When someone says they can't get in or can't post, it's usually a setting doing its job. Find the symptom below, check why it happens, then apply the fix.
Who can do this: Community owners and admins. Space admins can change their space's settings, space admins and space moderators can approve requests to join their space, and moderators can review held content. · Where: Web (admin console and each space's Manage space panel). · Plan: Some fixes use features that depend on your platform plan, such as access groups and paid memberships.
A person can't sign up for the community
Symptom: the sign-up page says the community is invitation-only, says Registration is currently closed or This invitation can't be accepted right now, shows Application submitted after they apply, or asks them to subscribe.
Why it happens: your registration mode in Admin → Settings → Registration decides who can create an account:
- Invite only: only people with a valid invitation email can register.
- Closed: no new accounts.
- Approval required: each new account waits for approval before the person can sign in.
- Paid: visitors must subscribe to a plan first. If no plan is set up or Stripe isn't connected, they see "This community isn't accepting new members right now."
An invitation as Admin or Mod also needs a free admin or moderator seat on your platform plan, and the owner counts as an admin. Until a seat frees up, the person sees This invitation can't be accepted right now.
Fix: send an invitation from Admin → Members → Invitations, approve applicants in Admin → Members → Join Requests, or change the mode. For a full seat, change someone's role or upgrade your platform plan. See Choose who can join: visibility and registration.
A person sees "This community is full"
Symptom: someone signing up, including with a social account, single sign-on, or a paid plan, sees "This community is full. Please contact an admin for details."
Why it happens: your community has reached your platform plan's member limit. Current members aren't affected.
Fix: upgrade your platform plan. See Check plan usage and limits.
A member is sent to "Your subscription has ended"
Symptom: a signed-in member lands on a page that says Welcome back, [name] or Your subscription has ended and asks them to subscribe again. Someone who has never subscribed sees Choose your plan there instead.
Why it happens: your community's registration mode is Paid. Members whose subscription has ended, or who don't have one, can't use the community until they subscribe. Your team is exempt: owners, admins, moderators, billing admins, and custom roles get in without a subscription.
Fix: the member subscribes again from that page; their old plan is marked Your previous plan. A member who has had a subscription before doesn't get another free trial. Check their subscription in Admin → Monetization → Subscribers. See Make your community paid to join.
A member can't join a space
Symptom and cause:
- The button reads Request Pending: the space is joined by request, and the request is waiting for review.
- The dialog says This space is invite-only: new members need an invite link or code.
- The button reads How to join, or the space says For members of [group]: no plan on sale grants the access group the space needs. Add the group to the member.
- The member can't find the space: it's Secret, so it's hidden from people who aren't members.
- The dialog asks for payment: the space is sold, or needs an access group the member doesn't hold.
Fix: open the space's Manage panel. Approve requests in Join Requests, share an invite link from Members, or change the rules in Access Policy. See Set a space's privacy and join policy and Approve requests to join your community or a space.
A paying member can't open a space or course
Symptom: the member subscribes but still sees the space as locked, or the join dialog says "Not open for new subscriptions right now. Ask a space admin for access."
Why it happens: access comes from access groups (previously called member tiers), not from the plan itself. Common causes: their plan grants a different group from the one the space needs; their subscription ended, so the plan's group was removed; or no plan on sale grants that group.
Fix: on the member's page, check the Access Groups card and click View change history. Compare with the space's Access Policy under Access groups that unlock this space. If they hold the right group but still can't get in, click Manage, select that group, and click Re-sync benefits. See How access groups work.
A member can read a space but can't post or reply
Symptom and cause:
- No way to post for anyone but staff: in the space's Access Policy, posting or replying is set to Admins and moderators.
- They can't post until they join: posting is set to Members only.
- A banner says they're muted or banned in this space: a space admin or moderator muted or banned them.
Fix: change the permission in Access Policy, or unmute or unban the member from the space's Members section. See Control who can post, reply, and react in a space.
A member's post doesn't show up
Symptom: the member posted, but nobody else can see it.
Why it happens: the post is waiting for approval. Require Post Approval can be on for the whole community (Admin → Settings → Content Safety) or for one space, and auto-moderation rules can also hold content. Members see held items under Settings → Content review as Awaiting review.
Fix: approve it in Admin → Moderation → Pending Content, or in the space's Review queue. See Review held and pending content.
A member can't sign in at all
Symptom: sign-in fails with "Your account is suspended until…", "Your account has been suspended by a community admin", or the member is taken to an appeal form.
Why it happens: the member is suspended or banned from the whole community, not just one space. A suspension with an end date lifts automatically.
Fix: review them in Admin → Moderation → Banned & Suspended, and check Admin → Moderation → Appeals. See Ban, suspend, or restrict a member.
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