title: 'Custom Fields'
import Tabs from '@theme/Tabs'; import TabItem from '@theme/TabItem'; import CustomFieldProperty from '@site/src/components/CustomFieldProperty';
Custom fields allow you to add your own custom data properties to almost every Vendure entity. The entities which may have custom fields defined are listed in the CustomFields interface documentation.
Some use-cases for custom fields include:
ProductVariant entity.ProductVariant entity such as ISBN or GTIN.downloadable flag to the Product entity to indicate whether the product is a digital download.Customer entity.StockLocation for use in selecting the closest location to a customer.Custom fields are specified in the VendureConfig:
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{ name: 'infoUrl', type: 'string' },
{ name: 'downloadable', type: 'boolean' },
{ name: 'shortName', type: 'localeString' },
],
User: [
{ name: 'socialLoginToken', type: 'string', unique: true },
],
},
};
With the example config above, the following will occur:
Product and User types respectively.The values of the custom fields can then be set and queried via the GraphQL APIs:
mutation {
updateProduct(input: {
id: 1
// highlight-start
customFields: {
infoUrl: "https://some-url.com",
downloadable: true,
}
// highlight-end
translations: [
// highlight-next-line
{ languageCode: en, customFields: { shortName: "foo" } }
]
}) {
id
name
// highlight-start
customFields {
infoUrl
downloadable
shortName
}
// highlight-end
}
}
{
"data": {
"product": {
"id": "1",
"name": "Laptop",
"customFields": {
"infoUrl": "https://some-url.com",
"downloadable": true,
"shortName": "foo"
}
}
}
}
The custom fields will also extend the filter and sort options available to the products list query:
query {
products(options: {
// highlight-start
filter: {
infoUrl: { contains: "new" },
downloadable: { eq: true }
},
sort: {
infoUrl: ASC
}
// highlight-end
}) {
items {
id
name
// highlight-start
customFields {
infoUrl
downloadable
shortName
}
// highlight-end
}
}
}
The following types are available for custom fields:
| Type | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
string |
Short string data | url, label |
localeString |
Localized short strings | localized url |
text |
Long text data | extended product info, json config object |
localeText |
Localized long text | localized extended product info |
int |
Integer | product weight, customer loyalty points, monetary values |
float |
Floating point number | product review rating |
boolean |
Boolean | isDownloadable flag on product |
datetime |
A datetime | date that variant is back in stock |
struct |
Structured json-like data | Key-value attributes with additional data for products |
relation |
A relation to another entity | Asset used as a customer avatar, related Products |
To see the underlying DB data type and GraphQL type used for each, see the CustomFieldType doc.
It is possible to set up custom fields that hold references to other entities using the 'relation' type:
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Customer: [
{
name: 'avatar',
// highlight-start
type: 'relation',
entity: Asset,
// highlight-end
},
],
},
};
In this example, we set up a many-to-one relationship from Customer to Asset, allowing us to specify an avatar image for each Customer. Relation custom fields are unique in that the input and output names are not the same - the input will expect an ID and will be named '<field name>Id' or '<field name>Ids' for list types.
mutation {
updateCustomer(input: {
id: 1
customFields: {
avatarId: 42,
}
}) {
id
customFields {
avatar {
id
name
preview
}
}
}
}
As well as exposing custom fields via the GraphQL APIs, you can also access them directly in your TypeScript code. This is useful for plugins which need to access custom field data.
Given the following custom field configuration:
import { VendureConfig } from '@vendure/core';
const config: VendureConfig = {
// ...
customFields: {
Customer: [
{ name: 'externalId', type: 'string' },
{ name: 'avatar', type: 'relation', entity: Asset },
],
},
};
the externalId will be available whenever you access a Customer entity:
const customer = await this.connection.getRepository(ctx, Customer).findOne({
where: { id: 1 },
});
console.log(customer.externalId);
The avatar relation will require an explicit join to be performed in order to access the data, since it is not
eagerly loaded by default:
const customer = await this.connection.getRepository(ctx, Customer).findOne({
where: { id: 1 },
relations: {
customFields: {
avatar: true,
}
}
});
console.log(customer.avatar);
or if using the QueryBuilder API:
const customer = await this.connection.getRepository(ctx, Customer).createQueryBuilder('customer')
.leftJoinAndSelect('customer.customFields.avatar', 'avatar')
.where('customer.id = :id', { id: 1 })
.getOne();
console.log(customer.avatar);
or using the EntityHydrator:
const customer = await this.customerService.findOne(ctx, 1);
await this.entityHydrator.hydrate(ctx, customer, { relations: ['customFields.avatar'] });
console.log(customer.avatar);
All custom fields share some common properties:
nametypelistlabeldescriptionpublicreadonlyinternaldefaultValuenullableuniquevalidaterequiresPermissionThe name of the field. This is used as the column name in the database, and as the GraphQL field name. The name should not contain spaces and by convention should be camelCased.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
// highlight-next-line
name: 'infoUrl',
type: 'string'
},
]
}
};
The type of data that will be stored in the field.
