Custom objects

Designing and listing objects

In Settings, under "Custom Objects", create objects of your own (partners, projects, contracts and so on) that sit next to companies, contacts and deals. Workspace admins can create them. Set the singular and plural display names and the slug; the object is created with a primary "Name" field and the system fields record ID, created at, updated at, created by and updated by.

• A workspace can have up to 20 custom objects, and each object can hold up to 30 fields
• A slug starts with a lowercase letter, uses only lowercase letters, digits and underscores, and is at most 30 characters. It cannot be changed after creation
• The list shows the object, its type (default or custom), record count, field count and status, and can be narrowed by search and status
• Change fields and other definitions with "Edit definition" and publish them with "Apply changes". While a definition is being edited, adding and updating records of that object is paused
• Standard objects such as companies, contacts and deals also appear in the list, but cannot be archived or deleted

16 field types

Choose from 16 field types: Text, Long text, Number, Currency, Date, Date & time, Boolean, Checklist, Select, Email, Phone, URL, User, Relation, File and Formula. Select can be single or multiple, and Number can be shown as a number, a percentage, a rating, progress or a duration. The field type and slug cannot be changed after creation.

• A field name is up to 50 characters and unique within the object; the description is up to 200 characters
• Fields can be required, and Text, Number, Email, Phone and URL fields can be unique. Turning uniqueness on stops with a count if duplicates exist
• A default value can also be applied to existing records where the field is empty, after you confirm the number of records. Values already entered are not overwritten
• A Formula field calculates and shows a value from other fields of the same record. It is not covered by search, filters, sorting or CSV export

Relations, users and files

A Relation field can point to any standard or custom object in the same workspace, as one-to-one, many-to-one or many-to-many. A User field holds one member or several (up to 20), and a File field accepts 1 to 10 attachments of up to 10 MB each.

• Relation fields can be added to custom objects. The target object and the relation type cannot be changed after creation
• A relation is shown on the record that holds the field. It is not shown on the target record yet
• Files can be images, PDF, Office documents, and text or CSV

Record list, creation and detail

Custom objects you can view appear under "Records" in the sidebar, next to companies, contacts and deals. The list has search, filters, sorting on up to three fields and column selection, and the view settings switch between Table and Kanban.

• The kanban groups records into columns by a single-select Select field. It is display only; dragging cards between columns is not supported
• On the detail screen the primary field is the title, and values can be edited in place. Comments support mentions and attachments
• Filters and sort orders you use often can be saved as views
• CSV import (up to 1,000 rows at a time, new records only) and export of the visible columns are supported
• Deleting records, and the activity, email, meeting, task and note sections on the detail screen, are not available yet

Permissions

A new object is visible only to admins until permissions are set. On the Permissions tab, set Admin, Read & Write, Read Only or No Access for the whole workspace, for teams and for individual members, then save.

• A setting for an individual member takes precedence over a team setting, which takes precedence over the workspace setting
• An object with No Access does not appear in that member's sidebar
• Admins create teams on the Members screen in Settings

Appearance

On the Appearance tab, choose an icon and a colour, check the Light and Dark previews, and save. You can upload an image (JPG, PNG, GIF or WebP, up to 5 MB) as the icon and pick one of eight colours.

• The icon and colour are used in the sidebar, in record lists and details, and in chat mentions

Archive, delete, and restore within 30 days

Before archiving or deleting an object, review its record count, relation count, number of references and attachment count. An archived object stays in the list marked as archived and can be restored at any time. Deleting requires typing the object name.

• A deleted object can be restored for 30 days, with the remaining days shown. After 30 days all of its data, including records, is permanently deleted
• Fields are also archived first and then deleted, and a deletion can be undone for 30 days

Working with AI (coming soon)

The "AI Auto-fill" setting on the field screen is coming soon and cannot be used yet. Custom object records can be mentioned in AI chat, but the AI does not read their contents or create or update them.

• Global search covers companies, contacts, deals and meetings; custom object records are not included

How it works

1. In Settings, under "Custom Objects", design objects, their fields, and their relations to other objects (admins)
2. Set permissions to open an object to members
3. Add records from "Records" in the sidebar and manage them with the table, the kanban and CSV

What it looks like in practice

Instead of forcing your process into standard CRM fields, build a data model in Aitane that reflects how your business works.