Configure Rich Text Fields

Add a Rich Text field to a schema and use the editor to format text and preset values.

Prerequisites

• You have a schema open in the schema editor in DRAFT status.

• To see the field in a form, you need a policy that uses the schema. A Dry Run is enough - the schema does not need to be published.

Steps

Add a Rich Text field

1. Open the schema editor and add a field.

2. In the type picker, select Rich Text.

3. Enter a description for the field.

4. Click Save all.

Set a Default, Suggested or Test value

1. Select the field. In the field-properties panel, Default, Suggested and Test value show as preview cards.

2. Click the pencil on the card you want to edit, and write the value in the dialog that opens.

3. Click Done, then Save all to save the schema.

The ✕ button next to the pencil clears a value.

While a field with a Suggested value is empty, a Fill the field with suggestion button appears beneath it in the form - clicking it fills the field.

Format text

The toolbar offers undo and redo, bold and italic, bulleted and numbered lists with decrease- and increase-level buttons, three heading levels (H1–H3), inserting a link, inserting a table, and inserting an image.

Markdown characters typed as plain text (**test**, # heading) stay as text rather than turning into formatting - formatting only happens through the toolbar.

Nest a list item

Put the cursor in the item and click increase level to make it a sub-item, or decrease level to bring it back out. Both buttons work only inside a list.

Insert a table

1. Click the table button, move the pointer across the grid that opens to pick the size, and click to insert.

2. Type in the cells. Tab moves to the next cell, Shift+Tab to the previous one, and Tab in the last cell adds a row.

While the cursor is in a table, a small panel floats over it with buttons to add and remove rows and columns. The header row and the last remaining column cannot be removed.

Insert an image

Click the image button and choose a file, or paste a copied picture, or drag a picture file into the writing area. PNG, JPEG and WebP are accepted, up to 512 KB after the browser shrinks the picture.

Add a link

1. Select the text and click the link button.

2. Enter the address and click Insert. http:, https:, mailto: and relative addresses are supported.

To change or remove a link, put the cursor inside it and click the link button again.

Show the field in a documents grid

1. In the policy configurator, open the documents grid block.

2. Set the column bound to the Rich Text field's Type to Rich Text.

Without this, the column shows raw Markdown instead of formatted text.

Export and import through Excel

1. Export the schema - the field shows Rich Text in the Field Type column, and its Default Value, Suggest Value and Test Value cells show plain Markdown text, unrendered.

2. To create the field on import, put Rich Text in the Field Type column, and write the text directly in Markdown syntax in Default Value, Suggest Value or Test Value - for example **bold**, # Heading, - item, [text](https://example.com).

Result

The field accepts formatted text in the form and stores the value as Markdown. When the document is viewed, the value shows formatted - with headings, nested lists, emphasis, clickable links, tables and images - in both Guardian and the Indexer. Other schema fields are unaffected.

Related

• Concept: Rich Text Fields