If set to true, then the field will be an array of the specified type. Defaults to false.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'infoUrls',
type: 'string',
// highlight-next-line
list: true,
},
]
}
};
Setting a custom field to be a list has the following effects:
relation), the database type will be set to simple-json which serializes the data into a JSON string. For lists of relation types, a separate many-to-many table will be created.An array of localized labels for the field. These are used in the Admin UI to label the field.
import { LanguageCode } from '@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'infoUrl',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
label: [
{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'Info URL'},
{languageCode: LanguageCode.de, value: 'Info-URL'},
{languageCode: LanguageCode.es, value: 'URL de información'},
],
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
An array of localized descriptions for the field. These are used in the Admin UI to describe the field.
import { LanguageCode } from '@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'infoUrl',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
description: [
{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'A URL to more information about the product'},
{languageCode: LanguageCode.de, value: 'Eine URL zu weiteren Informationen über das Produkt'},
{languageCode: LanguageCode.es, value: 'Una URL con más información sobre el producto'},
],
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
Whether the custom field is available via the Shop API. Defaults to true.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'profitMargin',
type: 'int',
// highlight-next-line
public: false,
},
]
}
};
Whether the custom field can be updated via the GraphQL APIs. Defaults to false. If set to true, then the field
can only be updated via direct manipulation via TypeScript code in a plugin.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'profitMargin',
type: 'int',
// highlight-next-line
readonly: true,
},
]
}
};
Whether the custom field is exposed at all via the GraphQL APIs. Defaults to false. If set to true, then the field will not be available
via the GraphQL API, but can still be used in TypeScript code in a plugin. Internal fields are useful for storing data which is not intended
to be exposed to the outside world, but which can be used in plugin logic.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
OrderLine: [
{
name: 'referralId',
type: 'string',
// highlight-next-line
internal: true,
},
]
}
};
The default value when an Entity is created with this field. If not provided, then the default value will be null. Note that if you set nullable: false, then
you should also provide a defaultValue to avoid database errors when creating new entities.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'reviewRating',
type: 'float',
// highlight-next-line
defaultValue: 0,
},
]
}
};
Whether the field is nullable in the database. If set to false, then a defaultValue should be provided.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'reviewRating',
type: 'float',
// highlight-start
nullable: false,
defaultValue: 0,
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
Whether the value of the field should be unique. When set to true, a UNIQUE constraint is added to the column. Defaults
to false.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Customer: [
{
name: 'externalId',
type: 'string',
// highlight-next-line
unique: true,
},
]
}
};
import { LanguageCode } from '@vendure/core'; const config = { // ... customFields: { Product: [ { name: 'infoUrl', type: 'string', // highlight-start validate: (value: any) => { if (!value.startsWith('http')) { // If a localized error message is not required, a simple string can be returned. // return 'The URL must start with "http"'; // If a localized error message is required, return an array of LocalizedString objects. return [ {languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'The URL must start with "http"'}, {languageCode: LanguageCode.de, value: 'Die URL muss mit "http" beginnen'}, {languageCode: LanguageCode.es, value: 'La URL debe comenzar con "http"'}, ]; } }, // highlight-end }, ] } };
This function can even be asynchronous and may use the Injector to access providers.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'partCode',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
validate: async (value, injector, ctx) => {
const partCodeService = injector.get(PartCodeService);
const isValid = await partCodeService.validateCode(value);
if (!isValid) {
return `Part code ${value} is not valid`;
}
},
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
Since v2.2.0, you can restrict access to custom field data by specifying a permission or permissions which are required to read and update the field.
For instance, you might want to add a particular custom field to the Product entity, but you do not want all administrators to be able
to view or update the field.
