Best practices and limitations for Custom Fields
Summary
Custom Fields in Kombiner offer flexibility, but they require careful planning to ensure consistency and scalability. Understanding best practices and current limitations helps you avoid common issues. In this article, we outline how to use Custom Fields effectively.
What should I be aware of?
Custom Fields are designed to be flexible. This means they do not enforce strict rules by default.
As a result:
- You have full control over your data
- But you are also responsible for maintaining structure
This makes good practices especially important.
When should I think about best practices?
You should consider best practices when:
- Setting up your initial structure
- Adding new fields
- Working across teams
- Scaling your data
- Integrating external systems
How to use Custom Fields effectively
The typical approach:
- Define what data you need
- Create clear and structured fields
- Apply fields consistently across items
- Review and clean up regularly
- Adjust your structure as your needs grow
The result is a scalable and predictable setup.
Best practices for Custom Fields
- Use clear and consistent naming
- Avoid creating duplicate fields
- Keep fields focused on one purpose
- Prefer structured types over free text
- Plan your data model before scaling
- Test fields before using them widely
Limitations of Custom Fields
- Fields are not required by default
- Validation is limited
- Field types cannot always be changed
- Fields apply to one area at a time
- Behavior may vary across different areas
When NOT to use Custom Fields
- For pricing or financial calculations
- For system logic or configuration rules
- For workflow states or statuses
- For critical system data
- For security-related settings
These should be handled by core system features instead.
Important notes
- Data quality depends on how fields are used
- Changes can affect many items at once
- Integrations may create or update fields
- Overuse can make your system harder to manage
- All data remains within your organization
Common questions
Are Custom Fields required?
No, they are optional and flexible.
Can I enforce validation rules?
Only to a limited extent, depending on the field type.
What is the biggest risk?
Creating too many fields or inconsistent structures.