workspace roles interact with private project visibility.
</Card>