AutoVotesPro

Admin Panel Guide — SuperAdmins & ShowAdmins

Quick Navigation

1. Admin Roles 2. Logging In 3. Managing Shows 4. Show Types 5. Managing Users 6. Managing Cars 7. Managing Classes 8. Vote Management & Tally 9. Show Configuration 10. Printing Plaques 11. CSV & XLSX Imports 12. Site Settings 13. Troubleshooting

1. Admin Roles

SuperAdmin

Full access to everything. Can create, edit, delete, and activate shows. Can manage all users including other SuperAdmins and ShowAdmins. Can toggle shows open/closed. Can configure site-wide settings like contact email.

ShowAdmin

Scoped to assigned shows. Can edit their assigned shows, manage users and cars within those shows, view vote tallies, and print plaques. Cannot create or delete shows. Cannot see SuperAdmin accounts. Can only see shows that are open (not closed).

FeatureSuperAdminShowAdmin
Create / Delete shows
Activate shows
Close / Open shows
Edit show details✅ (assigned only)
Manage users✅ (all)✅ (show users only)
See SuperAdmin accounts
Manage cars✅ (show cars only)
Manage classes✅ (show classes only)
View vote tally
Print plaques
Show configuration
Site settings (contact email)

2. Logging In

1
Open the Admin Panel

Navigate to your server URL followed by /admin (e.g. https://autovotespro.org/admin or http://129.121.102.38:3000/admin)

2
Enter your credentials

Use your admin email and password. Default SuperAdmin: admin@autovotespro.com / Admin123!

Important: Admin accounts can only log in to the admin panel (/admin). They are blocked from the attendee app. Attendee accounts are blocked from the admin panel.

3. Managing Shows

The Shows tab displays all car shows. SuperAdmins see all shows; ShowAdmins see only their assigned open shows.

Creating a Show (SuperAdmin only)

1
Click "+ New Show"

Fill in the show name, description, show date, timezone, and vote start/end times.

2
Select Show Type

Choose Classic, Top, or Unique. This cannot be changed after creation.

3
For Top shows, set the vote limit

Enter how many total votes each attendee gets (e.g. 10 for a "Top 10" show).

Activating a Show

Click Activate on a show card to make it the active show. Only one show can be active at a time. The active show is what admins see by default.

Closing / Opening a Show

SuperAdmins can toggle a show between open and closed in the Config tab. Closed shows are hidden from ShowAdmins and attendees.

Editing a Show

Click Edit Show on the show bar or show card. You can change the name, description, dates, timezone, vote window, and open/close dates. The show type cannot be changed.

Open & Close Dates

Set when attendees can access the show. Before the open date, attendees see "Opens on [date]". After the close date, they see "Closed on [date]". Admins can always access the show regardless of these dates.

Deleting a Show (SuperAdmin only)

Warning: Deleting a show removes all associated cars, votes, classes, and show-user links. Users who are only in this show will also be deleted. Users in multiple shows will be unlinked but kept. This cannot be undone.

4. Show Types

Classic

Traditional car show format. Each car is assigned to one class. Attendees vote once per class, picking their favorite car in each. Tally shows winners per class.

Setup: Create classes, assign cars to classes, set vote window.

Top

People's choice format. No class restrictions. Each attendee gets a limited number of total votes (configurable). Tally shows overall ranking by total votes.

Setup: Set the vote limit in Config tab. Classes are optional (not used for voting). Cars don't need a class.

Unique

Every car appears in every class. Attendees vote once per class for any car. Useful for awards like "Best Paint", "Best Engine", "Best Interior" where any car can win any category.

Setup: Create classes (award categories). Cars don't need class assignments — they automatically appear in all classes.

Remember: Show type is set at creation and locked forever. Plan your show type before creating it.

5. Managing Users

The Users tab shows all users for the active show.

Adding a User

Click "+ Add User". Fill in name, email, and role. For Attendees, set the number of cars (placeholder cars are created automatically). Default password is changeme123.

Re-adding users: If a user's email already exists (e.g. from a deleted show), they will be re-linked to the current show automatically with new placeholder cars. No duplicate accounts are created.

Editing a User

Click the edit button on a user row. You can change their name, email, role, and reset their password.

