Fields

Fields are the data entry points in a module. Each field stores a specific piece of information about a record, such as a price, a date, or a status value. When you create a module in Vertical Studio, the system adds a few default set of fields, including Record Name, Record Owner, etc. You can add custom fields beyond these defaults to capture the business-specific data your subscribers need.

Fields are configured in the layout editor for each module. You choose the field type, set the label, and define properties such as whether the field is required, whether duplicate values are allowed, and which subscriber profiles can view or edit it. Fields are packagable components. When you publish your application, custom fields and their configurations are included in that version and become available to subscribers when they upgrade.

For more details, refer to Types of Custom Fields and Working with Custom Fields. The same field types and configuration options are available in Vertical Studio.

Sample use case

You are building a real-estate application with a Properties custom module for subscribers to track listings. The module includes system fields like Record Name and Record Owner, but your subscribers also need listing-specific data.

You add the following fields to the Properties module: a Listing Price field to capture the asking amount, a Property Type Pick List with options for Apartment, Villa, and Commercial, a Year Built Integer field, and a Status Pick List with values for Available, Under Offer, and Sold. You mark Status as Required so every listing has a tracked stage. When you publish the application, subscribers receive all these fields in their Properties module without any setup on their end.

How to manage fields

Add a field to a module

Log into your Developer Console.
Navigate to Vertical Studio and select your application.
Click Modules in the left pane and select the module you want to edit.
In the layout editor, drag the field type you want from the New Fields panel and drop it into the desired section.
In the field properties dialog, enter the Field Label and configure the available properties for that field type.
Click Done.
Click Save to save the layout.

Edit a field

In the layout editor, locate the field you want to update.
Click the More icon (...) next to the field and select Edit Properties.
Update the label or properties as needed.
Click Done, then click Save to save the layout.

Note: You cannot change the field type after a field has been created. If you need a different type, remove the existing field and add a new one.

Set field permissions

In the layout editor, locate the field you want to configure.
Click the More icon (...) next to the field and select Set Permission.
For each profile, set the permission level:

Read & Write: The profile can view and edit the field.
Read Only: The profile can view but not edit the field.
Do Not Show: The field is hidden from this profile.

Click Save.

Remove a field

Removing a field from the layout moves it to the Unused Fields section. The field and its data remain in the system. You can restore the field by dragging it back into a layout section.

In the layout editor, click the More icon (...) next to the field.
Select Remove Field.
Confirm the action.

To permanently delete a field, open the Unused Fields panel and delete it from there.
Deleted fields and their data cannot be recovered.
You cannot permanently delete a custom field that is part of a published application version.

Note:

If a search API or Deluge search call starts failing after layout changes, verify that all required search fields remain in Used Fields and that the script uses the correct field API names. Moving a dependency field to Unused Fields can break search output until the field is restored and changes are published.

Field types

The following field types are available in Vertical Studio.

Field type	Description	Limit
Text	Single-line text for short entries such as names, codes, or labels.	Max 255 characters
Integer	Whole numbers for counts, quantities, or numeric identifiers.	Max 9 digits
Long Integer	Large whole numbers.	Max 18 digits
Decimal	Numbers with decimal places.	Max 16 digits (including decimal places)
Percent	Percentage values.	—
Currency	Monetary values with rounding and decimal place configuration.	Max 16 digits
Date	Date values. Format follows user time zone settings.	—
Date & Time	Date and time values.	—
Email	Validates email address format.	—
Phone	Phone number input.	—
URL	Web address input.	—
Text Area (Small)	Multi-line text for short descriptions or notes. Supported in filters and criteria.	Max 2,000 characters
Text Area (Large)	Multi-line text for longer entries. Not supported in filters and criteria.	Max 32,000 characters
Pick List	Single-select dropdown with predefined options.	—
Multi-Select Pick List	Multiple-value selection from a predefined list.	—
Checkbox	Boolean true/false selection.	—
Auto Number	Generates a sequential number for each record. Supports prefix, starting number, and suffix.	One per module. If the Record Name field is Auto Number, no additional Auto Number fields can be added.
Lookup	Links a record to another module. Creates a one-to-many relationship and a related list in the linked module.	—
Multi-Select Lookup	Links a record to multiple records in another module. Creates a many-to-many relationship.	Max 2 per module
User Field	Associates a record with one or more users in the organization.	Max 5 single-user fields and 1 multi-user field per module
File Upload	Allows attaching files to a record.	Max 20 MB per file
Image Upload	Allows uploading images to a record.	Max 10 images; 20 MB per image

