Forms

Designer > Data & Presentation > Objects > {object} > Forms

Form Layouts define the Fields and Sections that are visible to users when a Record in an Object is viewed or edited. A well-defined form makes data entry easier and faster for users.

Optionally, use the Elements Sidebar to configure Form Layouts.

Considerations

Form Layouts are associated with Objects
Multiple form layouts can be created for an Object
In addition to the standard form layouts, you can create your own custom Pages for viewing, adding, or updating a record, and select them for use in the object Properties section: Presentation Pages.

Users that have the Customize Objects permission can edit Form Layouts

Configuration Options in Form Layouts

The following configuration options are available in Form Layouts:

File:Formlayoutconfig.gif

Learn More

	Edit a Form Layout
	Form Scripting
File:Clonelayouticon.gif	Clone a Form Layout
File:Layoutruleicon.gif	Layout Rules

Considerations

When an Object is created, a Default Form Layout is created
The Default Form Layout cannot be deleted or renamed
When a user creates a new form layout, that user has full control over the design, and can add any combination of elements from a default list, or select from a list of existing elements

Working with a Form Layout

Next to each element in a form is a series of icons you can use to edit it rearrange its position, add a script, or remove it from the form:

You can also add fields, sections, and other elements to the form using the controls at top left, as shown below.

Elements

The Elements section contains things you can drag and drop into the form.

Fields

The first tab is Fields. It contains the object fields that can be put into the form.

Form Controls

The second tab is Form Controls.

	Spacer	Add horizontal space between elements in a form.
	Label	Add a label to a form.
	Horizontal Divider	Add a dividing line between elements in a form.
	Section	Sections divide areas in a Form Layout for improved readability and organization Sections have a default setting to open expanded or collapsed Fields in sections can be hidden in a View, if the field contains no data Within a section, images can be displayed in the header, footer, left or right margins
	Quick Link	A Quick Link provides the ability to pass a value from a record to a website URL. For example, add a Google News lookup to an Account, or add a Facebook lookup to a Contact

New Section Constructors

Underneath the Elements section, there are two links you can use to create additional sections in the form:

New Grid Section

Adds related information records from another object
Grid sections are displayed as a table or spreadsheet within a record

For example, the Parts object can contain a grid section that lists component parts (from the Components object)

New Related Information section

A Related Information Section is part of each Record, and displays related records from other objects
Related Information Sections are created by default in all Objects
Use this link to create (optional) additional Related Information Sections.
Learn more: Object Relationships

Manage Form Layouts

Layout Rules

Layout Rules provide the ability to create dynamic Forms that adapt and offer additional options as data is entered.

About Layout Rules

As data is entered into a form, Layout Rules can be used to hide or show fields, buttons, and form sections, or assign an initial value to a field. They can also be used to display a message.

Sample use cases:

Show a discount button when an amount reaches some value
Hide a section to prevent access to data until after a specific date and time.

Conditions and Actions

Layout Rules use an IF...THEN...ELSE model to customize a form layout:

IF <some condition> is TRUE

THEN do <some action>

ELSE do <some other action>

To specify a <condition> you use the Formula Builder to create a [Formula Expression]. That expression use record fields and fields in related fields.

Either a THEN clause or an ELSE clause can be specified, or both.

The possible Actions are shown below.

Considerations

Each Layout Rule can include multiple actions
Actions are executed in the order in which they are displayed
Actions can be added, edited, deleted or reordered
Sections can be opened based on a condition
A condition can be applied on Add, View or Update of a Record
To be available for use in a Layout Rule, the field must not be hidden in the layout.
(If it should be hidden at times, then hide it using a Layout Rule.)
Multi Object Lookup fields cannot be used to specify criteria for a Layout Rule.
Learn more: Multi Object Lookup#Considerations

Note:
A field can be referenced in either:

a. A section for which Show Empty Fields in View has been disabled
(using Advanced Options in a Section), or

b. A Layout Rule condition.

