Files and attachments
The problem
A row goes with a file — the signed contract of a customer, the scan of a receipt — or a file holds rows to load into a table.
What exists
Screens have no attachment field: a dialog cannot store a file in a row nor serve it back. Three mechanisms cover the usual needs:
| Need | Mechanism |
|---|---|
| Reach the document of a row | An address column: the row stores the document's address in the document store already in place (file share, SharePoint, object storage). |
| Load the rows of an Excel / CSV file into a table, through a screen | The screen's Import — see Bulk import. |
| Load a file into a table, by job | A Nomaflow file_load step: the file is picked in the Run with parameters window, read from a server path, or taken from a watched folder — see Steps → File load. |
Address of a document
1. A column for the address
ALTER TABLE contracts ADD document_url VARCHAR(500);
2. Show it
Give the DOCUMENT_URL dictionary entry a label and the url format (Liberty Next → Build → Dictionary → Entries). The grid and the dialog show the address as text, to copy into the browser — they do not turn it into a clickable link.
3. Fill it
Users paste the address in the dialog, or a job fills it — for example a python step that files the documents of a folder in the store and writes their addresses into the table (see Plugins).
Access to the document itself is governed by the document store, not by Liberty Next.
What's next
- Bulk import — load a file's rows through a screen.
- Steps → File load — load a file by job.
- Dictionary → Formats — the display formats.