Approvals
Realm9's approval system provides governance and control over environment access through customizable approval workflows.
Overview
The approval system enables:
- Manager approval for bookings
- Custom approval rules
- Automated workflows
- Audit trail of decisions
- Email notifications
Approval Workflows
Automatic Approval
For low-risk scenarios:
- Development environments
- Shared test environments
- Short duration bookings
- Specific teams or users
Manager Approval
Requires explicit approval from:
- Environment owner
- Team manager
- Designated approvers
- Based on environment type
Multi-level Approval
For sensitive environments:
- Primary approver
- Secondary approver
- C-level approval for production
- Security team review
Configuring Approval Rules
Global Settings
Set organization-wide defaults:
- Default approval requirement
- Approval timeout periods
- Escalation policies
- Notification preferences
Environment-Level Rules
Override global settings per environment:
- Require approval for specific environments
- Designate custom approvers
- Set approval criteria
- Define exceptions
Rule Conditions
Trigger approvals based on:
- Environment type (Production, Staging)
- Booking duration (> X hours/days)
- Time of day (off-hours, weekends)
- User role or team
- Cost threshold
Approver Management
Assigning Approvers
Approvers can be:
- Environment owner
- Team managers
- Custom approval group
- Multiple approvers (any/all)
Approver Permissions
Approvers can:
- View booking details
- See environment status
- Approve or reject requests
- Add comments/conditions
- Delegate approval
Approval Process
For Requesters
- Submit booking request
- Receive confirmation
- Get notified of approval decision
- View approval comments
- Access environment (if approved)
For Approvers
- Receive approval request notification
- Review booking details
- Check environment availability
- Review justification
- Approve, reject, or request changes
Approval Actions
Approve
- Grant access to environment
- Send confirmation email
- Log approval in audit trail
- Activate booking
Reject
- Deny booking request
- Provide rejection reason
- Suggest alternatives
- Notify requester
Request Changes
- Ask for more information
- Suggest different time/environment
- Return to requester
- Pending status until resubmitted
Notifications
Email Notifications
Sent for:
- New approval requests
- Approval/rejection decisions
- Escalation to secondary approver
- Approval deadline approaching
In-App Notifications
Real-time alerts for:
- Pending approvals
- Decision updates
- Comment additions
- Workflow changes
Escalation
Time-based Escalation
If no response within configured time:
- Notify secondary approver
- Send reminder to primary approver
- Auto-approve (if configured)
- Auto-reject (if configured)
Override Approvals
For emergencies:
- Admin override capability
- Audit log requirement
- Justification mandatory
- Post-approval review
Reporting and Analytics
Approval Metrics
Track:
- Approval rate
- Average approval time
- Rejection reasons
- Bottlenecks
Compliance Reports
Generate reports for:
- All approval decisions
- Approver activity
- Policy compliance
- Audit requirements
Best Practices
Setting Up Rules
- Start with strict, loosen gradually
- Use automatic approval for dev/test
- Require approval for production
- Set reasonable timeout periods
For Approvers
- Respond promptly to requests
- Provide clear rejection reasons
- Use comments for conditions
- Delegate when unavailable
For Requesters
- Provide detailed justifications
- Plan ahead to avoid rush approvals
- Respect rejection decisions
- Update requests based on feedback
Integration
Slack Integration
- Approval requests in Slack
- One-click approve/reject
- Thread-based discussions
- Status updates
Microsoft Teams
- Teams channel notifications
- Adaptive cards for approvals
- Comment thread integration
- Status sync
Webhooks
- Custom approval workflows
- External system integration
- Automated notifications
- Workflow automation