Forms

Forms

let you define custom user inputs which create a tidy interface when triggered by a user. These inputs can then be used to drive actions in your automations

Automation

A process that triggers actions automatically when specified conditions are met, reducing manual work.

or update fields in your records

Record

An individual entry within a Collection, like a row in a database table, representing one item or entity.

.

Forms are perfect for collecting additional information from your team at the point of action - whether that's allocating stock, approving an expense or scheduling maintenance.

They're particularly useful for actions which are stage-independent, inter-collection or one-off. This flexibility enables Forms to be adapted to suit your team's needs, without being constrained by your overarching record workflows.

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How to Create a Form

1. Navigate to Settings → Forms

• Open Settings:

  Click the Settings cog in the bottom left of the screen - above your name. Or use the chevron to open the menu and click on Settings.

• Open Forms:

  Under 'Organisation' find 'Forms' and click on it.

2. Add a new Form

• Click '+ Add Form'

  This opens the Form Editor (similar to the Automations Editor) which will guide you through configuring your form.

• Provide Basic Information:

  • Name - Give your Form a descriptive name
    (e.g., 'Stock Allocation', 'Send to Production', 'Schedule Service').
  • Description - Optionally, add a description to clarify the Form's purpose and ensure your team knows exactly what this Form is doing.
    (e.g., 'This form confirms Components and their Quantities to be allocated to a production job.').

• Define Where & How this Form Appears:

  • Collection - Select the Collection where this Form is available, or pick 'All'
    (e.g., 'Inventory', 'Jobs', 'Projects').
  • Button - Give your button a descriptive name & icon that clarifies the action it performs.
    (e.g., 'Allocate Stock', 'Send to Production', 'Schedule Service').
    This is what the user will see.
  • Add Conditions - Optionally, choose specific conditions for when this Form can or cannot be accessed.
    (e.g., 'If Current User has Role X', 'If Inventory Qty is greater than 10', 'If Current Record is at Workflow stage Approved' ).

3. Define your first Page & Fields

• Give your first Page a Title:

  This helps organise your form if you have multiple pages. (e.g., 'Allocation Details', 'Approval Info', 'Service Schedule').

• Main Body Items

  These are the information & input fields that your user will see in the form.
  Use the add button to add different types of information to your form:
  • Field - Add new fields to capture user input. This can include options from other collections & records.
  • Text - Add static formatted text to provide instructions or context.
  • Image(s) - Add images to enhance understanding or provide visual cues.

  You can add as many fields as you need to capture the necessary information. But you can also add fields to a different page if you want to break the form into sections.

• Sidebar Items

  These are supporting information & output fields that your user will see in the form.
  Use the add button to add different types of information to your form:
  • Text - Add static formatted text to provide instructions or context.
  • Results Block - This is section of the form where calculated values can be shown.
    • Give the section a Name & Colour (e.g., 'Cost Summary', 'Next Steps', 'Service Details').
    • Define your Computed field(s) to show key calculated outputs based on the user's input(s).
      These can be any of Computed-Number -Text -Date -Select fields. (e.g., 'Total Cost', 'Remaining Budget', 'Next Service Date'.)
  • Image(s) - Add images to enhance understanding or provide visual cues.

  You can add multiple sidebar items, and multiple fields within results blocks to provide additional context or information.

4. Add Additonal Pages (Optional)

It can be good to break down complex forms into manageable sections. To add additional pages to your Form: click + Add Page.

• Repeat Step 3.

  As before define for each additional page:
  • Page Title
  • Main Body Items - input fields, text, images
  • Sidebar Items - results blocks, text, images

5. Post-Submission page (Optional)

This page is shown to the user after they submit the Form. You can use this to confirm the action has been completed, provide next steps or use images & results blocks.

• Set your Icon & Title:

  This helps clarify the output or consequences of the Form (e.g., 'Stock Allocated', 'Next Steps', 'What's Next?').

• Provide a description:

  A formatted text block to provide the user with a message of your choice. This can be used to provide context or next steps (e.g., 'The selected stock has been successfully allocated to the job. Please proceed to the production area.').

• Add images:

  Add images to enhance understanding or provide visual confirmation.

• Add Results:

  As before: Use results blocks to show key calculated outputs based on the user's input(s).

6. Save your Form:

• Click 'Save':

  Once you're happy with your Form, click the Save button in the top right corner.

7. Define your Actions:

Now that you've created your Form, you need to define what Actions happen when the form is submitted. This editor looks very similar to the Automations

editor, and you can use many of the same actions.

Under 'What to do'...

• Click '+ Add Action':

  This opens the action editor.

• Choose your Action Type:

  • Add a task
  • Send a notification
  • Create a new record
  • Update the current record
  • Generate a PDF document
  • Call a webhook
  • (More coming soon...)

• Set Filters & Conditions

  • Define Filters & Conditions to control when this action runs.
    (e.g., 'If Field X is greater than 10', 'If Current User has Role Y', 'If Current Record is at Workflow stage Approved' ).

• Chain your Actions

  • Connect multiple actions together to create a sequence of events.
    (e.g., 'First, update the record, then send a notification, and finally create a task').

See our guide on Automations for more details on how to configure Actions.

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Advanced Form Features

Forms have advanced features that help streamline your internal operations and bring greater flexibility and capabilities to your processes.

See below for how you can get the most out of Forms:

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Best Practices

Forms can be very powerful, but can become overly complicated if you're not careful. Follow the guidance below to get the most out of them:

Gradually add advanced features

Start with the essential information and actions, then gradually add advanced features as your processes mature.

Test your Forms

Run a test record through your Form to ensure each page looks correct & that the resulting actions work as expected.

Check conditions

Double check that only Forms that meet your conditionl criteria can be accessed & performed.

Utilising these advanced features enables you to get the most out of Kinabase and out of your team. All while ensuring you have encoded your operational needs into Kinabase so that you can quickly complete actions and manipulate records in a controlled manner.

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Forms empower you to create flexible processes that transform your data into repeatable & practical actions. Customising Form pages, linking them with specific actions, and providing clear feedback to your team ensures that your operations run smoothly and efficiently.

If you have questions or need further assistance, please reach out to your System Admin or further guides in our Support Hub.