Customizing forms for displaying objects

Updated in 2023.2

The Self Service Portal uses View Forms to display object details for Computers, Inventory Items, Tickets, Library Items, and Equipment Reservations. There is a default View Form for each of these object classes.

NOTE: The appearance of Announcements and Knowledge Base Articles in the Self Service Portal is controlled via standard cascading style sheet (CSS) rules. For instructions, see Customizing Style Sheets.

NOTE: The Self Service Portal may show some additional object properties. For example, the Ticket History section on the screenshot above shows details from the Ticket’s Activity Log in addition to View Form fields.

To customize the View Form for an object class:

1. From the Sidebar, navigate to Customization > General > Self Service Portal > Forms.
2. The navigation bar on the left hand side displays separate sections for objects that are available in the Self Service Portal: Tickets, Equipment Reservations, Library Items, Computers, and Inventory Items. Scroll to an object class and review the contents of the View Form. Customize it as needed:
   • To add a new field:
     1. Click New > Field. The Form Field dialog box opens.
     2. Select a field name from the Name list.
     3. Type a field label in the Label field. If you want to use default labels, leave the Label field blank.
     4. Click OK.

     Repeat these steps to create additional fields. To remove a field from the View Form, select it and click Delete.

   • To add a section separator:
     1. Select a field under which you want to add a section separator and click New > Section. The Section dialog box opens.
     2. Type a caption for the section. To create a section with no caption, leave the Section caption field empty.
     3. Click OK.

     Repeat these steps to create additional sections as needed. To remove a section separator, select it and click Delete.

   • To add text or a hyperlink:
     1. Click an element (a separator or field) under which you want the text or hyperlink to appear and click New > Text. The Text dialog box opens.
     2. Type your text. To insert dynamic values, click Insert Placeholder and select a value using the Select Placeholder dialog box.

        INFO: For details, see Inserting Placeholders.

     3. If you want this text to become a hyperlink, provide the full path for the hyperlink in the URL field. To insert dynamic values, click the ellipsis button and select a value using the Select Placeholder dialog box.

        NOTE: The Self Service Portal supports only these types of hyperlinks: http, https, ftp, ftps, and file (in Google Chrome, links to local files are disabled).

     4. Click OK.
3. All elements appear on the View Form in the order they are listed. If you want to change their display order, use the Move Up and Move Down buttons.
4. Click Save.

See the figure below to see how the View Form displayed above is defined.