Introduction

What is a Playground Organization?

A Playground Organization is a safe, isolated training environment that allows you to explore and practice using Datarails features without any risk to your live organizational data. Think of it as a practice space where you can experiment, learn, and build confidence with the platform.

Key Benefits

• Risk-Free Learning: Practice with platform features without worrying about altering production data
• Easy Switching: Seamlessly move between your playground and production environments
• Time-Limited Practice: Automatic cleanup ensures playgrounds don't clutter your workspace
• Datarails Course Compatibility: The playground organization is designed to match the datrails course content.   

Who Can Use Playground Organizations?

• Only users with an FP&A license can have a Playground. 
• Admins and Super Admins: Can create and manage playground organizations for team members.
• Contributors: Can have playground organizations created for them and use them for training.
• Viewers: Cannot have playground organizations (view-only permissions don't require practice environments)

Getting Started

Prerequisites

Before creating or using a playground organization, ensure:

• You have an active Datarails account
• Your role is Admin, Super Admin, or Contributor (not Viewer)

Understanding Playground Organization Characteristics

When a playground organization is created, it automatically includes:

• A template-based organization structure (created from the datagrails-course.com template)
• The same user role you have in the production environment. 
• A unique domain: [your-email].[original-domain] (e.g., john.doe.company.com)
• A default 90-day expiration period
• No ability to add additional users (solo practice environment)

Creating a Playground Organization (Admins and Super Admins)

Admins and Super admins can create playground organizations for any eligible user in their organization.

Playground Creation

1. Navigate to the Admin View section
2. Select Members and Groups from the navigation menu
3. Locate the user for whom you want to create a playground organization
   
4. In the "Create playground" modal, you can adjust the playground name and the "Auto-delete-on". Please note: "Auto-delete-on" is the date when the playground will be permanently deleted. While this parameter can be adjusted, each playground must have a future deletion date.   
   
5. Example Domain Format:
   1. Production Org: company.com
   2. User Email: john.doe@company.com
   3. Playground Domain: john.doe.company.com
6. When the playground is ready, its owners will get an email informing them that the playground organization is ready. 

Playground Management 

1. Changes to the playground organization name or deletion date can be made from the Members and Groups section.    

2. Select "Manage Playground Organization" from the three dots menu. 

   

   Note: This option only appears for users who are not support users, sync users, or viewers.

3. In the Manage Playground modal, you can adjust the Playground name and the deletion date 
   

Important: The new date must be in the future (after today's date).

4. To permanently delete the playground organization, select the "delete permanently" option.  

What Happens After Creation?

The system automatically:

• Creates a new organization and assigns it to the selected users. 
• The user who "owns" the playground organization gets access to it.
• The "playground user" receives the same role as the user has in the parent organization (Admin, Super Admin, or Contributor)
• Sets up auto-deletion for the specified date
• Sends confirmation emails to all support managers of the organization. 

Managing Playground Organizations

Viewing Existing Playground Organizations

To check if a user already has a playground organization:

1. Navigate to Admin View > Organizations Screen
2. Look for organizations with "Type" marked as "Playground" (note: the system now uses three types: regular, playground/sandbox, and template)

Note: The playground organizations appear in the same view as regular organizations and templates, distinguished by their "Type" field.

Deleting a Playground Organization

To manually delete a playground before its scheduled deletion:

1. Open the Members and Groups section and locate the user that own the organization you want to delete. 
2. Open the Manage Playground modal from the 3 dots menu.  
3. Click the "Delete Permanently" button
4. Confirm the deletion in the prompt

Warning: This action is permanent and cannot be undone. All data in the playground will be lost.

Automatic Deletion Scenarios

Playground organizations are automatically deleted when:

• The scheduled deletion date has been reached
• The parent organization is deleted
• The assigned user is deleted from the system

Using Your Playground Organization

Accessing Your Playground

Once a playground organization has been created for you, you can access it through multiple interfaces:

Web Application

1. Log in to your Datarails account
2. Click your profile menu (top right corner)
3. Select "Switch to Playground Organization"
   
4. You'll be redirected to your playground environment

Identifying Playground Mode

When you're in a playground organization, you'll see clear indicators:

• A persistent banner at the top indicates "Playground Organization"
• A badge next to the organization name
• Different color scheme or visual indicator
  

Important: Always check these indicators before making changes to ensure you're in the correct environment.

