Formula and Foreign Key fields

This section provides information about the formula and foreign key fields used in BMC Remedyforce.

Formula fields

Data in the Formula fields is automatically displayed after performing predefined calculations and can be used in QuickViews, reports, lists, Lookup fields, forms, or Global Search Settings. Formula fields can be identified by the tilde (~) character that is appended to the original name of the formula fields. For example, the name of the Category formula field appears as Category~.

When you create new QuickViews and reports, or configure Global Search Settings, you must select formula fields that are appended with a tilde character. Your existing QuickViews, reports, lists, Lookup fields, forms, and Global Search Settings are updated with the new Formula fields.

In general, Formula fields can be used when you need the field value, not its ID.

Foreign key fields

If you use Foreign key fields ( Lookup fields) in QuickViews or Global Search Settings, these fields display the internal 13-digit ID for the record, which is not user-friendly. If you use a Formula field instead of a Lookup field, the Formula field displays data that is readable and user-friendly. For example, if you use the Category Lookup field, it displays 0x0d458djkdf. However, if you use the Category~ formula field, it displays Hardware.

The labels of all Foreign Key fields have been updated to remove the FK that was prefixed to the label. The following table summarizes the updates made to the Formula and Foreign Key fields:

The labels of all Formula fields in BMC Remedyforce are updated with a tilde (~) character that is appended at the end of the label. If your QuickViews, reports, lists, Lookup fields, forms, or Global Search Settings are using formula fields, a tilde character is appended to the original name of these formula fields. For example, the name of the Category formula field appears as Category~ after you install the managed package.

If you use Lookup fields in QuickViews or Global Search Settings, these fields display the internal 13-digit ID for the record, which is not user-friendly. If you use Formula fields (fields with a tilde character appended) instead of a Lookup field, the Formula field displays data that is readable and user-friendly. For example, if you use the Category Lookup field, it displays 0x0d458djkdf. However, if you use the Category~ Formula field, it displays Hardware.

When you create new QuickViews and reports, or configure Global Search Settings, you must select the Formula fields that are appended with a tilde character. Your existing QuickViews, reports, lists, Lookup fields, forms, and Global Search Settings are updated with the new Formula fields.