Application User Interface · Topic 1 of 4
Forms and Fields
CAD forms and fields: Form Designer and Form Layout, sections and views, related lists, adding fields to tables, and removing fields from forms vs tables.
- 5 min
- Form Designer is the visual drag and drop tool; Form Layout is the slushbucket.
- A view is a named layout of a form; different audiences can get different views.
- Sections group fields and can use one or two columns.
What it is
A form shows one record of a table, field by field. A developer decides which fields appear, how they are grouped into sections, which view a user sees, and which related lists show records linked to this one.
Fields exist at two levels. A field on the table is a column defined in the dictionary that stores data. A field on the form is only a place where that column is shown. Adding or removing at each level has very different effects.
How it works
Tools for the form
You open the layout tools from the form context menu under Configure.
| Tool | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Form Designer | Drag and drop fields and sections on a visual canvas, and create new fields from its field types |
| Form Layout | A two column picker (slushbucket) to add, remove and order fields and sections, including dot-walked fields |
| Related Lists | Choose which related lists appear under the form |
| Dictionary | Change one field's definition, such as mandatory, read only, default value or length |
Recent ServiceNow documentation also describes Form Builder, which covers the options of both Form Designer and Form Layout. Whichever tool you use, check that your application is selected in the application picker, so the layout change is recorded in your application.
Sections, views and formatters
A section groups fields under a heading and can use one or two columns. In Form Designer the first section always shows the table label and cannot be removed.
A view is a named arrangement of the form, such as Default view or a view for a particular team. The same table can have different fields per view, and a module can open a list or form in a chosen view.
Forms can also hold formatters, such as the activity formatter that shows the journal history, and annotations that add help text between fields.
Adding fields
A new column can be created from the table record's Columns related list, from System Definition > Tables, or directly in Form Designer or Form Layout. Each way creates a dictionary entry on the table and the column is then available on every form and list of that table and its children.
Fields from related records can be shown with dot-walking in Form Layout, for example the department of the user in a reference field. These display data from the other table; they do not add a column.
Removing fields
| Action | Effect |
|---|---|
| Remove a field from the form | Only the layout changes; the column and its data stay in the table |
| Hide the field with a UI policy | Hidden on screen in that situation; data still stored and reachable |
| Delete the column from the table | The column and all its data are removed from the table |
Removing from the form is safe and reversible. Deleting a column is destructive, so it is the last choice. A child table cannot delete a field it inherited from its parent; to change an inherited field on one child, use a dictionary override.
Making fields behave
Field behavior that must apply everywhere belongs in the dictionary: mandatory, read only, default value and reference qualifiers. Behavior that depends on the situation, such as "mandatory only when State is Closed", belongs in a UI policy or script, covered on the next pages.
How the exam asks about this
- "Fulfillers need extra fields that requesters must not see on the form." Create a separate view for fulfillers and lay out its fields.
- "A field is no longer needed on the form but its history must be kept." Remove it from the form layout, not from the table.
- "A requirement needs the caller's location shown on the form." Add a dot-walked field in Form Layout.
What to remember for the exam
- Form Designer is the visual drag and drop tool; Form Layout is the slushbucket.
- A view is a named layout of a form; different audiences can get different views.
- Sections group fields and can use one or two columns.
- Removing a field from a form keeps the column and data; deleting the column removes the data.
- Dot-walked fields on a form show related data without adding a column.
- Fixed field rules such as mandatory or default value live in the dictionary.
Removing or hiding a field on a form is not security. The data is still in the table and reachable through lists, reports and APIs unless an access control blocks it.
Common mistakes
Deleting a column to tidy a form. Deleting the column removes its data for every record. To declutter a form, remove the field from the layout or create a view.
Adding a column to show related data. If the data already lives on a referenced record, dot-walk to it. A new column would copy data that then goes stale.
Changing layouts in the wrong application. Form layout changes are recorded against the application in the picker. Change them while another application is selected and they will not move with yours.
Check yourself
What is the difference between removing a field from a form and deleting it from the table?
Removing it from the form only changes the layout and keeps the data; deleting the column removes it and its data from the table.
How can two groups of users see different fields on the same table's form?
Create a separate form view for one group and give each view its own layout.
How do you show a field from a referenced record without adding a column?
Add a dot-walked field to the form, for example through Form Layout.
Topic 1 of 4 in Application User Interface
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