What You Can Do in a Playground

In your playground organization, you can:

• ✅ Practice all platform features and modules
• ✅ Create, edit, and delete data freely
• ✅ Experiment with advanced features
• ✅ Test workflows and processes
• ✅ Make mistakes without consequences
• ✅ Edit multi-product configurations

What You Cannot Do in a Playground

To maintain the integrity of the practice environment:

• ❌ Add additional users to the playground
• ❌ Rename the organization
• ❌ Connect to real data sources that affect production
• ❌ Send communications to external parties

Switching Between Environments

From Production to Playground

In Web Application:

1. Click your profile menu (top right)
2. Select "Switch to Playground Organization"
3. Confirm the switch if prompted

In Excel Add-ins:

1. Click the "Avatar" symbol
2. Choose your playground organization
3. The add-in reloads automatically

From Playground to Production

In Web Application:

1. Click your profile menu (top right)
2. Select "Switch to Production"
3. Confirm the switch if prompted

In Excel Add-ins:

1. Click the organization selector
2. Choose your production organization
3. The add-in reloads automatically

Best Practices for Switching

• Always verify which environment you're in before making changes
• Log out and log back in if you experience any issues after switching
• Save your work before switching environments
• Wait for the environment to fully load after switching

Auto-Deletion and Notifications

Deletion Timeline

By default, playground organizations are set to automatically delete 90 days after creation. This ensures your workspace remains organized and reduces unnecessary resource usage.

Email Notifications

7-Day Warning (Admin Users)

If you're an admin or super admin, you'll receive an email 7 days before your playground is scheduled for deletion, which includes:

• The scheduled deletion date
• Instructions on how to postpone the deletion
• A link to the Manage Playground Organization modal

To Postpone Deletion:

1. Click the link in the email or navigate to the Members Table
2. Open the Manage Playground Organization modal
3. Update the deletion date to a future date
4. Save your changes

7-Day Warning (Non-Admin Users)

If you're a contributor (non-admin), you'll receive an email 7 days before deletion, which includes:

• The scheduled deletion date
• Instructions to contact your organization's Datarails admins

To Postpone Deletion:

1. Contact your organization administrator
2. Request an extension on your playground organization
3. Your admin will update the deletion date for you

Error Notifications

If there are issues during playground creation or deletion:

• The organization creator receives an email notification
• All users listed as support managers of the organization receive an alert
• The email includes error details and next steps for resolution

Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

Q: How long does it take to create a playground organization?
A: Playground creation typically takes 5-10 minutes. You'll receive an email notification when it's ready.

Q: Can I have multiple playground organizations?
A: No, each user can have only one playground organization at a time.

Q: Will my playground organization affect my production data?
A: No, playground organizations are completely isolated from your production environment.

Access and Permissions

Q: Why can't I see the "Manage Playground Organization" option?
A: This option is only visible for users who are admins, super admins, or contributors. Viewers, support users, and sync users cannot have playground organizations.

Q: What permissions do I have in my playground?
A: You have the same role and permissions in your playground as you do in your production organization.

Q: Can I invite team members to my playground?
A: No, playground organizations are designed for individual practice and do not support adding additional users.

Technical Questions

Q: Why is my playground domain different from my production domain?
A: Playground domains use the format [your-email].[original-domain] to clearly distinguish them from production environments.

Q: Does my playground include all my organization's data?
A: Playgrounds are created from a standard template (datagrails-course.com) and do not include your actual production data. They provide a consistent training environment for all users.

Q: What happens if I delete data in my playground by mistake?
A: Since it's a practice environment, you can simply continue practicing. If needed, your admin can delete and recreate the playground.

Deletion and Maintenance

Q: What happens to my playground when it's automatically deleted?
A: All data in the playground is permanently removed. You'll need to create a new playground if you want to continue practicing.

Q: Can I recover a deleted playground?
A: No, deleted playgrounds cannot be recovered. However, your admin can create a new playground for you.

Q: How many times can I extend my playground's deletion date?
A: There's no limit to extensions, as long as you update the date before the scheduled deletion and set it to a future date.

Troubleshooting

Q: I can't switch to my playground organization. What should I do?
A: Try these steps:

1. Verify your playground was successfully created (check for confirmation email)
2. Log out and log back in
3. Clear your browser cache
4. Contact your administrator if the issue persists

Q: The playground doesn't match my production environment. Why?
A: Playgrounds mirror product definitions, not actual data. If you notice missing features, contact your administrator to verify the playground setup.

Q: I didn't receive a deletion warning email. What should I do?
A: Check your spam folder first. If you still can't find it, contact your administrator to verify your email address in the system.

Support and Contact

If you encounter any issues or have questions not covered in this manual:

• For Admin Users: Access the Manage Playground Organization modal and check error messages
• For All Users: Contact your organization admins
• Technical Support: Reach out to Datarails support through your normal channels

Troubleshooting Guide for Admins

Issue: User can't access their playground
Solution: Verify the playground was created successfully, check user permissions, and ensure they're not a Viewer

Issue: Playground creation failed
Solution: Check for error emails sent to support managers, verify template organization is accessible, and retry creation

Issue: The user wants to extend the playground, but the email hasn't arrived
Solution: Manually update the deletion date through the Manage Playground Organization modal

Issue: Playground needs to be recreated
Solution: Delete the existing playground, wait for confirmation, then create a new one

Updated March 08, 2026 10:19