You can specify a sequence of custom object attributes to uniquely identify individual custom object records. This can be useful to ensure that no duplicate records are created. For example, if you want to prevent duplicate matter records from being created for the same person involved in a dispute, you can create a unique identifier pattern that consists of the person's name, the type of dispute, and an incident date. In this way, you ensure that no two matter records with the same details are created for the same dispute.

For more information on attributes, see Using Object Navigator and Object Model: Read This First plus the additional reference tables this reference points you to.

To set a unique identifier pattern for projects

1.Open the Unique ID tab of the appropriate custom object definition. 2.Select the By using a combination of the object attributes option. The Object Attributes section appears. Object Attributes in Unique Identifiers 3.Select the Number of entries you would like to add from the drop-down list. 4.From each drop-down list, select the desired object attribute. 5.If you want to add more attributes, click add more. Otherwise, click Save. The object attribute pattern you defined for the custom object takes effect immediately. Existing records keep the previous unique identifier conventions until a user updates them.

Points To Remember

Keep the following points in mind when creating unique identifier patterns from object attributes:

•Object attribute patterns are stored in the database but they are not displayed in the end user interface.

•All object attributes you select for a pattern are added alphabetically one after another, no formatting is used.

•The attributes that you can select for the unique identifier patterns are automatically preselected by the system for you. They often include a few system fields, such as contact (applicable for contact-centric object definitions), name, nameUpper, defaultCategory, numberString, numberStringUpper, and all custom fields under the Root category.

•Even though taken in isolation certain attributes may never constitute a unique pattern (for example, name), taken together, they do.

•All object attributes you select for a pattern automatically become required fields for the end user.

•If you add custom fields to the pattern, remember to always include those fields in the custom pages you create.