Toggling Active/Inactive

Click the toggle button to enable/disable a user. Inactive users cannot log in.

Assigning ShowAdmins to Shows

When creating a ShowAdmin, they are automatically linked to the current active show. To give them access to additional shows, add them as a show user via the Users tab while that show is active.

6. Managing Cars

The Cars tab shows all cars for the active show.

Cars are Auto-Created

When you add an attendee with a car count, placeholder cars (make: TBD, model: TBD) are created. Attendees fill in the details themselves via the app.

Editing Cars

Click edit on any car to change make, model, year, color, class, or upload a photo.

Class Assignment

Bulk Photo Upload

Upload a ZIP file containing car photos named by car number (e.g. 1.jpg, 2.png, 3.jpeg). Photos are matched to cars automatically.

Default Class Images

Cars without photos display a default image based on their class. 70 SVG class images are included covering common car types.

7. Managing Classes

The Classes tab shows all classes for the active show.

Adding Classes

Click "+ Add Class" and enter a class number, name, and optional description. Class numbers determine the display order.

Importing Classes

Import classes from a CSV file. The CSV must have a name column. Optional columns: description, class_number. If class_number is not provided, they are numbered automatically.

When Classes Are Needed

8. Vote Management & Tally

The Tally tab shows vote results for the active show.

Vote Window

Set vote start and end times in the show edit dialog. Voting is only allowed between these times. If no times are set, voting is always open.

Allow Self-Vote

Toggle in the Config tab. When disabled (default), attendees cannot vote for their own cars.

Tally Display by Show Type

TypeTally Format
ClassicGrouped by class. Cars ranked by votes within each class. Top car per class wins.
TopOverall ranking. All cars ranked by total votes. Selectable Top N (5, 10, 20, 50).
UniqueGrouped by class (award category). All cars ranked in each class.

Top Vote Limit

For Top shows, the vote limit can be changed in the Config tab at any time. This controls how many cars each attendee can vote for.

9. Show Configuration

The Config tab provides show-specific settings.

Images

Colors

Set primary, secondary, and accent colors for branding. Used on plaques and show materials.

Settings

10. Printing Plaques

The Plaques tab generates printable plaques for each car.

What's on a Plaque

Printing

Click "Preview Plaques" to see them, then "Print All" or print individual plaques. Use your browser's print dialog to print on card stock.

Print Winners

After voting ends, use the Tally tab to see winners, then print winner plaques or certificates.

11. CSV & XLSX Imports

Importing Users (CSV/XLSX)

Required columns: name, email

Optional columns: role (default: Attendee), car_count (default: 1), password

A preview shows how many users will be imported before you confirm.

Tip: Users whose email already exists will be re-linked to the current show with new placeholder cars. They won't be duplicated.

Importing Classes (CSV/XLSX)

Required columns: name

Optional columns: description, class_number

File Format Tips

12. Site Settings (SuperAdmin Only)

At the top of the Config tab, SuperAdmins see a "Site Settings" section.

Contact Email

Set the support email displayed at the bottom of every attendee's dashboard. Attendees can tap it to send an email directly. Update this to the show organizer's email.

13. Troubleshooting

Communication Error on Login

The API URL in admin.html may be incorrect. Ensure it points to the correct server address.

ShowAdmin Sees "No Active Shows"

All shows assigned to this ShowAdmin are closed. A SuperAdmin needs to open a show for them.

"Email already in use" when adding users

This should now re-link the existing user. If it still fails, the user may already be in this show. Check the Users tab.

Class import shows duplicates

The same CSV was imported multiple times. Delete duplicate classes in the Classes tab, or delete all classes and re-import.

Votes not showing in tally

Ensure the correct show is active. The tally shows votes for the active show only.

Car photos not loading

Ensure the class-images folder is present on the server. Check that image uploads completed successfully.

Attendees can't vote

Check: Is the vote window set and currently open? Is the show active? Is the attendee assigned to the show?

Camera scanner not working for attendees

The QR camera scanner requires HTTPS. Ensure SSL is configured on the server. Attendees can use "Vote by Number" as an alternative.

Server logs

Check the logs folder in the server directory for daily error and access logs. On the server: pm2 logs autovotespro