Dashboard running user versus dynamic dashboards and filters
Key Takeaway
A dashboard's running user decides what data viewers see. Setting "View Dashboard As" to "The dashboard viewer" makes a dynamic dashboard, so each viewer sees only the data their own access allows.
Every Salesforce dashboard shows data through the access of a running user, so the running user you choose decides how much data viewers can see. A static dashboard uses one specified user's access for every viewer. A dynamic dashboard runs as each logged-in viewer, so each person sees only the data they can access. Agentforce Financial Services orgs get extra dynamic dashboards on top of their edition limit. Dashboard filters are a separate tool that lets viewers switch between views of one dashboard instead of needing several dashboards.
The running user decides what viewers see
A dashboard shows data from each widget's source report. Viewers see that data based on the access of the dashboard's running user. A static dashboard uses the privileges of one configured user for every viewer. A dynamic dashboard uses the privileges of whoever is logged in.
A static dashboard gives every viewer the same picture, because everyone sees the data through the same user's access.
Dana is the running user of a static pipeline dashboard. Dana can see opportunities only for the Boston office. Every viewer of the dashboard sees only Boston opportunities, even a viewer who can normally see opportunities for every office. If Dana could see opportunities for every office, every viewer would see every office.
Because the running user's privileges decide what is shown, a static dashboard can give viewers more data than they normally have. If the running user is an admin or an internal user, viewers could see personally identifiable information (PII).
Folder access and data access are different things. Reports and dashboards are stored in folders, and folder access gives a user the dashboard. The running user's security settings still decide which data that user sees.