Hidden form fields will not save default values

Chris Armstrong

I have a dropdown list with four entries. I've selected the field to be hidden, and assigned one of the four entries to be the default value. When I save the form, the default value goes away and the field is empty when the form submits.

I did some looking around and others have said the field needs to be displayed for the default value to apply, but right in the help text next to the hidden button it clearly says 'They can be used with default values to pass data into your sheet column'.

So what am I missing? Should this be working?

Genevieve P.

Hi @Chris Armstrong

You are correct! You can Hide a Form Field with a Default Value set to automatically always have that cell contain a specific value.

However, keep in mind that if you always want this to be filled in, the field shouldn't be selected within form Logic.

For example, if I have Logic applied that when someone chooses "Yes" from a dropdown then the hidden form "shows" (it won't visibly show, since it's hidden), then the default value will only apply if my previous selection is made.

Screen captures of this example: I have a dropdown with "yes" or "no" and logic applied.

Then in the Hidden Field, I have this default selected:

This is how the form looks, when "Yes" is selected (the default field is hidden):

This is the underlying sheet when each selection is made:

You'll notice that the default selection is only applied if Yes is chosen, based on the Logic of the form. Is this what may be happening in your form?

If this doesn't explain the behaviour you're seeing, could you provide a full screen capture of your form set up (including any logic fields or related fields) and the underlying sheet results (but please block out sensitive data).

Thanks!

Genevieve

Sander K

@Genevieve P. but is is structured like that? I have a similar issue. I have cell with a default value, that it hidden with logic. Because in some cases I need the default value to be hidden, but in some cases it needs to be modified, depending on the selection in the previous cells.

Genevieve P.

Hi @Sander K

What are your conditions for this field? I would suggest having it only show with Conditional Logic when you want the value changed, then you can use a Change Cell Workflow to input the default value after the row is submitted if the other option was checked.

See: Change the Value of a Cell in an Automated Workflow

Cheers,

Genevieve

TJ North

I encountered the same issue. I was able to discover the root cause. It is a bug with the software. You cannot select a default value that is a number. See also these threads, which report nearly the same issue:

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/88525/default-value-in-smartsheet-form-will-not-save

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/83341/default-value-forms-is-not-working

Smartsheet - in cases like this, it would be extremely helpful if you would publish a list of known bugs with their root cause and planned resolution date so that we can plan accordingly.

delberto

Hi, I wonder if I can resurrect this one.... I have the same issue. If the originator is a senior member of staff, I want to show the Status dropdown (New, In Progress, Closed) - for everyone else, I want it hidden and default to "New".

As above, if I use logic to expose the dropdown, it defaults to New and it adds this to the row. If it's not exposed, the dropdown doesn't appear and it doesn't add the default Status to the row.

I've added this workflow but doesn't seem to fix - the form still submits new rows with Status set to blank - or more accurately, the workflow doesn't fix it.

Genevieve P.

Hey @delberto

The workflow above should update the cell to say "New" if the field is hidden using Conditional Logic (meaning it's submitted as a blank cell).

When you say it doesn't work, can you clarify what's happening? Are the cells staying Blank instead of changing?

delberto

Hi @Genevieve P. , nothing happens - the cells get submitted as blank - and the workflow doesn't correct it (they stay blank).

Re the original problem, it seems this is the key phrase from another post:

For default values to populate, the field would need to be shown when the form is submitted. So if the logic keeps the field hidden, then the default value will not populate.

Genevieve P.

Hi @delberto

Yes, you are correct with your end statement. If the field is hidden with logic that means it is not being shown or submitted to the sheet as it was seen as "not needed" for that entry.

I would also use a Workflow in the sheet to update blank cells to have your preferred default value. Since you're saying this workflow isn't working, is there another value on the row that defines the logic? (E.g. is there a dropdown that identifies that the user submitting the form is an "everyone else" type of user).

If so, I would use that as the trigger/value to look for to dictate if the cell should change to "New" or not. Does that make sense?

delberto

Thanks @Genevieve P. , that does help. I've reverted to two forms - one that shows the field and one where it's hidden and has a default.

It seems like there's an opportunity to improve the functionality here?