Field properties

When you add or edit a field, the following properties are available depending on the field type:

Property	Description	Applies to
Field Label	The display name of the field, shown to users on record pages.	All field types
Required	When enabled, users must enter a value before saving a record.	Most field types
Unique	When enabled, no two records in the module can share the same value in this field.	Text, Email, Phone, Integer, Long Integer, URL
Tooltip	A short hint shown next to the field to guide users on what to enter.	Most field types
Default Value	Pre-fills the field with a set value when a new record is created.	Pick List and select other types

Note: Use Unique for identifier fields where duplicate values are not valid, such as a vehicle registration number or a property listing code. Note that records in the Recycle Bin still block Unique field duplicate-check indexes. If a record creation fails with a duplicate-value error but you cannot find the existing record, check the Recycle Bin and permanently delete it to clear the index.

Packaged fields

Custom fields are packagable components. When you publish your application, custom fields and their configurations are included in that version and become available to subscribers when they upgrade.

Subscribers cannot edit, or delete custom fields that were packaged in your application. They can adjust field permissions per profile from their own settings.

To learn more about how packagable components work, refer to Components and Packaging in Zoho Vertical Studio.

Property	Upgrade Type	Subscriber Modify Access
Field label	Upgradable	No
Field API name	Locked	No
Field data type	Locked	No
Pick list values (options)	Non-Upgradable	Yes
Mandatory property	Upgradable	No
Unique property	Upgradable	No
Tooltip	Upgradable	No
Default value	Upgradable	No
Field permissions (per profile)	Non-Upgradable	Yes

Locked (Field API name): The field API name can be updated before the field is published for the first time. Once the field is included in a published application version, the API name is permanently locked.
Locked (Field data type): Cannot be changed after the field is created. This applies regardless of whether the field has been published.
Field permission changes are non-upgradable. Existing subscribers retain their current field permission settings. New subscribers who sign up after the updated version is published receive the new permissions.

Publish and version upgrade

When you add a new field:

New fields are upgradable. When subscribers upgrade to a version that includes the new field, it is added to their layout automatically. Existing records in subscriber organizations will have an empty value for the new field until subscribers update them.

Example: You add a Bedrooms Integer field to the Properties module and publish the updated version. All subscriber organizations receive the Bedrooms field during their next upgrade. The field appears in the Properties layout, and subscribers can start entering data for new records.

When you update a field label or property:

Field label and property changes (such as Mandatory and Unique) are upgradable. When subscribers upgrade, the updated label and properties are applied across all their layouts and views.

Example: You rename Listing Price to Asking Price and update its Mandatory setting to Required. After upgrading, the field displays as Asking Price in all subscriber organizations, and subscribers are required to enter a value when creating or editing a property record.

When you update field permissions:

Field permission changes are non-upgradable. Subscribers who sign up after you publish the updated version receive the new permissions. Existing subscribers retain whatever permissions were set when they first installed the application. To apply the change for existing subscribers, communicate the update so they can adjust the permission in their own field settings.

Example: You change the Asking Price field to Read Only for the Standard profile. New subscribers receive the Read Only permission for that profile. Existing subscribers continue to see the previous permission setting until they update it manually.

When you remove or delete a field:

Removing a packaged field from a layout moves it to Unused Fields. Subscriber data in that field is not lost. If a subscriber had added the field to another layout in their org, it remains available in that layout. A packaged field cannot be permanently deleted if it is part of a published version. It stays in the Unused Fields section and can be restored by dragging it back into any layout.

Example: You remove the Asking Price field from the Properties module layout. The field moves to Unused Fields in your Developer Console. Subscribers who had added Asking Price to a secondary layout can still access it and view existing data. The field cannot be permanently deleted because it is part of a published version.

Limits and scalability

Maximum custom fields per module: 500 fields. Fields in the Unused Fields section count toward this total.
Unique fields per module: Maximum 2 unique fields. Exceptions: Leads, Contacts, and custom modules support up to 3 (including Email). The Products module supports up to 3 (including Product Code).
User fields per module: Maximum 5 single-user fields and 1 multi-user field.
Multi-Select Lookup fields per module: Maximum 2.
Auto Number fields per module: Maximum 1. If the module's Record Name field is set to Auto Number, no other Auto Number fields can be added.
Field type: Cannot be changed after creation. Remove the field and recreate it if a different type is needed.
Packaged field deletion: Custom fields that are part of a published version cannot be permanently deleted. They can be removed from the layout and moved to Unused Fields, where they remain available for restoration.

Fields | Zoho Vertical Studio Help