Display Rules

What you'll learn:

How to create conditional field visibility and formatting
The difference between dynamic and standard display rules
Best practices for organizing multiple display rules
How to troubleshoot common display rule issues

Understanding Display Rules

Display rules make your forms and views responsive to data by controlling how fields appear and behave. You can hide irrelevant fields, change labels based on selections, add visual indicators, and create step-by-step workflows that guide users through complex processes.

Display rules work on three element types:

Form elements - Control field visibility and formatting during data entry
Details elements - Format how record information is displayed, and show or hide values
Table elements, including Search Result tables - Add conditional formatting to table columns

When Display Rules Activate

Display rules check their conditions in two scenarios:

Page load - All rules evaluate when the element first loads on the page
Field changes - Rules re-evaluate when users modify input

This means your elements can respond to user selections and data input, showing relevant fields and hiding unnecessary ones, and visually showing importance with colors and icons.

Building Display Rules on Forms

Every display rule follows the same structure: When these conditions are met, Then apply the actions.

Setting Conditions (When)

Define what triggers your rule by specifying:

Field to check - Any field added to your form, details, or table element
Comparison type - Equals, contains, is greater than, etc. The options change based on the field type.
Value to compare - The target value that activates the rule

You can add multiple conditions that must all be true for the rule to trigger.

Tip: For fields you need to reference but don't want visible, add them to your form and hide them with a display rule. Hidden fields can still be used as conditions in other rules.

Defining Actions (Then)

Choose what happens when conditions are met:

Forms

Dynamically Show
Dynamically Hide
Rename Label
Show once
Hide once

Form Rule Types: Dynamic vs Standard

Understanding rule types helps you create predictable, maintainable display logic.

Dynamic Rules

Available Actions:

Dynamically Show: When conditions are met, the field is shown, otherwise, it is hidden
Dynamically Hide: When conditions are met, the field is hidden, otherwise, it is shown

Standard Rules

Available Actions:

Show Once - Displays the field when conditions are met
Hide Once - Hides the field when conditions are met

💡
Unlike dynamic rules, standard rules do not automatically reverse when conditions change

Rename Label

Available Actions

Rename Label - Dynamically changes the label name when conditions are met. Once renamed, the label keeps its new name until another qualifying condition causes it to change again.

Practical Examples

Job Application Form

You could create a form where different positions show relevant questions:

Condition: Position field equals "Software Developer"
Action: Dynamically Show "Programming Languages" field

Condition: Position field equals "Sales Rep"
Action: Dynamically Show "Previous Sales Experience" field

Appointment Scheduling

Prevent same-day rescheduling:

Condition: Appointment Date is before today
Action: Show Once: "Reschedule Date" field

Managing Multiple Rules in Forms

Rule Order and Precedence

Rules evaluate from top to bottom, but precedence varies by type:

Dynamic Rules:

All rules evaluate in sequenced order
The last matching rule takes precedence
Order: Place the most general conditions first → and the most specific conditions last

Standard Rules:

All rules evaluate in sequenced order
Order: Specific conditions first → General conditions last

Mixed Rule Types:

Dynamic rules override standard rules if there is a conflict (for example a dynamic and standard rule set on the same field)

Organization Best Practices

Keep it simple:

On forms, use one type of rule when possible (dynamic only or standard only)
Avoid redundant or conflicting conditions

Table Element Display Rules

Available Actions

Set Text Color - Change text to any color
Set Text Style - Apply bold, italic, or strikethrough
Set Background Color - Highlight cells with color
Display Icon - Add status icons with custom colors
Hide Value - Remove specific cell content

Practical Examples

Project Status Tracking Table

Condition: Status equals "Complete"
Actions: Green background, checkmark icon, bold text

Condition: Status equals "Overdue"
Actions: Red background, warning icon, italic text:

Condition: Status field equals "Urgent"
Actions: Set background color to red, display warning icon

Details Element

Available Actions*

Set Text Color - Change text to any color
Set Text Style - Apply bold, italic, or strikethrough
Set Background Color - Highlight cells with color
Display Icon - Add status icons with custom colors
Hide Value - Remove specific cell content
Show Value - Show specific cell content

Practical Examples

Example: Hide the Late Fee field if the Due Date is earlier than the current time. This ensures that the user does not see a late fee when it is not necessary.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Hidden Fields Not Saving Data

Problem: Hidden form fields lose their values
Solution: Hidden fields don't submit data - this is expected behavior

Rules Not Reversing

Problem: Hide Once rule doesn't show field again
Solution: Create a separate Show rule with opposite conditions, or use Dynamic Show/Hide rules

Unexpected Results

Problem: Rules behave differently than expected
Solution: Check if you're using dynamically show or dynamically hide - they have opposite logic

Mixed Rule Conflicts

Problem: Dynamic and standard rules interfere
Solution: Dynamic rules always win - don't place mixed rule types on the same field