Understand system fields
In addition to the data that is submitted through a form, ManageEngine AppCreator captures a few details like - which user added the record, when did the user add the record, which user was the last one to update it, etc. These details are stored in the system fields.
As the name suggests, adding and updating data in system fields is handled by the system - ManageEngine AppCreator. You and your users will neither be able to set values for these fields, nor be able to edit the values stored in these fields. However, you can make use of these fields in your app. Refer this section to see examples.
System fields available in ManageEngine AppCreator
Note: System fields are not available for integration forms as integration forms enable storing data in external services (i.e., outside your ManageEngine AppCreator app).
| System fields | Description |
| ID | Stores the record's identification (ID) - an auto-generated numeric value that is unique for all records. |
| Added Time | Stores the date and time of when the record was added. |
| Added User | Stores the username of the user who added the record. |
| Added User IP Address | Stores the public IP address of the device from which the user added the record. |
| Last Modified Time | Stores the date and time of when the record was last modified. |
| Last Modified User | Stores the username of the user who was the last one to update/modify the record. |
| Modified User IP Address | Stores the public IP address of the device from which the last modified user updated/modified the record. |
| Record Status | Stores a string value that denotes the status of a record that is subject to an approval process. The default value it holds for a record is UNLOCKED. |
Things to know
- Zoho AppCreator will populate the fields - Added User IP Address and Modified User IP Address, only when capturing IP address has been enabled for that form
- The date-time values stored in the fields - Added Time and Last Modified Time, will be displayed as per the date and time zone format set in that app
- If you have published your form, ManageEngine AppCreator will populate the fields - Added User and Last Modified User, with the value Public
- Ownership of records is tracked using the Added User field, unless you've added a users field to your form and configured it to make the selected user as record owner
How to view the data stored in them?
You can enable your users to view the data stored in the system fields by adding them in the quick view layout and/or detail view layout of the reports that your users have access to.
Examples of using system fields in an app
Added Time
- Consider an IT asset management (ITAM) scenario, where employees place a request for a device - smart phone, tablet, laptop, desktop, etc. Instead of using a separate date-time field to capture the date and time at which the employees submit requests, the added time field can be used
- In an order management scenario, the added time field may be used for two purposes:
- Capturing the date and time at which an order is placed
- Calculating the expected date of delivery based on the date of order (which can be fetched from the added time field)
Added User
- You can configure a report to display user-specific records. For this, you will need to set a filter that makes the report display the records where the value stored in the added user field matches the username of the logged-in user (which is stored by the system variable zoho.loginuser).