Accessing Multiple Instances of the Same Field in Dynamics 365

When working with forms in Dynamics 365, you may encounter scenarios where the same field is present in multiple places on a form. This is common when customizing forms to enhance the user experience or display information in different contexts. By default, using Xrm.Page.getControl("fieldname") will return only the first instance of the field. However, there are ways to access other instances. In this article, we'll explore how to access the other instances of a field using the Dynamics 365 Client API.

Understanding Field Instances in Dynamics 365

In Dynamics 365, each field (or attribute) on a form is represented by a control. When a field is placed on a form more than once, each instance is represented by a separate control. These controls are indexed, starting from zero. Therefore, to access a specific instance of a field, you need to reference the correct index.

The Default Behavior

By default, the method Xrm.Page.getControl("fieldname") returns the first instance (index 0) of the field on the form. For example.

var firstInstance = Xrm.Page.getControl("new_field");

This will always return the first control associated with the field new_field.

Accessing Other Instances

To access other instances, you need to use the control collection of the attribute. The control collection is an array-like object where each element corresponds to an instance of the field on the form. You can use the get method to retrieve a specific instance by its index.

Here’s how you can access the second instance of a field.

var secondInstance = Xrm.Page.getAttribute('new_field').controls.get(1);

This retrieves the second instance of the control for new_field. Once you have the control, you can interact with it just like you would with any other control in Dynamics 365.

Example getting the Value of the Second Instance

Suppose you want to get the value of the second instance of the field. You can do this by chaining methods as shown below.

var secondInstanceValue = Xrm.Page.getAttribute('new_field').controls.get(1).getAttribute().getValue();
Xrm.Page.getAttribute('new_field').controls.get(1).getAttribute().setDisabled(true);

Use cases for Accessing multiple instances

1. Custom Form Design: When designing complex forms with repeated fields for different sections or contexts.
2. Conditional Formatting: Applying different logic or formatting to different instances of the same field based on user actions or data.
3. Data Validation: Ensuring that values across different instances of the same field are consistent or meet certain criteria.

Accessing multiple instances of the same field in Dynamics 365 forms can be crucial for creating sophisticated and user-friendly forms. By understanding how to navigate and manipulate the controls collection, you can efficiently manage and interact with all instances of a field on your form. Whether you're retrieving or setting values, the key is to use the control collection of the attribute and specify the correct index.