How to Customize Layouts in DWP?
Overview
DWP is a low-code Platform that allows the creation of new powerful business applications in the UUX and the customization of the applications delivered out-of-the-box or with any other extensions. The DWP provides two alternative approaches for changing the behavior of the standard layouts, such as the “customizing” layouts and “cloning” layouts. The article shows the pros and cons of these methods and provides recommendations on what needs to be used in different cases.
Customizing Layouts
UUX provides the possibility to customize any layout present in the System. In the layout object context menu (Dialog, Preview, Wizards, etc.) use the “Customize” action or run "Change Layout" action directly from the UUX which opens the Layout Designer where you can implement the required adjustments:
When the changes are applied to standard layout views, on saving the system stores them as an isolated database record which is not addressed by the DWP Updates.
The DWP automatically merges the standard layout definitions with all present customization records to generate an already adjusted layout in run-time. Such an approach makes it possible to update the customized layouts with new features delivered with DWP updates and guarantees the customized logic is still available after the update.
It is recommended to use the "Customizing Layouts" approach in all possible cases.
For more details, please check the Solution Builder Architecture page.
Due to the fact that DWP allows multiple customizations from different parties (Customer, Partner(-s)) for the same layout view, potentially in the run-time on merging all these definitions to a final layout view, some merging conflicts could happen which could lead to UI glitches. Therefore whenever it is possible we recommend placing your customizations in a new layout view. When changing the system layout view is crucial, we are recommending to make a brief acceptance testing after the DWP Update.
Cloning Layouts
One of the options to add custom logic to a standard layout is cloning.
On the layout you need to clone, click on the More Options icon → Configure:
Use the “Copy” action available for all Layout objects to make a full copy of the original Layout:
- Preview and Dialog Layouts: in the case of Preview and Dialog layouts, open the original objects and disable them.
- Wizards and Landing Pages: change the reference from a related Actions object or Navigation Items to a newly copied object.
Once the cloning is done the relation with the original layout is broken. It is not possible afterward to merge new changes from the original layout to a cloned one and another way around. Also, it means the DWP updates keep updating the original layout and apply no changes to the cloned layout. Also, the cloned layouts keep referencing original binary artifacts like Web Services which keep updating and could lead to a broken layout.
Thus, it is not recommended to use the cloning Layouts approach for customization, but you can do that at your own risk. It is up to you to maintain this dialog after cloning.