Adding a New Datastore Field

Inside any datastore, the Architect Panel exposes a Fields admin where you can add, edit, and reorder columns. Adding a new field is where you make most of your day-to-day configuration decisions — every new piece of business data is a new field, and the right Field Type choice affects how every form, every list, every export will look forever after.

Open the Fields admin

From the datastore list, click into a datastore to see its rows, then look for the Fields button or Table Designer button at the top. You'll see the existing columns listed in display order, each with their type and required-flag visible.

Click "New Datastore Field"

A dialog opens with a stack of common fields visible at the top of the form, plus a Field Type dropdown that drives everything below it.

The common fields (visible regardless of type)

• Row Name (Required) — the name of the column in the database table. Lowercase, no spaces, no special characters. Examples: companyname, contactemail, orderdate.
• Friendly Name (Required) — the title displayed to users above the field. "Company Name", "Contact Email", "Order Date".
• Description — text shown below the field as inline help. Use it to clarify ambiguous fields or explain validation rules.
• Field Type (Required) — pick from over 50 supported types. The dialog expands once you pick to show type-specific configuration.
• Table View Width — width of the field when shown in a table format. Enter a pixel value like 150px, a percent like 10%, or the keyword hide to omit the field from table views.
• Edit View Width — width of the field when editing the data. Same rules apply. Enter hide to omit it from edit dialogs.
• Default Value — pre-populated value when a new row is created.
• Validation — apply a named validation rule from the Validations admin.
• Required — when on, the field must have a value before the row can be saved.
• Encrypt — when on, the field's value is encrypted at rest using the platform's configured encryption engine.

Type-specific options appear conditionally

The instant you pick a Field Type, the dialog grows to reveal options specific to that type. The conditional reveal is one of the platform's most-used patterns — it keeps the form short by hiding fields that don't apply.

A few examples:

• Number reveals Allow Decimals, Min/Max Value, and Units.
• Dropdown Box (Searchable) (DB) reveals Data Source, Option Sorting, Display Format, Parent ID Field, AJAX Mode, and many more.
• File Upload reveals Storage Mode, File Types, Default Library, Max Number of Files, Resize Uploaded Images, Generate Thumbnails.
• Text Box reveals Min Length, Max Length, Only Allow Unique Values, Provide Suggestions.

Read the dedicated article for the field type you've picked under the Datastore Field Types section. Those articles list every conditional option that appears when you pick the type, with concrete advice on how to set each.

Saving the field

Save and the field is added to the underlying database table immediately. The platform runs an ALTER TABLE to create the new column, plus inserts a corresponding row in .tabledata with the field's metadata.

The field is now available:

• On the auto-generated New and Edit forms.
• On any browse view that lists the datastore (subject to your width setting).
• As a column on the data list.
• As a merge token ##AMDATA_rowname## in any template that references the row.
• On the API in JSON responses.

Reordering fields

Reorder by dragging in the field list. Field order affects the display order on the auto-generated form and on the data list (left to right). For complex datastores, spend a moment thinking about logical field grouping — name and contact together, then dates, then financial data, etc. A well-ordered form is much faster to fill in.

Tip: Each field type has its own dedicated documentation page under the Datastore Field Types section. Read the page for the type you've chosen — those pages list every conditional option that appears when you pick the type and give concrete advice on how to configure each.