In the Admin UI, the custom field will not be displayed if the current administrator lacks the required permission.
In the GraphQL API, if the current user does not have the required permission, then the field will always return null.
Attempting to set the value of a field for which the user does not have the required permission will cause the mutation to fail
with an error.
import { Permission } from '@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'internalNotes',
type: 'text',
// highlight-start
requiresPermission: Permission.SuperAdmin,
// highlight-end
},
{
name: 'shippingType',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
// You can also use an array of permissions,
// and the user must have at least one of the permissions
// to access the field.
requiresPermission: [
Permission.SuperAdmin,
Permission.ReadShippingMethod,
],
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
:::note
The requiresPermission property only affects the Admin API. Access to a custom field via the Shop API is controlled by the public property.
If you need special logic to control access to a custom field in the Shop API, you can set public: false and then implement
a custom field resolver which contains the necessary logic, and returns
the entity's custom field value if the current customer meets the requirements.
:::
string fieldsIn addition to the common properties, the string custom fields have some type-specific properties:
A regex pattern which the field value must match. If the value does not match the pattern, then the validation will fail.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'gtin',
type: 'string',
// highlight-next-line
pattern: '^\d{8}(?:\d{4,6})?$',
},
]
}
};
An array of pre-defined options for the field. This is useful for fields which should only have a limited set of values. The value property is the value which will be stored in the database, and the label property is an optional array of localized strings which will be displayed in the admin UI.
import { LanguageCode } from '@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'condition',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
options: [
{value: 'new', label: [{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'New'}]},
{value: 'used', label: [{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'Used'}]},
],
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
Attempting to set the value of the field to a value which is not in the options array will cause the validation to fail.
The max length of the varchar created in the database. Defaults to 255. Maximum is 65,535.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'partCode',
type: 'string',
// highlight-next-line
length: 20,
},
]
}
};
localeString fieldsIn addition to the common properties, the localeString custom fields have some type-specific properties:
Same as the pattern property for string fields.
Same as the length property for string fields.
int & float fieldsIn addition to the common properties, the int & float custom fields have some type-specific properties:
The minimum permitted value. If the value is less than this, then the validation will fail.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'reviewRating',
type: 'int',
// highlight-next-line
min: 0,
},
]
}
};
The maximum permitted value. If the value is greater than this, then the validation will fail.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'reviewRating',
type: 'int',
// highlight-next-line
max: 5,
},
]
}
};
The step value. This is used in the Admin UI to determine the increment/decrement value of the input field.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'reviewRating',
type: 'int',
// highlight-next-line
step: 0.5,
},
]
}
};
datetime fieldsIn addition to the common properties, the datetime custom fields have some type-specific properties.
The min, max & step properties for datetime fields are intended to be used as described in
the MDN datetime-local docs
The earliest permitted date. If the value is earlier than this, then the validation will fail.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'releaseDate',
type: 'datetime',
// highlight-next-line
min: '2019-01-01T00:00:00.000Z',
},
]
}
};
The latest permitted date. If the value is later than this, then the validation will fail.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'releaseDate',
type: 'datetime',
// highlight-next-line
max: '2019-12-31T23:59:59.999Z',
},
]
}
};
The step value. See the MDN datetime-local docs to understand how this is used.
struct fields:::info
The struct custom field type is available from Vendure v3.1.0.
:::
In addition to the common properties, the struct custom fields have some type-specific properties:
A struct is a data structure comprising a set of named fields, each with its own type. The fields property is an array of StructFieldConfig objects, each of which defines a field within the struct.
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'dimensions',
type: 'struct',
// highlight-start
fields: [
{ name: 'length', type: 'int' },
{ name: 'width', type: 'int' },
{ name: 'height', type: 'int' },
],
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
When querying the Product entity, the dimensions field will be an object with the fields length, width and height:
query {
product(id: 1) {
customFields {
dimensions {
length
width
height
}
}
}
}
Struct fields support many of the same properties as other custom fields, such as list, label, description, validate, ui and
type-specific properties such as options and pattern for string types.
:::note
The following properties are not supported for struct fields: public, readonly, internal, defaultValue, nullable, unique, requiresPermission.
