5 Input fields

You maintain the input fields of a content area in the module “Structure”. Select an area and switch to the tab “Input fields”. The list shows each field with its name, label, type, and three switches for the visibility. The visibility can be switched directly in the list:

Switch	The field appears …
Input	in the input mask
Search	in the search form
List	as a column of the record list

The order of the fields in the list is also their order in the mask. “New” creates a field. Clicking a field opens its detail view with “Edit”, “Copy”, “Delete” and “Change type”.

Field types

When creating, you choose what the field is to store:

Group	Type	Stores
Text	Short text	up to 255 characters; optimal for sorting and searching (titles, names, identifiers)
	Long text	running text up to 16 million characters
	Encrypted text	text up to 16 million characters, stored encrypted; search only by exact match (see below)
	Text with multiple selection	several values from a fixed list (check boxes)
	Full text	collects the text of other fields for the full-text search (see below)
	Password	stored encrypted irreversibly (hashed)
Date / time	Date + time, time-zone dependent	point in time with conversion between time zones (appointments, publications)
	Date + time	date and time without conversion (birthdays, reference dates)
	Time	time without conversion (opening hours)
Number	Integer	whole numbers
	Bit	two states: 0 or 1 (switch)
	Currency amount	amount with exactly 2 decimal places, exact without rounding losses
	Floating-point number	high precision, minimal rounding differences possible
	Exact decimal number	up to 10 digits before and 10 after the decimal point, exact
Relation	Relation (bidirectional, n:1)	exactly one record of another area, e.g. the main category
	Relation (bidirectional, n:m)	several records of another area, e.g. tags
	Pointer (unidirectional, n:1)	one-sided pointer to exactly one record
	Pointer (unidirectional, n:m)	one-sided pointer to several records, e.g. “Related articles”
	Hard-linked content (1:n)	exclusively assigned content, e.g. text-image blocks
	Embedded content (1:n)	as above, edited in the mask of the record
File	File upload	upload field for files
	File version (thumbnail)	automatically generated version of an uploaded file – generated preview image, reduced video … (see chapter 8)
Meta information	Publication date, expiry date, design template, status, review required, parent record, position	meta fields, see below

Choose the type with care – it determines how inputs are validated, sorted, and searched. Numbers in a text field sort alphabetically (10 before 9), and a date in a text field cannot be filtered by periods.

The following list of input options varies depending on the field type:

Name, label and help texts

Setting	Meaning
Name	internal name, required for the templates, e.g. titel. Begins with a lowercase letter, followed by lowercase letters, digits, and _ (see naming rules)
Display type	see below
Position after...	selection of the preceding field (order)
Label	caption in the input, search form, and list
Note	appears below the label
Tooltip	appears when hovering over the label
Prefix, suffix	appear to the left or right of the input field, e.g. “€” or “cm”
Width, height	size of the input field
Visibility	setting whether the field appears in the input mask, search form, and record list.
Main field	the field represents the record in lists and relations (one per area)
Multilingual	see below

Button “Snippets” translate: In the input fields “Label”, “Note”, and “Tooltip”, you can enter the name of a snippet instead of a text, prefixed with #, for example #label_file. The text then appears in the respective language of the back-end user. A click on the button allows a search across all registered snippets.

For common field and area names, camindo CMS already includes the translations in all back-end languages – a custom snippet is not necessary for these. Examples:

#label_customers, #label_profiles, #label_comments, #label_products, #label_articles, #label_shopitems, #label_categories, #label_tags, #label_pages, #label_news, #label_events, #label_contacts, #label_text_image_blocks, #label_documents, #label_downloads, #label_files, #label_images, #label_media, #label_videos, #label_title, #label_subtitle, #label_teaser, #label_text, #label_description, #label_author, #label_date, #label_price, #label_document, #label_file, #label_image, #label_link, #label_icon, #label_url

For example, #label_customers as the label of the area “Customers”: the counter-field of a relation takes over the label of the area and then also appears translated.

