Restrict board members to only copy and not move cards from a "master" source list.
Asked by David Saunders:

I am developing a board with very many predefined cards in a depository list that I want to lock down to retain exclusive control over edit (and move) *while the cards are in that locked list* . I encourage members to *copy* any cards they may need into adjacent lists rather than *move*, but sadly this is easily overlooked and needs massive housekeeping to rectify errors.

When a card has been copied from the depository and deployed for further use, members should be able to have normal full control over it and the rest of the board thereafter.

It may be that members will develop or initiate new cards that need to be represented back in the master depository list. It would be helpful if they could achieve that, but not at the expense of compromising the primary objective of locking down any card moves out of the list.

How do I achieve this in the environment where I've been promised I can do anything? Please don't say its not possible.

;)


Answers:
author: Iain Dooley
body: [@David Saunders](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/3957738) one option would be to make your depository "team viewable", add everyone to your team so they can see the board, but not join or edit it, then allow them to comment.

On that board, create a Butler command like this:

![2020-06-09 at 3.36 pm.png](https://community.atlassian.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/98246i102FA7DD258AD029/image-size/large?v=v2&px=999 "2020-06-09 at 3.36 pm.png")Then, when someone wants to copy a card to a board for use they post a comment:

copy to My Board

comments: author: David Saunders
body: Thank you, Iain, that certainly seems like a way forwards, though a bit of a palaver. I'll give it a whirl.

Stay Safe!

David


author: Soumyadeep Mandal
body: Hi [@David Saunders](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/3957738) ,

Welcome to the community!

Adding observers to boards {#toc-hId--1350620551}
-------------------------------------------------

Teams that subscribe to [Trello Business Class](http://trello.com/business-class) can add "Observers" to boards within their team. Observers are board members that are able to view a board and the cards within the board, download card attachments, comment and vote on cards if that is enabled for the board, and export the board.

Observers are not able to move or edit cards, upload card attachments and Observers can't change board settings.

Because an Observer is a board member permission and not a membership *type* , a Business Class board admin can set both team members and Guests as an Observer on a board. There are no limits to how many Observers you can have on a board, and an Observer can be a billable team member or [Multi-Board Guest](https://help.trello.com/article/1123-multi-board-guests) or a non-billable Single-Board Guest. To understand if an Observer is billable, check out the page [How Billing Works with Trello Business Class](https://help.trello.com/article/855-how-billing-works-with-trello-business-class).

Add an observer {#toc-hId-1136892282}
-------------------------------------

To add someone to your board as an Observer, click "Invite" from the top of the board. Enter the member's username or email address. When you choose the person to add, the default choice is to add them as regular board members, but you can click on the down arrow to change that to "Add as Observers."

![](https://d33v4339jhl8k0.cloudfront.net/docs/assets/545804d8e4b09c5ca72525ce/images/5e62a32304286364bc965a40/file-dJak2Ea76b.png)

Change a member's permissions to Observer {#toc-hId--670562181}
---------------------------------------------------------------

To change a current board member's permissions to Observer, click their avatar from the Members section of the board menu, select "Change Permissions" and select "Observer". Please note that only team admins and board admins can change a board member's permissions.

![](https://d33v4339jhl8k0.cloudfront.net/docs/assets/545804d8e4b09c5ca72525ce/images/5b44cd172c7d3a099f2e6013/file-htNzHENi46.png)

![](https://d33v4339jhl8k0.cloudfront.net/docs/assets/545804d8e4b09c5ca72525ce/images/5b44cd372c7d3a099f2e6016/file-5AIUY3ddPX.png)

Change a board member's permissions to Observer.

See also: {#toc-hId-1816950652}
-------------------------------

* [Business Class user guide](https://help.trello.com/customer/portal/articles/1349993-business-class-user-guide)
* [Add people to a board](https://help.trello.com/customer/portal/articles/920223-adding-people-to-a-board)
* [Changing permissions on a board](https://help.trello.com/customer/portal/articles/935644-changing-permissions-on-a-board)

I hope it will solve your problem!

comments: author: David Saunders
body: Hello SaM

And thank you for all the detail. However your approach seems not to allow for:

"*When a card has been copied from the depository and deployed for further use, members should be able to have normal full control over it and the rest of the board thereafter.*"