:::
import { LanguageCode } from '@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
OrderLine: [
{
name: 'customizationOptions',
type: 'struct',
fields: [
{
name: 'color',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
options: [
{value: 'red', label: [{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'Red'}]},
{value: 'blue', label: [{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'Blue'}]},
],
// highlight-end
},
{
name: 'engraving',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
validate: (value: any) => {
if (value.length > 20) {
return 'Engraving text must be 20 characters or fewer';
}
},
},
{
name: 'notifyEmailAddresses',
type: 'string',
// highlight-start
list: true,
// highlight-end
}
],
},
]
}
};
relation fieldsIn addition to the common properties, the relation custom fields have some type-specific properties:
The entity which this custom field is referencing. This can be one of the built-in entities, or a custom entity. If the entity is a custom entity, it must extend the VendureEntity class.
import { Product } from '\@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'relatedProducts',
list: true,
// highlight-next-line
type: 'relation',
// highlight-next-line
entity: Product,
},
]
}
};
Whether to eagerly load the relation. Defaults to false. Note that eager loading has performance implications, so should only be used when necessary.
import { Product } from '\@vendure/core';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'relatedProducts',
list: true,
type: 'relation',
entity: Product,
// highlight-next-line
eager: true,
},
]
}
};
The name of the GraphQL type that corresponds to the entity. Can be omitted if the GraphQL type name is the same as the entity name, which is the case for all of the built-in entities.
import { CmsArticle } from './entities/cms-article.entity';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'blogPosts',
list: true,
type: 'relation',
entity: CmsArticle,
// highlight-next-line
graphQLType: 'BlogPost',
},
]
}
};
In the above example, the CmsArticle entity is being used as a related entity. However, the GraphQL type name is BlogPost, so we must specify this in the graphQLType property, otherwise Vendure will try to extend the GraphQL schema with reference to a non-existent "CmsArticle" type.
inverse side of the relation. Let's say you are adding a relation from Product
to a custom entity which refers back to the product. You can specify this inverse relation like so:
import { Product } from '\@vendure/core';
import { ProductReview } from './entities/product-review.entity';
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{
name: 'reviews',
list: true,
type: 'relation',
entity: ProductReview,
// highlight-start
inverseSide: (review: ProductReview) => review.product,
// highlight-end
},
]
}
};
This then allows you to query the ProductReview entity and include the product relation:
const { productReviews } = await this.connection.getRepository(ProductReview).findOne({
where: { id: 1 },
relations: ['product'],
});
In the Admin UI, an appropriate default form input component is used for each custom field type. The Admin UI comes with a set of ready-made form input components, but it is also possible to create custom form input components. The ready-made components are:
text-form-input: A single-line text inputpassword-form-input: A single-line password inputselect-form-input: A select inputtextarea-form-input: A multi-line textarea inputrich-text-form-input: A rich text editor input that saves the content as HTMLjson-editor-form-input: A simple JSON editor inputhtml-editor-form-input: A simple HTML text editor inputnumber-form-input: A number inputcurrency-form-input: A number input with currency formattingboolean-form-input: A checkbox inputdate-form-input: A date inputrelation-form-input: A generic entity relation input which allows an ID to be manually specifiedcustomer-group-form-input: A select input for selecting a CustomerGroupfacet-value-form-input: A select input for selecting a FacetValueproduct-selector-form-input: A select input for selecting a Product from an autocomplete listproduct-multi-form-input: A modal dialog for selecting multiple Products or ProductVariantsThis table shows the default form input component used for each custom field type:
| Type | Form input component |
|---|---|
string, localeString |
text-form-input or, if options are defined, select-form-input |
text, localeText |
textarea-form-input |
int, float |
number-form-input |
boolean |
boolean-form-input |
datetime |
date-form-input |
relation |
Depends on related entity, defaults to relation-form-input if no specific component exists |
:::info UI for relation type
The Admin UI app has built-in selection components for "relation" custom fields that reference certain common entity types, such as Asset, Product, ProductVariant and Customer. If you are relating to an entity not covered by the built-in selection components, you will see a generic relation component which allows you to manually enter the ID of the entity you wish to select.
