Lead: Liav Nadler
Description
A form is a collection of input fields, allowing users to enter data that is then sent for further processing.
Forms may appear in workspaces, dialog popups, popovers, wizards, filter panes, details panes and cards.
Usage & Behavior
Structure
A form consists of two areas: the input area and the action area.
The input area may contain any set of input fields, including text fields, dropdown menus, checkboxes, radio buttons etc.
The action area usually consists of at least two buttons: a submit button (Save, or Create, or Update etc.) and Cancel.
The Input Area
Where possible, field labels will appear above the input field (for example, above a text field or a set of radio buttons).
Where relevant, a red mandatory indicator (*) will show next to the label.
Where relevant, a help icon will appear next to the label (aligned to the right side of the field, if possible).
A collection of related fields can be grouped into a section. For example, fields like Email and Phone can be found under a section called Contact Information.
For forms with inline inputs, see Inline input.
The Action Area
The action area will always be visible:
In case the form takes up the entire workspace, the action area will appear at the top of the page (see examples below).
In any other case, the action area will appear below the form:
In dialog popups, popovers, wizards, filter panes, details panes and cards, the action area will appear at the bottom of the container.
In workspaces:
If the form does not exceed the height of its container, the action area will appear directly below the last field of the form.
If the form exceeds the height of its container, the action area will stick to the bottom of the container, allowing users to scroll the form above it.
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Buttons for main actions will be aligned to the right. Buttons for secondary actions, such as Clear or Reset will be aligned to the left.
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States
Forms can have 3 states:
Idle - the default state when entering a form. In this state, exiting the form will not save it.
Edited state - the state of a form after making changes but before clicking the Save button. In this state, exiting the form will trigger a confirmation message (see below).
Saved - the state of a form after clicking the Save button.
Interaction
Clicking the submit button sends the data for further processing.
Clicking the Cancel button will close the dialog popup / popover, or direct the user to the original page, without saving the form.
Validations and errors
For input-specific validations see Field Validation.
A form cannot be saved or submitted if one or more of its fields are in error state. Here is a typical flow:
When entering a form, the submit button is disabled (the Cancel button is always enabled).
On updating any field, the submit button becomes enabled.
In case of an input error, the submit button becomes disabled (an additional form-level indication may appear). Only after the error was resolved, it becomes enabled again.
After clicking the submit button:
it becomes disabled,
a toast message appears, indicating that the form was saved.
This flow is similar where the form is in a dialog popup, but in this case, clicking the submit button closes the popup.
When a form has a single required field, the validation will appear only after the user tries to submit the form.
SIMANIA Saving edited form in local storage
In case a single Save button applies to multiple areas (tabs, master items in a master-detail layout, etc.), updated values will be saved in a local storage even before clicking the Save button.
In this case, if the user updated a value in the first area, navigated to another area and went back to the first area, all updated values will remain intact.
Edge case: Attempting to leave a form with unsaved changes
In case the user tries to navigate away from a form after updating one or more fields, a message popup will appear, allowing him to either keep editing or leave.
In this case, leaving the page will not save the changes.
Edge case: Attempting to leave a form while there are errors
In case the user tries to navigate away from the form while there are errors, a message popup will appear, allowing him to either keep editing, or leave.
In this case, leaving the page reverts all fields their last valid values.
Best practices
Use for:
Creating or updating entities (e.g., users, roles, channels).
Configuration pages (e.g., services level indicators, storage retention periods).
Don’t use:
When?
General
Provide a clear navigation order:
By default, form fields should form one column.
Closely related fields (e.g., First name and Last name) can appear side by side.
A collection of related fields should be grouped under a clear title.
Make sure label texts are not selectable.
Issues to cover
Form-level elements
Status tags
Messages
Action buttons
Distances between buttons (if more than 2)
Guidance
Form instructions
Field help
Ask Femi about web SDK form guidance
Autosave
Examples
 Update screen |  |
Accessibility compliance
Unless otherwise specified, see our general compliance information in Fundamentals - Accessibility
text highlight when using a keyboard + using arrows when in edit mode (left, up or home to set the insertion point at the beginning; right, down or end to set it at the end).
Design
Zeplin link | Screen thumbnail |
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<<Short Zeplin link. You | <<Screen with 200 width>> |
Code
<<a box containing the code - discuss with Femi>>