Form Designer - Make a Basic Form

Instructions

Step 1: Create the “Projects” List

1. In SharePoint, create a custom list named Projects
2. Open the list and click Design → Form Designer
3. In Form Designer, locate the default Title column on the canvas, click it, and change its Display Name to Project
4. Click Save

Note: All column creation and editing is done in Form Designer, but you can also do it via List Settings.

Step 2: Add Key Columns (via Form Designer)

Add the following columns directly inside Form Designer using Add New Column (choose type, configure settings, Save):

How to add each column (quick reference):

1. Click + Add New Column
2. Select column Type (Person, Choice, Date, Multiple lines, Number, etc.)
3. Enter Name, set Required, default value, choice options, etc..
4. Click Save — the column is created and appears on the form

Step 3: Apply Column Formatting

1. In Designer, go to Configure Columns → Color Choice
2. First, select Category and assign color values or icons to each choice. Click Save
3. Next, select Status and assign colors. Click Save

Step 4: Add Signature Column

• Go to Form Designer → Add New Column → Type: Signature.
• Create a Signature column
  • Title: Manager Signature
  • Column to sign: Status
  • Signature type: Hand-written
  • Set: Always show expended

Step 5: Add Progress Indicator

1. Add New Column → Type: Indicator
2. Create an Indicator column
   • Title: Progress
   • Display mode: Progress Bar
   • Column: Percent Complete
   • Start value: 0
   • Goal value: 100

Step 6: Build the Form Layout

1. In Form Designer, drag a Container onto the canvas
2. Set a light gray background for the container
3. Drag a Tabs control inside the container
4. Name two tabs: Project and Manager
5. Publish the form to save progress (do this regularly)

Step 7: Place Columns in Tabs

1. Project Tab: Project, Project Leader, Project Team, Status, Category, Training Date, Description, Percent Complete, Progress
2. Manager Tab: Manager Notes, Manager Signature
3. Publish again to save changes

Step 8: Test the Basic Form

1. Exit Form Designer and open the Projects list view
2. Click New and create a test record to verify the layout

Step 9: Add Conditional Logic

Training Date Visibility and Requirement Rules:

1. Select Training Date
2. Add Permissions Rules:
   • Hide when Category ≠ Training
   • Writable when Category = Training
3. Add a Validation Rule:
   • Required when Category = Training
4. Publish changes

Step 10: Final Test

1. Open the form and test with Category = Customer → Training Date is hidden.
2. Switch Category = Training → Training Date appears and becomes required.