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

# Primary

> Understand the accountable responsibility for one Parable and why it never replaces Workspace access.

# Primary responsibility

## Sources

Docs: [Publishing responsibility](/ponder/parables/permissions/publishing)

Web App: Open **Publish** or **People** for the current Parable to inspect its
responsibilities and the explanation on each available action.

**Primary** is the customer-facing name for the accountable responsibility on
one Parable. The Primary is answerable for the outcome and for decisions that
require accountable review. Primary can be one person, a Role, or a whole
Workspace. When a Role or Workspace holds it, everyone in that group is
accountable together, and the seat still holds one answer: that group.

## Access and responsibility are separate

The applicable checks must hold before a protected action runs:

1. The person can use the relevant Workspace or Admin surface.
2. Their current responsibility on this Parable permits the action.
3. Current [Policies](/ponder/parables/pieces/policies) permit any Policy-controlled action. Primary does not bypass a denied Policy.

Primary does not grant Workspace membership, reveal a protected Parable, or
make someone an administrator. Likewise, an administrator is not automatically
Primary on every Parable.

People with Parable view access and a responsibility on the Parable can find
and open it from the Workspace directory. They do not need authoring or
Ponder permissions just to read it.

## What Primary should do

* keep the intended outcome and audience clear;
* ensure a responsible publisher or author is assigned;
* review consequential, irreversible, or high-blast-radius decisions;
* confirm that Proofs support the result; and
* update responsibility when ownership genuinely changes.

If an accountable action is disabled, read its explanation. Confirm the
selected Workspace, current Parable, Patch state, surface permission, and
responsibility. Changing Persona or selecting a Power does not change any of
those gates.

## Transfer Primary

An existing Primary can transfer the responsibility to another person, Role,
or Workspace in **Collaboration → Participants**. The replacement is checked
against the responsibilities held before the change. Publishing participants
can manage equal or lower permissions, but cannot assign themselves Primary
or replace the current Primary group.

## Choose how you are collaborating now

Primary is a standing responsibility, not a temporary mode. A Primary person
can choose [Publishing, Pinging, or Peeping](/ponder/parables/permissions/collaboration-modes)
for the work they are doing now and keeps the accountable boundary in every
mode. Choosing a narrower mode hides actions; it never grants a new one.