But it cannot be referenced in both places.

The Reason: If the field is empty, the server removes it from the page. The Layout Rule, meanwhile, is a JavaScript function in the page. When the Layout Rule tries to test that field, an error occurs.

Working with Layout Rules

Users that have the Customize Objects permission can edit Layout Rules.

Adding or Editing a Layout Rule

Click the [Layout Rule] button at the top of the page.
Click the [Add New Rule] button to add a new Layout Rule,
or click the name of an existing rule to edit it.
Fill in the layout rule settings.
Click [Save]

Settings

Name

Name of the Layout Rule

Enabled

Check the box to enable the Layout Rule, or uncheck it to disable the Layout Rule

Description

Description of the rule

Apply rule during

Executes the Layout Rule when any of the selected actions are taken on a record in the Object
Add Record

View Record

Update Record

On Success do not continue to next Rule

Checkbox, unchecked by default
If checked, and this rule is Triggered, then any rules that follow are not processed

The order of processing rules is controlled with the [Reorder Rule] button.

If (specify the condition...)

Use the Formula Builder to define a Boolean expression that evaluates to true or false.
Optionally, specify an action to take when the expression is true

Optionally, specify an action to take when the expression is false.

Actions are displayed in rows which can be added, edited, deleted or reordered.

Actions

Show/Hide Sections or Fields

Disable/Enable Fields

Assign Value to Field
(Choose a field. Use the Formula Builder to create a value expression.)

Setup Value in Picklist

Display Message:

Once During Form Save Only

When Condition Matches

Show/Hide Buttons

Make Fields Required

Make Fields Not Required

Consideration:

The more the layout rules, the lesser the performance.

The following table explains the Field Display Type available in the Add New Rule page and the Actions available.

Field Display Types	Add New Rule	Actions
Field Display Types	Add New Rule	Show or Hide Sections and Fields	Disable or Enable Fields	Assign Value to Fields	Setup Value in Picklist	Display Message	Show or Hide Buttons	Make Fields Required	Make Fields Not Required
Auto Number	✔	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕
Checkbox	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Currency	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Date	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Date Time	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Dependent Picklist	✔	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Email Address	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
External Lookup	✕	✔	✕	✕	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕
File Field	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Formula	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Geolocation	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Global Picklist	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Image Field	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Lookup	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
*Lookup-Derived Field	✕	✔	✕	✕	✕	✕	✕	✕	✕
Multiple Checkboxes	✕	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Multi Object Lookup	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Multi Select Picklist	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Number	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Number with decimals	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Percentage	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Phone/Fax	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Picklist	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Radio Buttons	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Rich Text Area	✕	✔	✕	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Text Area	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Text Field	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Time	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
URL	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Rollup Summary	✔	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕

Note: Lookup-Derived fields cannot be created manually by the user. To configure lookup-derived fields, see Lookup-Derived Fields.

Reorder Layout Rules

Click the [Layout Rule] button at the top of the page.
Click the [Reorder Rule] button to change the order in which rules are executed.

Using Enumerated Picklists in Layout Rules

Layout Rule criteria can be specified using Enumerated Picklist Values. The Display Label is not considered valid for criteria in Layout Rules.

About the [Save Changes] Button

If you are editing a form layout and attempt to navigate to a different tab in the object, the following message is displayed, which provides the option to [Cancel] the action and [Save Changes], or continue [OK] and abandon the edit process.

File:Confirmformlayoutchange.gif

For Developers: Form Scripting

About Form Scripts

Form Scripting lets you specify JavaScript code to execute when a Form is loaded or saved.