Field content

Setting	Meaning
Default value	value that is pre-filled in the input mask for new records (default value). For date fields, date functions are also allowed, see below
Processing	the value entered in the record is processed according to the ticked rules (“Trim whitespace” removes spaces at the beginning and end; “Strip HTML tags” leaves only plain text)

Date functions

For date and time fields, the default value may be a date function. It is evaluated when the record is saved:

Default value	yields
now, today	now, or today at 0:00
now+2h, today+7d, today-1d	with an offset in seconds (s), minutes (m), hours (h), or days (d)
UTC_TIMESTAMP(), UTC_DATE(), UTC_TIME()	current point in time, day, or time in world time
NOW(), CURRENT_TIMESTAMP(), CURDATE(), CURTIME()	the same in the time zone of the database

Display type

The display type determines how the field appears in the mask:

Display type	for
Single-line / multi-line text input	text, number, date
E-mail, phone, password input	short text or password
Dropdown (single selection), radio buttons	relations, text, number
Dropdown (multiple selection), check boxes	relations, texts (JSON array)
Switch (on/off)	bit (0 or 1)
Lookup field	relations – once the target area has many records
Embedded	content that belongs exclusively to the record
Upload field	files
File version	preview images, reduced videos

For selection lists (dropdown, radio buttons, check boxes), enter the options in the field “Default value” – one option per line. The first option is the default value. If you do not want to enter a default value, insert a line break at the beginning (an empty line).

Input validation

Setting	Effect
Required field	the field must not remain empty
Not zero	number fields must not be 0
Minimum / maximum	for texts the length, for numbers and dates the value, for relations and multiple selection the number. The comparison operator determines whether the limit itself is allowed (>=) or not (>)
RegEx	your own check pattern as a regular expression, e.g. [A-Z]{2}-[0-9]{4} for article numbers such as “AB-1234”
Value unique in the content area	no other record of the area may have the same value
Value unique in the database	no other record of the installation may have the same value in this field
Store content encrypted	see below

Multilingual fields

A multilingual field has its own content for each language of the instance. If a translation is missing, the content of the main language applies (fallback). Single-language fields have the same value in every language. Fields that can be multilingual: text (including “Encrypted text” and “Text with multiple selection”), number, bit, date, time, and file upload. Thumbnail fields take over the setting of their source: with a multilingual source, a separate thumbnail is created for each language; in languages without their own file, the thumbnail of the main language applies. A full text has no “Multilingual” switch, but is always created per language – from the content of its source fields in this language (for fields that have not been translated, from the fallback of the main language). Relation, password, and meta field are always single-language.

Relations

Setting	Meaning
Related content area	target area of a bidirectional relation
Related content areas	target areas of a unidirectional pointer or of hard-linked content – also several
Counter-field	For bidirectional relations, camindo CMS automatically creates the counter-field in the target area: if an article is linked with a tag, the tag knows the article
Manual sorting	the editorial team determines the order of the linked records (for example the images of a gallery)
Detailed list	in the lookup field, the preview of the linked records shows all fields that are also visible in the record list of the area instead of only the main field, but here one below the other

Target areas must belong to the same instance or to an instance that may read this one. If you deselect a target area in which relations still exist, camindo CMS asks whether these relations should be deleted.

A relation “n:1” is not merely a restriction to one record: templates can sort and filter very quickly by fields of the linked record. Choose this relation type where only one target makes sense in terms of content, for example a category for the article.

Hard-linked and embedded content

Hard-linked content forms a page construction kit: a page consists of blocks – text block, image block, quote, gallery –, each block type is its own content area with its own fields.

1. For each block type, create a content area and enable “Dependent area” there. Only dependent areas can be selected as a target.
2. Give the page area a field “Embedded content” (or “Hard-linked content” with a search window) and select the block areas as the target.

Each block belongs to exactly one page. It is saved, copied, moved, and deleted together with it. With the type “Embedded”, the editorial team edits all blocks directly in the input mask of the page: blocks can be added, re-sorted, and removed.

Files

An upload field accepts a file. Under “Allowed file types”, you restrict the permitted formats – as a MIME type (image/jpeg, image/*) or extension (.pdf), one entry per line. Executable files such as .php are always forbidden, and camindo CMS checks whether the content of a file matches its extension.

Under “Authentication”, the content of a file can be protected from access by unauthorized website visitors (see chapter 13).

Thumbnail fields automatically generate further versions from the file of an upload field: reduced images, preview images, web-compatible videos, still images from videos. You select the source (the upload field or another thumbnail) and one or more converters. The converters are processed in the set order; the first converter that matches the file type creates the version. Details in chapter 8.

