The template field template
Field definition items are based on the Template field template. Each template field definition item can include any of the following field properties and can define many properties.
Field name
This is the name assigned to the field when it is created. It is used as the label for the field unless the Title field is filled in.
Field names must be unique. If fields are defined on a single data template with the same name, then a validation error occurs when the data template is saved. But fields can also be inherited from base templates, so an item can potentially contain multiple fields with the same name. If this occurs, Sitecore displays both fields in the Content Editor, but programmers, who use the field name to retrieve contents when using the API and XSLT Renderings, might get unexpected results.
To make code easier to read when referencing fields by name, construct field names like variable names, without special characters.
Type
The field type specifies which user interface control the Content Editor displays to accept input for this field and also controls the storage format for this field. For more information about field types, see the Data Template Field Types.
Title
The title is displayed above the field in the Content Editor, unless the title is blank, in which case the Content Editor displays the field name.
Source
The source property provides information that influences the user interface control associated with the field in the Content Editor. The behavior of the source field depends on the field’s type.
Some examples include:
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For list field types, such as Droplink, the source property indicates a location in the content tree that includes the items included in the list displayed by the field.
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For image and file types, the source property indicates the start folder displayed in the media library dialog box.
If the path begins with a tilde (~) character, the dialog box opens with the desired folder selected, but allows the user to access the entire tree.
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For rich text field definitions, the item specified in the source property specifies an HTML editor profile controlling the features provided by the editing interface.
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For selection fields, the field source property can specify a Sitecore query using the
query:prefix before the actual query statement, as shown in the following example.RequestResponsequery:/sitecore/content/Home/Employees/*[ startswith(@EmployeeName, 'A')]For information about the Sitecore query syntax, see the section Sitecore Query.
Source parameters
Various fields, such as Treelist and TreelistEx, support the following parameters that are used in the Source property as an alternative to SitecoreQuery:
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Parameter |
Description |
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The field data source item, equivalent to using a path as the field source property as described previously. |
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The name of the database containing the data source item. |
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The user can select items associated with this comma- separated list of template names. |
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The user cannot select items associated with this comma-separated list of template names. |
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The user can navigate items associated with this comma- separated list of template names. |
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The user cannot see items associated with a comma- separated list of template names. |
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The user can navigate items associated with this comma-separated list of template names. |
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The user cannot see items with this comma-separated list of IDs. |
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The user can select more than one item. |
You can separate multiple parameters in the source property with the ampersand (&) character as shown in the following example.
DataSource=/sitecore/content/home&IncludeTemplatesForSelection=section,sitemapBlob
This field is for internal Sitecore use only and must not be used.
Shared
When you select the Shared check box, the field has the same value for every numbered version in all supported languages. When the Shared property is set, changes to the field value in any language or numbered version of the item are reflected in all the other language versions and numbered versions.
You must only use Shared values in the following cases:
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Old values of the field are irrelevant.
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Workflow restrictions do not apply to the field value.
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Values are very large (versioning consumes storage).
If you select both the Shared check box and the Unversioned check box, then the field is shared. All versions in all languages of the item share a single value for this field. For more information about unversioned fields, see the following section in this topic.
Workflow and publishing restrictions do not apply to the values of shared fields.
Unversioned
When you select the Unversioned check box, the field has the same value for every numbered version within a language, but might have different values between languages. Unversioned fields are similar to shared fields, but the system can maintain different field values for different languages.
If you select both the Shared check box and the Unversioned check box, then the field is shared. All versions in all languages of the item share a single value for this field. For more information about shared fields, see the previous section in this topic.
Workflow and publishing restrictions do not apply to the values of shared fields.
Default value
This field is for internal Sitecore use only and must not be used.
Validation
This field can contain a regular expression against which the content of the field is validated when the field is saved. In order to save the field, its value must match this regular expression.
Validation text
The system displays this message when you try to save the field and its contents do not match the expression in the Validation field.
Field security
This field opens the Assign Security dialog box for the Field Definition item. The Field Read and Field Write access rights apply.
Reset blank
If you select the Reset Blank check box, it resets the field value to NULL when the item is saved with this field set to blank. NULL fields reflect the standard value for the field.
Exclude from text search
If you select this check box, this field is not included in the search indexes.
Page Editor buttons
This field allows you to select controls that will be associated with this field in the Page Editor.
For additional information about template fields, see Structure of the standard template and Validation rules and options.