Managing Default Values
Overview
Section titled “Overview”A default value set is a saved group of field values that you load onto a form instead of typing them each time. Anyone who adds customers, numbers, services or features can use them, for example a “Business customer” set with the usual billing cycle, payment terms and invoice settings.
Default values are available on add and edit forms, and on many action forms, through the Default Values menu in the menu bar. It has three options: Load, Save and Delete.
Types of default set
Section titled “Types of default set”Named sets are loaded by hand. Create one for each common type of record, such as “Residential”, “Business” or “Wholesale”.
The New set loads automatically when you open an add form for that record type. Use it for the values most new records share.
The Import set applies to bulk imports. When the platform processes a bulk import file in Insert mode, it looks for a set named “Import” for that record type, such as customer, number or feature. Its values fill every field the import file leaves empty.
Some fields are pre-filled by the platform even when no set is loaded. A loaded set replaces those values.
Personal and shared sets
Section titled “Personal and shared sets”A set is either personal, visible only to you, or shared with everyone. If you save a personal set with the same name as a shared one, your personal set is used instead of the shared one.
- To share a set, tick Shared when you save it. You need edit permission for that record type.
- Shared New and Import sets need Elevated access, because they apply automatically for everyone.
- You can delete your own personal sets. Only Elevated users can delete shared sets.
What each set stores
Section titled “What each set stores”Saving a default is two choices: which set of fields to store, chosen from the Save submenu, and what to call the result. The sets available depend on the record type:
| Record type | Sets offered |
|---|---|
| Customer | All, New, New + Service Charges |
| Number | All, New, New + Tariff + Discount Plans, New + Tariff + Discount Plans + Service Charges, Service Charges |
| Service | All, New, Service Charges, New + Service Charges |
All covers every field that can be stored, and is the set to use for a default you will load onto an existing record. New covers the fields that make sense on a new record, leaving out anything that identifies one particular record: a number’s Carrier Reference and a service’s Provider Reference, for instance, are offered under All only, so a reference belonging to one record is never stamped onto a batch of new ones by a default that loads automatically.
The sets naming service charges also store the feature slots on the add form, so a record and its recurring and one-off charges can be set up together from a single stored default. On a service those slots are the only place its charges are entered, so a service default that does not include them cannot describe the service’s pricing at all.
A default saved from an existing record keeps whatever feature slots are already stored under that name. The slots exist only on the add form, so saving from an edit form leaves them unchanged.
Saving a default set
Section titled “Saving a default set”- Open an add or edit form, such as Add menu > Customer.
- Enter the values you want to store. Leave fields blank where each record will differ.
- Go to Default Values > Save, and choose which fields to store. See What each set stores.
- Enter a name that says what the set is for, such as “UK business, monthly, Direct Debit”.
- Tick Shared if the whole team should use it.
- Save.
The set is available straight away from Default Values > Load on that type of form.
To create the automatic set, name it “New”. To create the set used by bulk imports, name it “Import”.
Loading a default set
Section titled “Loading a default set”The New set loads by itself when you open an add form. To load another set:
- Go to Default Values > Load.
- Choose the set.
Loading a set fills the fields it stores. Fields it does not store keep their current values, so you can load two sets one after the other. For example, load a set holding a customer type’s billing settings, then a set holding a sales channel’s commission details.
Check the form before you save the record. A set fills in what was typical when it was saved, which may not suit this record.
Keeping sets useful
Section titled “Keeping sets useful”Review your shared sets when your standard terms, tariffs or prices change. A set saved with old values keeps applying them to every new record until it is updated. Delete sets nobody uses, so the Load menu stays short enough to choose from.
Name sets for the job they do, and keep the naming consistent. For example, start each name with the customer type (“Business”, “Residential”, “Wholesale”), then add the variation (“Business, quarterly billing”).