---
title: "Repository Privacy"
slug: "repository-privacy"
updated: 2026-03-31T03:50:14Z
published: 2026-03-31T03:50:14Z
canonical: "learn.allspice.io/repository-privacy"
---

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

# Repository Privacy

## Repository Privacy and Visibility

AllSpice supports both **organization-owned** and **personal** repositories on `hub.allspice.io` and on dedicated, self-hosted instances. This page explains:

- The difference between **organizations** and **personal** repositories
- How **public** and **private** visibility works on:
  - `hub.allspice.io` (“Hub”)
  - Dedicated / self-hosted AllSpice instances (“Dedicated hosting”)

## How to change your repository privacy

See this article on the repository settings [Danger Zone](/v1/docs/repository-danger-zone) to change your repository privacy

## Organizations vs Personal Repositories

AllSpice organizes work around two main types of owners: **organizations** and **personal accounts**.

### Organization Repositories

An **organization** is a shared workspace that owns repositories, manages permissions, and groups people into teams.

**Example: Solar Powered Ornithopter** `https://hub.allspice.io/solar-ornithopter`

This organization might maintain several PCB/hardware repositories:

- `sensor_hub` — wing strain, IMU, or sensor aggregation board `https://hub.allspice.io/solar-ornithopter/sensor_hub`
- `solar_charger` — MPPT and power-management electronics `https://hub.allspice.io/solar-ornithopter/solar_charger`

These repositories belong to the **organization**, not individual users. Access is managed via organization-level permissions and teams.

### Personal Repositories

Each user also has a **personal namespace** for their own repositories.

Examples:

- Alice: `https://hub.allspice.io/alice/ornithopter-playground`
- Bob: `https://hub.allspice.io/bob/solar-mppt-experiments`

Personal repos are ideal for:

- Experimental work
- Early prototypes
- Forks of organization repositories
- Drafts not yet ready for the main project

Users can later submit work from their personal repos back into organization repositories via design reviews.

## Repository Privacy

Repositories can be either **public** or **private**. The meaning of “public” differs between `hub.allspice.io` and dedicated hosting environments.

## Public Repositories

Public repositories are designed for broad visibility and sharing.

### Public Repos on `hub.allspice.io` (In Hub)

- Visible to any visitor on the Hub (subject to global policies)
- May appear in server-wide search and browsing
- Can generally be cloned without requesting access
- Forking availability depends on organization settings

**Use cases:**

- Open hardware
- Reference designs
- Community projects

**Example:** `FOSS_water_filter/pump_driver` could be public so external deisgners or collaborators can review its design.

### Public Repos in Dedicated Hosting

On a dedicated/self-hosted instance:

- Public repos are visible to **all authenticated users** inside the company
- Not visible to the internet
- Remain inside your organization’s security boundary

> Public = visible to everyone inside your company’s AllSpice server.

## Private Repositories

Private repositories restrict access to only the collaborators explicitly granted permissions.

### Private Repos on `hub.allspice.io` (In Hub)

- Not visible in public search or browsing
- Only accessible to users with granted permissions
- Source, issues, and design reviews are hidden from non-members

**Examples:**

- `solar-ornithopter/solar_charger` may be private if the circuitry is proprietary
- `bob/solar-mppt-experiments` may be private for early-stage R&D

**Use cases:**

- Confidential or proprietary hardware
- NDA-bound customer projects
- Early experimental development

### Private Repos in Dedicated Hosting

On dedicated hosting:

- The environment is already internal
- Private repositories add additional restriction on top of that
- Only specifically granted [users/teams](/docs/how-to-configure-teams) can view or clone them

> Private = restricted access within an already secured environment.

## Summary

- **Organizations** are shared project spaces; store official project repositories.
- **Personal repositories** are for individual experimentation and prototypes.
- **Public** repositories:
  - On Hub → visible across the AllSpice cloud server
  - On dedicated hosting → visible to everyone in your company
- **Private** repositories:
  - On Hub → visible only to collaborators
  - On dedicated hosting → restricted role-based access ([Teams](/docs/how-to-configure-teams)

When in doubt, choose **private**, then widen permissions as needed.