Configuration

GeniusHRM provides a comprehensive admin settings panel accessible at /admin/settings. This panel lets you configure everything from branding and email to SMS, currency, and financial year — without touching any code.

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Accessing System Settings

Navigate to Admin Panel → Settings in the sidebar, or go directly to /admin/settings. You must be logged in with the Admin role.

The settings panel is organised into the following tabs:

Tab	Purpose
General	App name, logo, favicon, footer text
Email (SMTP)	Outgoing email configuration
SMS	SMS gateway setup (Twilio)
Finance	Financial year, currency, number format
Date & Time	Timezone, date format, week start day
Appearance	Theme colour, login page background

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General / Appearance Settings

The General tab controls branding elements visible across the entire application.

Field	Description
Application Name	Displayed in the browser tab and top navigation
Logo	Uploaded image shown in the header (SVG or PNG, max 2 MB)
Favicon	Browser tab icon (ICO or PNG, 32×32 px recommended)
Footer Text	Text displayed in the application footer
Login Page Background	Image shown on the authentication screens

Steps to update the logo:

1. Go to Settings → General
2. Click Choose File next to the Logo field
3. Select an SVG or PNG file (recommended size: 200×60 px)
4. Click Save Settings
5. Hard-refresh your browser (Ctrl+Shift+R / Cmd+Shift+R)

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SMTP Email Setup

GeniusHRM uses Laravel's mail system. Configure SMTP credentials in the Email tab so the system can send password resets, leave notifications, payslips, and other automated emails.

Gmail SMTP

Gmail App Passwords

Gmail requires an App Password if 2-Factor Authentication is enabled. Do not use your Google account password directly.

1. Go to your Google Account Security
2. Enable 2-Step Verification if not already enabled
3. Generate an App Password (select "Mail" and "Other device")
4. Enter the following in Settings → Email:

Field	Value
Mail Host	smtp.gmail.com
Mail Port	587
Encryption	tls
Mail Username	your.email@gmail.com
Mail Password	Your 16-character App Password
From Address	your.email@gmail.com
From Name	GeniusHRM

Mailgun SMTP

Field	Value
Mail Host	smtp.mailgun.org
Mail Port	587
Encryption	tls
Mail Username	postmaster@mg.your-domain.com
Mail Password	Your Mailgun SMTP password
From Address	noreply@your-domain.com

Mailtrap (Development / Testing)

Mailtrap is ideal for development — it captures all outgoing emails without actually delivering them.

1. Create a free account at mailtrap.io
2. Go to Inboxes → SMTP Settings
3. Copy the credentials into Settings → Email:

Field	Value
Mail Host	smtp.mailtrap.io
Mail Port	2525
Encryption	tls
Mail Username	Your Mailtrap username
Mail Password	Your Mailtrap password

After saving, use the Send Test Email button to verify the connection.

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SMS Setup (Twilio)

GeniusHRM integrates with Twilio for SMS notifications (e.g., leave approval alerts, OTPs).

Prerequisites

1. Create a Twilio account
2. Purchase a phone number with SMS capability
3. Note your Account SID, Auth Token, and Phone Number

Configuration Steps

1. Go to Settings → SMS
2. Toggle Enable SMS to on
3. Fill in the Twilio credentials:

Field	Value
SMS Provider	Twilio
Account SID	Your Twilio Account SID (starts with AC)
Auth Token	Your Twilio Auth Token
From Number	Your Twilio phone number (e.g., +15551234567)

4. Click Save
5. Enter a test phone number and click Send Test SMS

TIP

SMS credits are consumed from your Twilio balance. Monitor usage in the Twilio dashboard to avoid running out of balance.

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Financial Year Configuration

The financial year setting affects payroll runs, leave balance resets, and report date ranges.

1. Go to Settings → Finance
2. Set the Financial Year Start Month (e.g., January for a Jan–Dec year, or April for an Apr–Mar year)
3. Set the Financial Year Start Day (usually 1)
4. Click Save

WARNING

Changing the financial year after payroll runs have been processed can cause discrepancies in historical reports. Set this before processing any payroll.

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Timezone and Date Format

Field	Recommended Values
Timezone	UTC, Asia/Dhaka, America/New_York, etc.
Date Format	Y-m-d, d/m/Y, m/d/Y
Time Format	H:i (24-hour) or h:i A (12-hour)
Week Starts On	Monday or Sunday

1. Go to Settings → Date & Time
2. Select your timezone from the dropdown
3. Choose a date format (a preview shows the current date in the selected format)
4. Save changes

TIP

Use the same timezone in your PHP php.ini (date.timezone) and your server OS to avoid date drift issues.

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Currency Settings

Field	Description
Currency Code	ISO 4217 code (e.g., USD, BDT, GBP)
Currency Symbol	Symbol displayed in the UI (e.g., $, ৳, £)
Symbol Position	Before or after the amount
Decimal Separator	. (period) or , (comma)
Thousands Separator	, (comma) or . (period)
Decimal Places	Usually 2

These settings affect salary displays, payslips, and all financial reports.

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Caching Configuration

After making changes to system settings, clear Laravel's cache to apply them immediately:

php artisan config:clear
php artisan cache:clear

Or use the Clear Cache button available in Settings → General (Admin panel).