System Settings & Configuration
ChurchCRM's settings are spread across multiple locations for intuitive access. This page is your comprehensive guide to finding and configuring every system setting.
Quick Navigation
Use this guide to find where any setting is configured:
- Church Information — Admin → Church Info
- People Settings — People → Dashboard → People Settings button
- Map Settings — People → Map → Map Settings button
- Localization & Formats — Admin → Localization & Formats
- Email Configuration — Admin → System Settings → Email tab
- Security — Admin → Security & Permissions
- Advanced Settings — Admin → System Settings
Church Information
Location: Admin → Church Info
Configure basic church details that appear throughout ChurchCRM.
| Setting | Description | Required |
|---|---|---|
| Church name | Displayed in headers, emails, PDF reports | ✅ Yes |
| Address | Street address for geocoding and mail | |
| City, State, ZIP | Used for church location on maps | |
| Country | Church location country | |
| Phone | Shown on contact pages and auto-emails | |
| Primary contact email | ||
| Website | Church website URL | |
| Logo URL | HTTPS URL for logo in emails (3.5:1 aspect ratio recommended) |
note
Church name is required and will be requested on first setup. Many features require this to be configured.
People Settings
Location: People → Dashboard → Click "People Settings" button (admin-only)
Settings that control how people and family information is displayed and managed.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Self-registration | Allow visitors to self-register as new families. When enabled, a link appears on the login page. | Off |
| Hide deceased from directory | Exclude deceased members from printed directories and CSV exports | On |
People & Family Configuration
Location: Admin → System Settings → People tab
Detailed settings for people management and directory display.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Default country | Pre-fills country field on new person/family forms | |
| Default city | Pre-fills city field on new forms | |
| Default state | Pre-fills state field on new forms | |
| Default ZIP code | Pre-fills ZIP on new forms | |
| Person name format | How names display (FirstName LastName, LastName FirstName, etc.) | FirstName LastName |
| Person initials style | Avatar initials (FirstName + LastName, or FirstName only) | First + Last |
| Hide person address | Hide address fields for people not assigned to a family | On |
| Hide friend date | Disable the "Friend Date" field in Person Editor | Off |
| Hide wedding date | Disable the "Wedding Date" field in Family Editor | Off |
| Hide latitude/longitude | Hide manual geocoding fields (background geocoding still runs) | Off |
| Inactive classifications | Classifications to mark as inactive (comma-separated IDs) | |
| Family roles — Head of House | Person role type for head of household | |
| Family roles — Spouse | Person role type for spouse | |
| Family roles — Child | Person role type for children | |
| Force UPPERCASE ZIP codes | Auto-uppercase all ZIP/postal codes entered | Off |
| Hide family newsletter | Disable newsletter subscription management in Family Editor | Off |
Map Settings
Location: People → Map → Click "Map Settings" button (admin-only)
ChurchCRM uses Leaflet + Nominatim (OpenStreetMap) — no API key required.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Map default zoom level | Starting zoom when opening maps (Continent → Street) | City (10) |
For full mapping configuration, see Maps & Geocoding.
Localization & Formats
Location: Admin → Localization & Formats
info
See the dedicated Localization & Formats guide for complete details.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Language / I18n | Application language (English, Spanish, French, German, etc.) |
| Time zone | Church time zone for events and scheduling |
| Date format | How dates display (MM/DD/YYYY, DD/MM/YYYY, etc.) |
| Date picker format | Date format in picker widgets |
| Currency symbol | $ € £ etc. |
| Currency position | Symbol before or after amount |
| Thousands separator | , or . |
| Decimal separator | . or , |
| Phone number format | (999) 999-9999 or other format |
Email Configuration
Location: Admin → System Settings → Email tab
See Email Setup for detailed configuration instructions.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Enable/disable email | Turn email sending on or off |
| SMTP host | Your outbound mail server (mail.example.com:25) |
| SMTP port | Default 25, 465 (SSL), or 587 (TLS) |
| SMTP authentication | Enable if server requires username/password |
| SMTP username | Login for authenticated SMTP |
| SMTP password | Password for authenticated SMTP |
| Sender name | "From:" display name in outbound emails |
| Sender address | "From:" email address |
| Reply-to address | Optional separate reply-to address |
| TLS/SSL encryption | Connection encryption mode |
| Church email address | Auto-added as removable recipient in Email Composer |
| Email preheader | Short text shown in email previews (optional) |
Finance & Donations
Location: Admin → System Settings → Finance tab
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Enable Finance module | Show/hide Finance in sidebar | On |
| Enable Fundraiser module | Show/hide Fundraiser in sidebar | On |
| Fiscal year start month | Month your financial year begins (Jan-Dec) | January |
| Currency symbol | $ € £ CHF etc. | $ |
| Currency position | Before or after amount | Before |
| Use donation envelopes | Track contributions via numbered envelopes | Off |
| Checks per deposit slip | How many check line items per deposit form | 14 |
| Scanned check images | Allow attaching scanned check images | Off |
| Non-deductible donations | Allow recording non-tax-deductible gifts | Off |
Security Settings
Location: Admin → Security & Permissions
For comprehensive security guidance, see Security.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum password length | Characters required in user passwords | 8 |
| Password change difference | # of characters that must change | 4 |
| Disallowed passwords | Passwords that can never be used | password, god, jesus, church, christian |
| Max failed logins | Attempts before account locks | 5 |
| Session timeout | Minutes before idle logout | 60 |
| Require 2FA | Mandate two-factor authentication | Off |
| 2FA grace period | Days to enroll before 2FA enforcement | 7 days |
| 2FA app name | Name shown in authenticator apps | ChurchCRM |
| Enforce CSP | Content Security Policy (XSS protection) | Report only |
Search & Discovery
Location: Admin → System Settings → Search tab
Control what appears in the global search.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Search people | Include people in search results | On |
| Search families | Include families in search | On |
| Search family head of house names | Show family HOH names | On |
| Search groups | Include groups | On |
| Search deposits | Include financial deposits | On |
| Search payments | Include donation payments | On |
| Search addresses | Include address records | On |
| Search calendar events | Include events | On |
| Max results per category | Limit search results (15, 5, etc.) | Varies by type |
Notifications & Automation
Location: Admin → System Settings
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| New member notification | Send email when family/person added | Off |
| Notification recipients | Person IDs to notify (comma-separated) | |
| Include data in notifications | Add contact details to notification email | Off |
| Birthday emails | Auto-send birthday greeting emails | Off |
| Background jobs warning | Alert admin if scheduled tasks haven't run (hours) | 26 |
| Background jobs interval | Minimum minutes between timer job runs | 15 |
Advanced & Expert Settings
Location: Admin → System Settings → Advanced tab
These settings are for advanced users and developers.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Log severity level | App log level (DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR) | INFO |
| PDF output type | Save dialog vs open in browser | Save dialog |
| Event log queries | Query IDs requiring finance permissions | |
| Telemetry level | Anonymous diagnostic data sharing | None |
| Enforce CSP | Enforce Content Security Policy headers | Report-only |
| Enable external calendar API | Allow public calendar embedding | Off |
| Calendar embed origins | Origins allowed to embed calendar (CSP) | * (any) |
| Allow pre-release upgrades | Update to pre-release versions | Off |
| Display distance in | Miles or kilometers | Miles |
Related Pages
- Localization & Formats — Language, timezone, date/number formats
- Email Setup — Complete email configuration guide
- Maps & Geocoding — Church location and mapping
- Security — Security policies and user permissions
- Users — User account management
- Plugins — Community plugins and integrations