# Projects## OverviewProjects in OpenRails serve as organizational containers that group related Data Lakes together. They provide a centralized way to manage access control and permissions across multiple data sources, making it easier to organize work by team, department, or use case.## Key Concepts### Project StructureA project contains one or more Data Lakes and defines who can access them. Think of a project as a folder that bundles related data sources with their access policies.### Security LevelsOpenRails uses a five-tier security classification system:* Public: Accessible to all users
- Internal: Accessible to internal team members
- Confidential: Restricted to specific users
- Secret: Highly restricted access
- Top Secret: Maximum restriction level## Creating a Project1) Navigate to the Projects section from the sidebar
- Click the New Project button in the top right corner
- Enter a Project Name (required)
- Add a Description (optional but recommended)
- Click CreateYour new project is created with no Data Lakes attached. You'll add these in the configuration step.## Managing Data LakesAfter creating a project:1) Click View Details on the project card
- Select the Configuration tab
- Click Add Data Lake to attach existing Data Lakes
- Use the toggle switches to activate or deactivate individual Data Lakes within the project
- View project metadata on the right panel: creation date, last updated, Data Lake count, and statusData Lakes can be temporarily deactivated without removing them, which is useful for maintenance or when you want to restrict access without losing the configuration.## Permission ManagementThe Permissions tab provides granular access control:1) Click Add User to grant access to a new user
- Select the user from the dropdown
- Configure the permission matrix:
- Each row represents a Data Lake in the project
- Each column represents a security level
- Check boxes to grant access at specific levels for specific Data Lakes
- Click the settings icon on any user row to expand and edit their permissions
- Click the trash icon to remove a user's access entirelyThis granular approach means you can give one user full access to some Data Lakes while restricting them from others, even within the same project.## Project Lifecycle* Search: Use the search bar to find projects by name or description
- Filter: Toggle between All, Active, and Inactive projects
- Delete: Click the delete icon on a project card, then confirm in the dialogNote: Deleting a project removes permission assignments but does not delete the underlying Data Lakes.---Related: Permission Levels | Data Lakes | Company Chat