Customize Existing Pages
Beyond placing fields, Simple Object Designer lets you modify page properties like captions. This page explains page customization options.
Accessing Page Customization
- Open Inspect and Customize Objects > Pages
- Browse the list of pages
- Select a page
- Click Customize Page in the action bar
The Existing Pages List
The Existing Pages page shows all pages in the system:
Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Page No. | Page object ID |
| Customized | Indicator if page has modifications |
| Name | Page name |
| Page Type | Card, List, ListPart, Document, etc. |
Filtering
Use filters to find specific pages:
- Filter by Name to search for pages
- Filter by Page Type to see specific types
- Filter by Customized = Yes to see modified pages
The Customize Page Card
When you open a page for customization, you see:
Page Information Group
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Page No. | Page ID (read-only) |
| Name | Page name (read-only) |
Properties Group
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Existing Caption | Current page caption |
| Caption | New custom caption |
Fields Part
Shows all field placements on this page, allowing you to:
- View existing placements
- Add new placements
- Modify placement settings
Changing Page Caption
You can modify the page's display caption:
Step 1: Note the Existing Caption
The "Existing Caption" field shows the current caption. This is the original caption before any customization.
Step 2: Enter New Caption
In the "Caption" field, enter your custom caption.
Guidelines:
- Keep captions concise
- Match Business Central style
- Consider translation implications
Step 3: Publish
Publish your extension to apply the caption change.
Caption Example
Original page: "Customer Card"
Possible customizations:
- "Customer Details"
- "Customer Master"
- "Client Card"
Working with Page Fields
The Fields part on the Customize Page card shows field placements:
Viewing Placements
All fields placed on this page appear in the list:
- Source table and field
- Placement type and anchor
- Properties (hidden, readonly, etc.)
Adding Placements
Click in the Fields part to add new placements directly from the customization card.
Modifying Placements
Select a placement to modify its properties:
- Change anchor
- Adjust placement type
- Set visibility or editability
Removing Placements
Delete a placement row to remove the field from the page.
Page Actions
From the Customize Page card, access additional features:
Mandatory Fields
Click Mandatory Fields to define rules for page actions:
- Which fields are required
- When validation runs
- Comparison conditions
See Mandatory Fields Overview for details.
Calculated Fields
Click Calculated Fields to add computed fields:
- Expression-based calculations
- Display-only fields
- Drill-down capabilities
See Calculated Fields Overview for details.
New Sections
Click New Sections to create page groups:
- Organize fields into sections
- Create custom group headers
- Position groups on the page
Limitations: a section must contain at least one field to be visible, and sections cannot be positioned in the FactBox area — only relative to existing groups and fields in the page body. New Sections also does not create navigation menus on Role Centers; it creates field sections, not action groups.
See Page Groups for details.
Action buttons cannot be added to ordinary pages
SOD cannot add a button or menu action to a Card, List or Document page — adding a button to the Item Card to run a report, for example. This is on the roadmap but is not available today.
The exception is Role Center pages, where actions can be added through the RoleCenter feature template. See below and Limitations.
Removing Page Customization
To remove all customizations from a page:
- Open Existing Pages list
- Select the customized page
- Click Remove Customization in the action bar
- Confirm the removal
- Publish to apply
This removes:
- Caption changes
- Field placements
- Groups
- Calculated fields
- Mandatory field rules
Page Types and Customization
Card Pages
Full customization support:
- Caption changes
- Field placements
- Groups
- Mandatory fields
- Calculated fields
List Pages
Support for:
- Caption changes
- Column placements
- Calculated columns
Limited support for:
- Groups (not visible)
Document Pages
Header pages support full customization.
Line subpages (ListParts) support:
- Column placements
- Some calculated fields
ListPart / CardPart Pages
These are subpages embedded in other pages:
- Support field placements
- Limited caption customization
- Used for FactBoxes and line items
Role Center Pages
Role center customization supports:
- Cue placements — custom tiles in the Activities area are supported; a walkthrough is at https://youtu.be/tXLGyAIERC4
- Part arrangements
- Page actions (Embedding, Creation, Processing, Reporting) to open pages or run reports
- Embedded page parts (ListParts and CardParts)
Role center actions and action groups are configured through the RoleCenter feature template on the Feature Card — not through the standard field-placement flow. SOD does support them; the impression that action customization is impossible on role centers is wrong.
The Navigation action group is not supported on role centers. That is the specific limitation, and it is under investigation.
Approaches that do not work
- Role Center pages will not appear in "Add existing fields to Pages and Reports" for adding navigation menus. That flow places fields, not actions.
- New Sections (Page Groups) will not produce navigation menu items on the dashboard. Page Groups create field sections, not action groups.
Action areas
The Action Group option set for Role Center features includes a Sections option alongside Processing. In generated AL these map to area(Sections) and area(Processing).
Constraint: the Sections action area can only directly contain groups — it cannot directly contain individual action items. This mirrors the AL compiler rule that produces:
The action area 'Sections' can only directly contain groups.Dimensions cannot be made editable
SOD page customization cannot make dimension fields editable — on a page, through a web service, or via Edit in Excel.
Dimensions are stored as a Dimension Set ID referencing a unique dimension combination, which SOD does not manipulate. This is a hard limitation with no workaround. See Limitations.
Viewing Customization Status
To see which pages are customized:
- Open Existing Pages
- Look at the "Customized" column
- Yes indicates the page has SOD customizations
From the main menu statistics:
- "Fields placed on pages" shows placement count
- Click to drill down to details
Best Practices
Caption Changes
- Only change captions if there's a clear business need
- Consider impact on user training
- Document caption changes
Incremental Customization
- Start with minimal changes
- Add more as needed
- Test after each modification
Test on Target Page Types
- Card pages show fields in sections
- List pages show fields as columns
- Test each type you customize
Consider Related Pages
One table may appear on multiple pages:
- Customer on Customer Card
- Customer on Customer List
- Customer on Sales Order
Consider if changes should apply to all or some.
Troubleshooting
Page Not in List
Cause: Symbols may not include the page.
Solution:
- Re-download symbols
- Verify the page exists in BC
Customization Not Appearing
Cause: Extension not published or publishing failed.
Solution:
- Check deployment status
- Republish the extension
- Clear browser cache
Caption Not Changing (page caption)
Cause: Caption field may not have been saved properly.
Solution:
- Verify the caption was entered
- Republish
- Check for publishing errors
Caption Change on an Existing Field Does Not Appear
Symptom: after changing the caption of an existing system field and publishing, the field still shows its original caption. Re-placing the same field next to the original placement gives the same result.
Cause: this is a known limitation, not a configuration mistake. SOD generates the correct AL for the caption override, but Business Central may ignore it — something in BC overrides SOD's override for existing fields.
Status: under investigation with Microsoft, unresolved at the time of writing. There is no guaranteed fix; expect the override to be ignored for existing fields.
Caption changes on your own custom fields work normally — see Field Settings.