---
title: "Vendors, licenses, and processes"
description: "Record a client's suppliers and software licenses with their renewal dates, and follow written checklists as recorded process runs."
url: "https://support.outpostplatform.com/documentation/vendors-licenses-processes/"
product: "depot"
type: "how-to"
status: "draft"
ai_summary: "How to record vendors (contacts, contract start and end, warning lead) and licenses (seats, renewal date, auto-renew, key stored as a credential) under a client's Documentation in the Outpost console, and how to write process checklists and run them for a client with Start a process, step notes, Mark it complete, Abandon it, and Download the runbook. Needs docs:write."
availability:
  plans: ["home-lab", "essentials", "enterprise", "msp"]
  permission: "docs:write"
  preview: false
source: "https://gitlab.com/outpostplatform/docs/-/edit/main/src/content/docs/documentation/vendors-licenses-processes.md"
license: "CC BY 4.0"
---

# Vendors, licenses, and processes

Vendors, licenses, and processes are the three kinds of business record a
client's documentation needs beside its technical ones. A vendor is a supplier
and the contract with it. A license is something the client bought, with its
seats and renewal date. A process is a checklist your team follows, and each
time you follow it for a client, Outpost keeps a record of who did each step.
This page shows how to record each one.

## Before you begin

- You need `docs:write` to create and change these records. `docs:read` is
  enough to view them.
- Vendors and licenses belong to one client. Open the client's
  **Documentation** first.

## Record a vendor

1. In the client's **Documentation**, go to **Vendors** and select **New
   vendor**.
2. Under **The vendor**, enter the **Name** and any of **Category**, **Account
   number**, **Website**, **Support portal**, **Support phone**, **Named
   contact**, **Contact email**, **Contact phone**, and **Notes**. The named
   contact and their email and phone are stored encrypted.
3. Under **The contract**, enter the **Starts** and **Ends** dates.
4. In **Warn this many days before it ends**, enter how much notice the
   contract needs. Outpost raises the reminder alert for this vendor that many
   days before the contract ends. Leave it empty to use the reminder lead times
   in **Documentation** > **Settings**.
5. Optionally, enter **Labels**, separated by commas.
6. Select **Save**.

A vendor's contract end date appears on
[Expirations](/documentation/expirations/) as **Vendor contract**.

## Record a license

The console lists licenses under **Licenses**.

1. In the client's **Documentation**, go to **Licenses** and select **New
   license**.
2. Under **The license**, enter the **Name**, and optionally the **Product**
   and **Notes**.
3. In **Vendor**, choose the vendor the license came from, or **None**.
4. In **The key**, choose the credential that holds the license key, or **No
   key stored**. The key is stored as a credential, so revealing it is
   recorded like any other credential. See
   [Credentials vault](/documentation/credentials-vault/).
5. Under **Seats and renewal**, enter **Seats bought** and **Seats in use**.
6. Enter **Bought on** and **Renews or expires**.
7. If the license renews automatically, select **It renews on its own**.
8. Optionally, enter **Labels**, separated by commas.
9. Select **Save**.

The license list shows each license's **Vendor**, **Seats**, and **Renewal**.
A license that renews on its own says **Renews on its own.** Its renewal date
appears on [Expirations](/documentation/expirations/) as **License**.

To delete a vendor or a license, open it and select **Delete**. The dialog
says how many records link to it. Deleting cannot be undone.

## Write a process

A process is a checklist, written once. On Home Lab, Essentials, and
Enterprise, processes belong to your organization, and writing one needs
`docs:manage`. On the MSP plan, a practice process is written at practice
level and can be run for any client.

1. Go to **Documentation** > **Process templates**, or on MSP, at practice
   level, to **Documentation** > **Processes**. Select **New process**.
2. Under **About this process**, enter the **Name**, **What it is for**, and
   any **Labels**.
3. Under **The steps, in order**, select **Add a step** for each step and fill
   in **What to do**, **Detail**, and **Who usually does it**. Select **This
   step can be skipped** for an optional step.
4. Use **Up** and **Down** to put the steps in order.
5. Select **Save**.

To stop a process being started again, open it, select **Archive it, so no
new run can start from it**, and select **Save**. Runs already under way keep
the steps they copied when they started.

## Run a process for a client

1. In the client's **Documentation**, go to **Processes** and select **Start a
   process**.
2. In **Which process**, choose the process. The list holds the client's own
   processes and the practice's.
3. Select **Start it**. The run copies the process as it is at that moment, so
   editing the process later does not rewrite what you did.
4. Work through **The steps**. Check a step when it is done, and add a **Note**
   if it needs one. Outpost records who checked it and when. Select **Skip it**
   on an optional step you are not doing.
5. When you finish, select **Mark it complete**. Any step still to do stays as
   it is, and the run is stamped complete with your name. To stop a run
   without finishing it, select **Abandon it** and enter **Why are you
   abandoning it?**

Select **Download the runbook** for a PDF of the run and its steps. The
**Processes** list for a client shows each run's **Progress**, **State**,
**Started by**, and **Started**, and **Show** filters it to **In progress**,
**Complete**, **Abandoned**, or **Everything**.

## Verify

Open the client's **Documentation** > **Vendors** or **Licenses** and confirm
the record is listed with its contract or renewal date. For a process run,
open the run and confirm each checked step shows your name and the time.

## If something goes wrong

| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A process is missing from **Which process**. | The process is archived. | Open the process and clear the archive option. |
| **The key** has no credential to choose. | The license key has not been stored yet. | Store the key as a credential first, then choose it. |
| A step cannot be checked. | The run has ended, or you lack `docs:write`. | Start a new run, or ask an administrator for the permission. |

## Next steps

- [Track expirations](/documentation/expirations/)
- [Credentials vault](/documentation/credentials-vault/)