Open WebUI model is visible to admin but not another user

If an Open WebUI model is visible to an administrator but not another user, check application access and visibility before changing the inference server. Backend inventory, a hidden selector entry, base-model access, and Workspace sharing are distinct gates.

The concrete application boundary

Current Workspace documentation makes the inheritance rule explicit: a custom model still references its base model. A user needs access to both, even when the wrapper is shared publicly. Hiding the base from the selector is different from denying its use. The recommended curated pattern can hide an accessible base while exposing its wrapper; a wrapper cannot grant access withheld by the base. Administrators can also inspect choices unavailable to ordinary users. Consequently, a successful administrator conversation proves little about another account’s effective access. Do not repair this by broadly publishing unrelated models: first identify the intended audience and the particular base/wrapper pair (Open WebUI Models).

A practical route

Verify that the existing provider connection exposes the intended model and inspect any configured model allowlist. In Workspace → Models open the wrapper and check its Base Model. Use Access at the top right to inspect the intended users or groups, subject to your own sharing permissions. Separately inspect whether the base is accessible and whether it is hidden from the selector. Test a new conversation as the intended user, selecting the actual wrapper rather than an administrator’s pinned shortcut (Open WebUI compatible provider guide).

A worked example

An administrator creates a review helper, shares its wrapper, and expects a colleague to use it. The colleague sees the helper but receives Model not found because the base remains restricted. Correct the audience of the base according to the intended access policy, then retain hiding if a curated selector is desired. Making the wrapper public again does not bypass the base check.

Check	Record
Inventory	The base model is actually available through the configured connection.
Authorization	The intended account may use both the base and wrapper.
Presentation	Hide and selector defaults are recorded separately from access rights.

Reading the failure correctly

Selected Models seeds a starting choice; it is not itself an access restriction. Hidden Models permission changes certain configuration lists rather than granting universal backend access. A wrapper with a missing base can therefore fail even when its name appears correctly. Inspect the exact failed gate instead of treating every selector discrepancy as a backend model outage (Open WebUI Workspace).

What completes the check

The correction should explain both who can use the model and why its entry appears or stays hidden. A shared wrapper remains configuration over an existing base, not an independent copy that escapes the base’s access rules.