Full text

A full-text field collects the content of several text fields in its own search index (in addition to fulltext, which is automatically available in every content area). Under “Source fields”, you select the fields; for upload fields, the file name counts (slant-front.jpg becomes “slant front slantfront jpg”: binding and underscore words are stored separately and together in the index). Encrypted fields and thumbnails are not available for selection. Below the fields of the area follow – each with the name of the target area and of the relation field as a heading – the fields of the target areas of its fields of the type:

• “Hard-linked content”: this way, the search finds a product, for example, via the titles of its images. If a linked content item changes, the full text of its record is updated immediately – the content belongs to the record after all.
• “Relation” (bidirectional): this way, the search finds a product, for example, via the names of its tags. However, if a linked record changes – for example the name of a tag – this only reaches the full text of the product the next time the product is saved. For such areas, therefore, run the task “Rebuild full text” regularly, for example at night.

Fields behind a “Pointer” are not available for selection: a pointer is a loose, one-sided reference to external content, often in several areas – whose texts do not describe the record itself. The full-text field is updated automatically with every save and has no input of its own; it appears only in the search form. The content is created per language of the website: in the English version, the search finds the English texts. HTML markup from formatted texts is not included. The search supports the syntax +must -mustnot (see editors handbook).

The standard full text

Each record area automatically has a full text across all fields of the type “Short text”, “Long text” and JSON as well as the file names of the upload fields – without you creating an input field for it. In addition, the same fields of the target areas of its fields of the type “Hard-linked content” (one level deep) are included. New fields are added automatically, deleted fields are removed; encrypted fields and passwords are never included. It therefore does not appear in the field list of the area, but in every search form as the search field “Full text” – also in the cross-area search. Internally, it is called fulltext.

What the full text of a record contains is shown in its detail view in the tab “Metadata” under “Show full text” – together with the self-created full-text fields, for each language. Full-text fields do not appear in the tab “Content”.

Rebuilding the full text

When saving a record, its full text is updated automatically. After certain changes to the structure, however, the full text of all existing records no longer matches the source fields:

• You create a full-text field or change its source fields,
• a source field is deleted, receives another type, or changes between single-language and multilingual,
• the target areas of a field of the type “Hard-linked content” change or the field is deleted,
• an instance receives a language with different sorting rules, or the code of a language changes (this affects all areas of the instance).

camindo CMS does not rebuild the full text immediately in these cases – for large areas, this would hold up ongoing operation, and with larger restructurings, it would be pointless after every step. Instead, the detail view and the field list of the area show the note “The full text of this area has been outdated since …”. Until it is updated, the search there may still find old content.

• “Update now” in the note starts the rebuild as a background process. While it runs, hourglass “Background process ‘Update full text’ started” appears there; a second rebuild of the same area does not start.
• Or leave it to the Scheduler: The task “Rebuild full text” with the option “Outdated areas only” – set up during installation, every night – processes all marked areas. Without the option, it rebuilds the selected areas (without a selection: all) in any case. It skips an area that another process is currently rebuilding.

After a complete rebuild, the note disappears.

Exception: If you convert a source field to “Encrypted text”, camindo CMS rebuilds the full text immediately – otherwise the plain text would remain in the search index until then.

Content changes to records behind a “Relation” do not mark the full text as outdated. To pick them up, run the Scheduler task “Rebuild full text” without “Outdated areas only”.

Encrypted fields

With the type “Encrypted text”, the content is stored encrypted in the database – suitable for personal data such as phone numbers or e-mail addresses. Even someone who has access to the database or a database backup cannot read it without the key file .camindo.key.

The price: encrypted fields can only be searched by their exact value, not with wildcards, and cannot be sorted meaningfully. In the CSV export, they appear in plain text.

You choose the type when creating the field or convert an existing text field later (see Changing the type).

Meta fields

camindo CMS stores some information for each record, independently of its area. So that the editorial team can edit it, you add it to the mask as a meta field:

Meta field	Meaning
Publication date	the record appears on the website on a schedule
Expiry date	the record disappears from the lists of the website at the specified time
Design template	selection of one of the selectable templates
Status	processing state; only “Enabled” appears on the website
Review required	marker for content that still needs to be reviewed
Parent record	turns the area into a tree (pages with subpages)
Position	order of the records (“Place after...”)