If the generic selector is not suitable, or is you wish to replace one of the built-in selector components, you can create a UI extension that defines a custom field control for that custom field. You can read more about this in the custom form input guide :::
The defaults listed above can be overridden by using the ui property of the custom field config object. For example, if we want a number to be displayed as a currency input:
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
ProductVariant: [
{
name: 'rrp',
type: 'int',
// highlight-next-line
ui: { component: 'currency-form-input' },
},
]
}
}
Here's an example config demonstrating several ways to customize the UI controls for custom fields:
import { LanguageCode, VendureConfig } from '@vendure/core';
const config: VendureConfig = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
// Rich text editor
{name: 'additionalInfo', type: 'text', ui: {component: 'rich-text-form-input'}},
// JSON editor
{name: 'specs', type: 'text', ui: {component: 'json-editor-form-input'}},
// Numeric with suffix
{
name: 'weight',
type: 'int',
ui: {component: 'number-form-input', suffix: 'g'},
},
// Currency input
{
name: 'RRP',
type: 'int',
ui: {component: 'currency-form-input'},
},
// Select with options
{
name: 'pageType',
type: 'string',
ui: {
component: 'select-form-input',
options: [
{value: 'static', label: [{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'Static'}]},
{value: 'dynamic', label: [{languageCode: LanguageCode.en, value: 'Dynamic'}]},
],
},
},
// Text with prefix
{
name: 'link',
type: 'string',
ui: {
component: 'text-form-input',
prefix: 'https://',
},
},
],
},
};
and the resulting UI:
:::info
The various configuration options for each of the built-in form input (e.g. suffix) is documented in the DefaultFormConfigHash object.
:::
If none of the built-in form input components are suitable, you can create your own. This is a more advanced topic which is covered in detail in the Custom Form Input Components guide.
With a large, complex project, it's common for lots of custom fields to be required. This can get visually noisy in the UI, so Vendure supports tabbed custom fields. Just specify the tab name in the ui object, and those fields with the same tab name will be grouped in the UI! The tab name can also be a translation token if you need to support multiple languages.
:::note
Tabs will only be displayed if there is more than one tab name used in the custom fields. A lack of a tab property is counted as a tab (the "general" tab).
:::
const config = {
// ...
customFields: {
Product: [
{ name: 'additionalInfo', type: 'text', ui: {component: 'rich-text-form-input'} },
{ name: 'specs', type: 'text', ui: {component: 'json-editor-form-input'} },
{ name: 'width', type: 'int', ui: {tab: 'Shipping'} },
{ name: 'height', type: 'int', ui: {tab: 'Shipping'} },
{ name: 'depth', type: 'int', ui: {tab: 'Shipping'} },
{ name: 'weight', type: 'int', ui: {tab: 'Shipping'} },
],
},
}
Because custom fields are generated at run-time, TypeScript has no way of knowing about them based on your VendureConfig. Consider the example above - let's say we have a plugin which needs to access the custom field values on a Product entity.
Attempting to access the custom field will result in a TS compiler error:
import { RequestContext, TransactionalConnection, ID, Product } from '@vendure/core';
export class MyService {
constructor(private connection: TransactionalConnection) {
}
async getInfoUrl(ctx: RequestContext, productId: ID) {
const product = await this.connection
.getRepository(ctx, Product)
.findOne(productId);
return product.customFields.infoUrl;
} // ^ TS2339: Property 'infoUrl'
} // does not exist on type 'CustomProductFields'.
The "easy" way to solve this is to assert the customFields object as any:
return (product.customFields as any).infoUrl;
However, this sacrifices type safety. To make our custom fields type-safe we can take advantage of a couple of more advanced TypeScript features - declaration merging and ambient modules. This allows us to extend the built-in CustomProductFields interface to add our custom fields to it:
// types.ts
// Note: we are using a deep import here, rather than importing from `@vendure/core` due to
// a possible bug in TypeScript (https://github.com/microsoft/TypeScript/issues/46617) which
// causes issues when multiple plugins extend the same custom fields interface.
import { CustomProductFields } from '@vendure/core/dist/entity/custom-entity-fields';
declare module '@vendure/core/dist/entity/custom-entity-fields' {
interface CustomProductFields {
infoUrl: string;
downloadable: boolean;
shortName: string;
}
}
When this file is then imported into our service file (either directly or indirectly), TypeScript will know about our custom fields, and we do not need to do any type assertions.
return product.customFields.infoUrl;
// no error, plus TS autocomplete works.
:::caution Note that for the typings to work correctly, order of imports matters.
One way to ensure that your custom field typings always get imported first is to include them as the first item in the tsconfig "include" array. :::
:::tip For a working example of this setup, see the real-world-vendure repo :::