JavaScript code can be invoked at these form-level events:

On Load

This event happens when the form loads
By default, the On Load scripts are triggered on any record action (View, Add, Update)

Optionally, invoke the script on a specific action (View or Add or Update)

Learn more: Trigger on a Specific Action

On Save

This event happens when a user clicks the [Submit] button on a form
At this event, optionally perform custom front-end validations before sending the data to the server
Return false to cancel the save

Reusable Script Functions

Available to be called from the On Load or On Save event form scripts
Also available to be called from the On Change and On Focus event field scripts

Learn more:

Compare to Post Selection JavaScript and Field Scripting
Using AJAX and REST to communicate with the platform

Working with Form Scripts

Note: Please note that all the examples listed in this page are limited to the legacy AgileApps UI and not the new runtime AgileApps UI.

Editing Form Scripts

Follow these steps to add or change scripting in a form:

Note: To run the JavaScript in the LongJump UI and the legacy AgileApps UI, enter the script in the Legacy UI Script tab. To run the JavaScript in the New AgileApps UI, enter the script in the New UI Script tab.

Click [Form Script]
Click [Edit]
Enter or change the JavaScript in On Load Script, On Save Script, and/or Reusable Script Functions
Click [Save]

Writing JavaScript

Using JavaScript, you can

Reference Fields in the current form.
Use AJAX and REST to communicate with the platform.

On Load Examples

These examples perform operations when a form is loaded.

Add a Help Button to an Arbitrary Form

This code works for forms in all objects, including Cases, Tasks, and custom objects. And it works when adding a new record, as well as when viewing an existing record. For information about adding a help button to a form, see the tech community article Adding a Custom Button to an Arbitrary Form using Form Script.

Convert a Date

Create readable date string from the current date for display in the order_date field.

var v1 = new Date(); 
var v2 = new Array('Sun', 'Mon', 'Tues', 'Wed', 'Thu', 'Fri', 'Sat'); 
var v3 = new Array('Jan', 'Feb', 'Mar', 'Apr', 'May', 'Jun', 
                   'Jul', 'Aug', 'Sep', 'Oct', 'Nov', 'Dec'); 
date_string = v2[v1.getDay()] + " " + v3[v1.getMonth()] + " " + v1.getDate(); 
setTextFieldValue(_sdForm, "order_date", date_string);

Trigger on a Specific Action

To invoke a script On Load + Action (View, Update, Add or Clone a record):

Note: For new UI, see the section Variables and Methods Introduced in the Revamped UI in JavaScript Field Type Reference for New AgileApps User Interface

Trigger on record View:

var action = _sdForm.get(0).a.value;
if ( action == "view") {
   // java script to be triggered on the view of the record only
   ...
}

Trigger on record Update:

var action = _sdForm.get(0).a.value;
if ( action == "update") {
   // java script to be triggered on the update of the record only
   ...
}

Trigger on record Add or Clone:

var action = _sdForm.get(0).a.value; 
if ( action == "add") {
   //java script to be triggered on the add or clone of the record only
   ...
}

On Save Examples

For examples related to the On Save action, see the tech community article Perform Custom Validations using Form Script in AgileApps.

Learn More

JavaScript Field Type Reference for New AgileApps User Interface
Referencing Form Fields in JavaScript
Field Name and Field Value syntax
Use AJAX and REST to communicate with the platform in JavaScript code.
JavaScript Functions
Accessing Additional Lookup Variables in a Form

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Contents

Configuration Options in Form Layouts

Considerations

Working with a Form Layout

Elements

Fields

Form Controls

New Section Constructors

Manage Form Layouts

Layout Rules

About Layout Rules

Conditions and Actions

Considerations

Working with Layout Rules

Adding or Editing a Layout Rule

Settings

Actions

Reorder Layout Rules

Using Enumerated Picklists in Layout Rules

About the [Save Changes] Button

For Developers: Form Scripting

About Form Scripts

Working with Form Scripts

Editing Form Scripts

Writing JavaScript

On Load Examples

Add a Help Button to an Arbitrary Form

Convert a Date

Trigger on a Specific Action

On Save Examples

Learn More