#Managing Custom Fields
Custom fields in Hawzu are designed to scale safely across teams, projects, and time.
This document explains how to manage existing fields—not create them—including how workspace-level decisions affect projects.
#Mental Model: Govern vs Enforce
Before diving in, it’s important to understand Hawzu’s philosophy:
- Workspace fields govern
- Projects enforce
A workspace defines what fields exist.
Each project decides how (or if) those fields are used.
This separation prevents global breakage while allowing local flexibility.
#Managing Workspace Custom Fields
Workspace custom fields are created once and can be reused across multiple projects.
#What You Can Do at Workspace Level
At the workspace level, you can:
- View all custom fields
- Edit field name and description
- Deprecate a field
- Permanently remove a field (with caution)
⚠️ Field type cannot be changed once created
This prevents data corruption and ensures consistency across projects.
#Deprecating a Workspace Field
Deprecation is the recommended way to retire a field.
#What Deprecation Means
When a workspace field is deprecated:
- The field remains visible in existing data
- The field cannot be newly enabled in projects
- Existing projects may continue using it
- Users are clearly warned that the field is deprecated
#What Does Not Happen
- No data is deleted
- No project breaks
- No validation errors are introduced
#When to Deprecate
Use deprecation when:
- A field is being replaced by a better one
- A field is no longer recommended but still referenced historically
- You want to phase out usage gradually
💡 Deprecation is safe, reversible, and audit-friendly.
#Removing a Workspace Field
Removing a field is destructive and should be used carefully.
#What Happens When You Remove a Field
- The field is deleted from the workspace
- All project configurations referencing it are removed
- Existing values may be permanently lost
- Historical reports may lose context
#Recommended Use
Only remove a field when:
- It was created by mistake
- It was never used in any project
- You are confident no historical data matters
👉 In most cases, deprecate instead of remove.
#Managing Fields Inside a Project
Projects decide how workspace fields behave locally.
#Enabling Workspace Fields in a Project
For each project, you can:
- Enable or disable any workspace field
- Decide where the field applies:
- Test Cases
- Releases
- Defects
- Requirements
- Configure validation rules
Disabled fields are completely hidden from that project.
#Project-Level Configuration Options
Once a workspace field is enabled in a project, you can configure:
#Required vs Optional
- Required: User must provide a value before saving
- Optional: Field is shown but not enforced
#Default Values
- Automatically pre-fill values for new entities
- Especially useful for dropdowns and checkboxes
#Validation Scope
Each project can independently decide:
- Whether the field is enforced
- Where it appears
- How strict validation should be
This allows the same field to behave differently across projects.
#What Happens If a Workspace Field Is Deprecated?
This is a common and important scenario.
#If the Field Is Already Enabled in a Project
- The field continues to work
- Existing data remains untouched
- The project may keep enforcing it
- A visual indicator shows the field is deprecated
#If the Field Is Not Enabled Yet
- The field cannot be newly enabled
- Projects are encouraged to use alternatives
This ensures backward compatibility without forward expansion.
#Recommended Field Lifecycle
A healthy custom field lifecycle usually looks like this:
- Create field at workspace
- Enable and enforce in selected projects
- Monitor usage
- Introduce replacement field (if needed)
- Deprecate old field
- Gradually disable in projects
- Remove only if absolutely necessary
This approach avoids surprises and broken workflows.
#Best Practices
- Prefer deprecation over deletion
- Avoid making fields required globally unless truly necessary
- Use project-level enforcement for flexibility
- Clearly name and describe fields to avoid confusion
- Review deprecated fields periodically
#Next Steps