Without the meta field “Status”, new records are released immediately; without publication and expiry date, they are visible without limit.

Special field names

Name

Effect

slug

A field “Short text” with this name provides the web address of the record (/summer-party-2026 instead of /1758). If it remains empty, camindo CMS fills it from the main field when saving. A slug, once set, does not change with the title – links already shared remain valid. It may contain slashes (products/shoes) and can be multilingual. The address including the slug prefix of the area must be unique – in areas with different prefixes, the same slug may occur

Changing the type

The type and multilingualism of an existing field cannot be changed in the editing mask, but only via “Change type” in the detail view. camindo CMS converts all existing content in the process:

• between text and number types, for example “Short text” ↔ “Integer” or “Currency amount”,
• between “n:m” and “n:1” for relations and pointers,
• between single-language and multilingual.

If a conversion can lose content (a text that is not a number; when switching to “n:1”, all relations except the first; when switching to single-language, all translations), the mask warns beforehand. If the field name is also used in other areas – also by a field in the trash –, the field must be renamed first; the type is bound to the name.

When converting to “Encrypted text”, the field is removed from all full-text fields and the standard full text; camindo CMS rebuilds these for all records of the area (also for deleted ones in the trash), so that no plain text remains in the search index. If the field is the main field of the area, lists and relations then show “ID …” instead of the content.

If records of the area are currently open for editing, the confirmation names their number and the editors. The conversion does not respect the edit lock. The cached working copy of the open records is converted as well – including newly uploaded files that have not been saved yet. When a file field is changed to single-language, only the file of the main language remains. However, the open input mask still knows the old field type: unsaved input in it may then no longer be saveable (for example after the change to single-language); in that case, the only option is to cancel the editing and reopen the record. Therefore, ask the editors to save or cancel beforehand.

Deleting an input field

“Delete” in the detail view moves the field to the trash. Its contents are kept until the permanent deletion, but the field itself disappears everywhere at once: from the input and search mask, from the record list, from export and output. Templates no longer find anything via the field and no longer sort by it – as if the area did not have the field.

The following go to the trash together with the field:

• for a bidirectional relation, the counter field in the target area,
• for an upload field, its file versions (thumbnails).

If the field is set in the area as “Main field”, “Default sort order” or for the login (name, password), this setting is cleared; restoring sets it back, unless another field has been entered in the meantime. The files of an upload field stay in place but can no longer be retrieved directly. Full texts that had the field as a source are marked as outdated.

As long as the field is in the trash, its name is taken in the area: a new field with the same name can only be created once the old one has been deleted permanently or restored. A field parent_id keeps the tree structure of the area until the permanent deletion.

Superusers restore deleted fields in the trash – with contents, counter field and file versions. After the retention period, the scheduler task “Empty trash” deletes the field and its contents permanently. If a whole area is deleted, its input fields go to the trash with it (see chapter 4).

Naming rules

• Field names begin with a lowercase letter a-z and consist thereafter of lowercase letters, digits, and the underscore _. Names that begin with a digit or an underscore are not allowed (camindo CMS itself uses names beginning with _, such as _default). Minimum length for names: 2 characters.
• The name fulltext is reserved for the standard full text.
• A field name is bound system-wide to one type: once titel has been created as “Short text”, titel cannot be a number in any other area. This is the basis for the cross-area query.

Reserved name prefixes

To avoid type conflicts, the name prefixes listed below are reserved. They are particularly suitable for template sets: when content areas are exported to foreign databases, the name prefixes ensure that the names in the foreign database are not already assigned to other types.

Field type	Prefix
bit	bit_
chars	chr_
currency	cur_
datetime	dat_
decimal	dec_
encrypted	enc_
file	fil_
float	flt_
fulltext	ftx_
id	rid_
ids	ids_
integer	int_
json	jsn_
password	pwd_
pointer, relation, link	rel_
text	txt_
time	tim_
timestampl	tsl_

Extensions

An extension adds additional behavior to an input field – a text editor, a calendar, a symbol selection. You select it in the field under “Extension”; only extensions that match the field and display type are offered. The available extensions are described in chapter 11.