Custom fields hold the information Avaza's standard fields don't cover, such as a client reference, a delivery risk, story points or a go-live date. You add them to projects and tasks, fill them in on the project and task forms, and use them as columns, filters, sort orders and groups in your views.
Custom fields also work on team members, company contacts and companies. See custom fields for contacts and companies.
Turn custom fields on
Go to Settings › Custom Fields.
Click the switch at the top right so it shows On.
Turning the switch Off later hides every custom field and its values across Avaza, but deletes nothing. Turn it back on and everything returns, including the columns and filters in your saved views. The same happens if the account moves to the Free plan: the fields are hidden, not deleted.
Create a field
In Settings › Custom Fields, click Create.
Enter a Name, such as "Risk Level". Each active field needs a different name.
Choose a Type (see below). You can't change the type after the field is created.
Add a Description if you like. It appears as a hint on the forms, so people know what to enter.
Under Show on, tick Project, Task or both.
Next to each ticked module is an Optional tag. Click it to switch that module to Required. A field can be required on projects and optional on tasks.Choose the Project scope: All projects, or Only selected projects to limit the field, on projects and their tasks, to the projects you pick.
Choose the Visibility: Internal (your team only) or Everyone (customer contacts can see it too). See Visibility and customer contacts below.
Set a Default value if you want new records filled in automatically. People can change or clear it. A required field with a default is always filled in, without slowing anyone down.
Under Behaviour, tick Available in Filters, Available in Sorting and Available in Grouping for where the field can be used in views.
Click Create custom field.
An account can have up to 100 active custom fields.
Field types
Type | What it holds |
|---|---|
Short Text | One line, up to 255 characters, such as a reference code |
Long Text | Several lines of notes, up to 5,000 characters |
Number | A number, with a choice of Decimal places, a Thousands separator and optional Units |
Percentage | A number shown with % |
Currency | An amount of money. The field stores the number only, so put the currency in the field's name or description if it matters |
Duration | Hours and minutes. Type 1:30 or 1.5; it shows as 1:30 |
Date | A date from a calendar, shown in your account's date format |
Checkbox | On or off |
Dropdown | Your own list of options, each with an optional colour. Tick Allow multiple selections to let people pick more than one, and tick default on an option to pre-select it |
User | One of your team members, or several with multiple selections. Choosing someone doesn't assign the task to them or notify them |
Location | A place: a location name with its latitude and longitude. Use the search button to find it on a map |
User and Location fields can't have a default value. Long Text, Location and multiple-selection fields can't be sorted. Only Checkbox fields and single-selection Dropdown and User fields can be grouped.
Fill in custom fields
On a new task, the create task form has a Custom fields section, folded away below the standard fields. Click Show N fields, for example Show 3 fields, to open it. Fields with a default are filled in even if you never open the section. If a required field is empty when you save, the section opens and shows which one.
On an existing task, open the task and find the Custom fields panel. Fields with a value come first; click Show N empty fields to see the rest. Changes save as you make them. A required field can't be cleared.
On projects, fill in the fields when you add the project, or later in the project's settings:
Open the project and go to Project Settings. See project settings.
Click the Custom Fields tab. It appears once the account has at least one project field.
Enter or change the values and click Save changes.
Adding a required field doesn't change existing projects or tasks.
Use custom fields in views
Custom fields work with the view tools on All Projects, All Tasks, a project's task views and My Tasks. See custom views.
- Columns: click Fields and tick the custom fields to show. They have a type icon, so you can tell them from standard fields. Values keep their formatting: coloured chips for dropdown options, currency, durations and ticks.
- Filter: fields with Available in Filters appear in the filter list, with conditions to suit their type.
- Sort: fields with Available in Sorting appear under Sort. Records without a value come last.
- Group: fields with Available in Grouping appear under Group, in the order of their options, with a No value group at the end.
- Boards: cards show custom field values as label and value, with +N more when there are several. Group a board by a dropdown field and its options become the columns. Drag a card to another column to change its value.
Custom fields turn up in other places too: global search looks in text and dropdown values, the task's History tab records changes to them, and you can fill them in when you import data.
Edit, archive or delete a field
In Settings › Custom Fields, the list shows each field's Type, where it's Shown on, its Visibility, how many records use it (In use) and its Status. Narrow the list with Status, Module, Type and the search box. Drag a row's handle to change the order that fields appear in on forms and in column lists.
- Edit: click the field, or choose Edit from its ⋮ menu. You can change everything except the type, then click Save changes. A new name shows on every record at once. A new default only applies to records created afterwards.
- Dropdown options: add, rename, reorder or remove options at any time. Removing an option that's in use archives it: it leaves the picker, but records that use it keep it, and restore brings it back.
- Archive: choose Archive from the ⋮ menu to retire a field. It disappears from forms, columns and filters, but every value is kept. To bring it back, set Status to Archived and choose Unarchive.
- Delete: choose Delete... from the ⋮ menu. If the field holds data, type its name to confirm, or click Archive Field instead. Deleting permanently removes the field's values from every record, and it can't be undone.
Visibility and customer contacts
Internal fields are for your team only. Avaza leaves them, and even their names, out of the forms, views and search results that external contacts see. Everyone fields are also shown to customer contacts who can see the project or task. A globe icon next to a field's name marks it as shared.
If a field doesn't show on a task, check that its Show on includes Task, that the task's project is within the field's Project scope, and that the field isn't archived.