Validation Rules for Screen Controls

Use these rules to describe how to validate your Screen controls.

Overview

Use validation rules in a control to constitute what is a valid value entered for that control.

If a control that has a Validation Rules setting but does not contain any value or properly structured validation rule, that control automatically passes validation.

If a control is hidden using Visibility Rules, any Validation Rules associated with that control are not evaluated upon submission of the Screen.

Controls That Provide Validation

The following Screen Builder controls use the validation rules:

• Line Input control

• Textarea control

• Select List control

• Checkbox control

• Date Picker control

Create a Validation Rule

Follow these steps to add a validation rule to a Screen Builder control that provides validation:

1. Access the Variable panel for the control while in Design mode, and then locate the Validation Rules setting.

2. Click the Add Rule button. The Select drop-down menu displays.

   

3. Select the rule that this control validates against.

4. Click Save. Parameters for the selected rule display. Parameter settings display which ones are required to properly configure the rule.

5. Enter the parameter settings that this control uses to validate against. See Validation Rule Settings, and then locate the validation rule for its parameters.

Ensure Validation Fails for an Undefined Setting

If you want a validation to fail for undefined or '', use the required rule.

Validation Rule Settings

Accepted

Use the Accepted validation rule to validate acknowledgement of this control. This is useful to validate "Terms of Service" acceptance.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an Accepted validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Accepted. The Accepted validation rule has no parameters.

After Date

Use the After Date validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control must be after (later than) a specified date. If the entered value is in datetime format, then the time format is ignored.

The value entered into this control must be in one of the following formats:

• Date format: YYYY-MM-DD. Example: "2020-07-01"

• Datetime format: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS. Example: "2020-07-01 14:25:15"

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an After Date validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select After Date. The Date setting displays.

   

3. In the Date setting, enter the date in date format that this control's value must be after (later than). This is a required setting.

After Or Equal To Date

Use the After or Equal to Date validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control must be the same or after (later than) a specified date. If the entered value is in datetime format, then the time format is ignored.

The value entered into this control must be in one of the following formats:

• Date format: YYYY-MM-DD. Example: "2020-07-01"

• Datetime format: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS. Example: "2020-07-01 14:25:15"

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an After or Equal to Date validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select After or Equal to Date. The Date setting displays.

   

3. In the Date setting, enter the date in date format that this control's value must be the same or after (later than). This is a required setting.

Alpha

Use the Alpha validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control must be contain only alphabetic characters.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an Alpha validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Alpha. The Alpha validation rule has no parameters.

Alpha-Numeric

Use the Alpha-Numeric validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control must contain only alphanumeric characters.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an Alpha-Numeric validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Alpha-Numeric. The Alpha-Numeric validation rule has no parameters.

Before Date

Use the Before Date validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control must be before (earlier than) a specified date. If the entered value is in datetime format, then the time format is ignored.

The value entered into this control must be in one of the following formats:

• Date format: YYYY-MM-DD. Example: "2020-07-01"

• Datetime format: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS. Example: "2020-07-01 14:25:15"

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Before Date validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Before Date. The Date setting displays.  

   

3. In the Date setting, enter the date in date format that this control's value must be before (earlier than). This is a required setting.

Before Or Equal To Date

Use the Before or Equal to Date validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control must be the same or before (earlier than) a specified date. If the entered value is in datetime format, then the time format is ignored.

The value entered into this control must be in one of the following formats:

• Date format: YYYY-MM-DD. Example: "2020-07-01"

• Datetime format: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS. Example: "2020-07-01 14:25:15"

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Before or Equal to Date validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Before or Equal to Date. The Date setting displays.  

   

3. In the Date setting, enter the date in date format that this control's value must be the same or before (earlier than). This is a required setting.

Between Min & Max

Use the Between Min & Max validation rule to validate that the numerical value that this control contains is between the specified minimum value and a maximum value.

The Between Min & Max validation rule evaluates the following:

• integers

• file sizes

The Between Min & Max validation rule does not evaluate the number of characters in a text, but only the value of an entered number. Use one or both of the following to validate the number of characters in a text:

• Max Length

• Min Length

Furthermore, the Between Min & Max validation rule does not evaluate calendar dates, such as when an entered value in that control is between two dates. Use any of the following to validate date-related values:

• After Date

• After or Equal to Date

• Before Date

• Before or Equal to Date

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Between Min & Max validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Between Min & Max. The Min and Max parameter settings display.

   

3. In the Min parameter setting, enter the numeric value that this control's value must be equal to or no lower than. This is a required setting.

4. In the Max parameter setting, enter the numeric value that this control's value must be equal to or no greater than. This is a required setting.

Date

Use the Date validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control is in date or datetime format.

One of the following formats validates that the entered value is a date:

• Date format: YYYY-MM-DD. Example: "2020-07-01"

• Datetime format: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS. Example: "2020-07-01 14:25:15"

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an Date validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Date. The Date validation rule has no parameters.

Email

Use the Email validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control is formatted as an email address.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an Email validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Email. The EMail validation rule has no parameters.

In

Use the In validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control exactly matches the given parameter setting. The validation rule evaluates the entire value entered in the control and considers case-sensitivity and empty spaces. The control's scope of evaluation may be within an array or a string. See In Validation Rule Examples.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for an In validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select In. The Values parameter setting displays.

   

3. In the Values parameter setting, enter the value to evaluate if it exactly matches the control's selected or entered value. This is a required setting.

Format a list in the Values parameter setting by separating the values with commas only, no spaces:

value1,value2,value3

In Validation Rule Examples

doctors = [
    {id: 1, name: 'Adam Ardin', gender: 'male'},
    {id: 2, name: 'Amanda Creek', gender: 'female'},
    {id: 3, name: 'Lucy Morales', gender: 'female'},
    {id: 4, name: 'Mindy Smith', gender: 'female'},
    {id: 5, name: 'Toby Tomlinson', gender: 'male'}
]

A Line Input control under evaluation has the following validation rule:

The validation rule is evaluated as follows:

Entered Value	Validation Rule Evaluation
NA	True
North America	True
NA,North America	False
This is North America	False
Niagara Falls, NA	False

Max Length

Use the Max Length validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control is no greater than a specified length.

The Max Length validation rule evaluates the following:

• a maximum number of characters in a string

• a maximum integer value

• a maximum file size

The Max Length validation rule does not evaluate calendar dates, such as when an entered value in that control is no later than a particular date.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Max Length validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Max Length. The Max Input parameter setting displays.

   

3. In the Max Input parameter setting, enter the numeric value that this control's value must be equal to or no greater than. This is a required setting.

Min Length

Use the Min Length validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control is no less than a specified length.

The Min Length validation rule evaluates the following:

• a minimum number of characters in a string

• a minimum integer value

• a maximum file size

The Min Length validation rule does not evaluate calendar dates, such as when an entered value in that control is no earlier than a particular date.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Min Length validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Min Length. The Min Input parameter setting displays.

   

3. In the Min Input parameter setting, enter the numeric value that this control's value must be equal to or no less than. This is a required setting.

Not In

Use the Not In validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control does not match the given parameter setting.  The validation rule evaluates the entire value entered in the control and considers case-sensitivity and empty spaces. The control's scope of evaluation may be within an array or a string. See Not In Validation Rule Examples.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Not In validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Not In. The Values parameter setting displays.

   

3. In the Values parameter setting, enter the value to evaluate if it is not within the control's selected or entered value. This is a required setting.

Format a list in the Values parameter setting by separating the values with commas only, no spaces:

value1,value2,value3

Not In Validation Rule Examples

doctors = [
    {id: 1, name: 'Adam Ardin', gender: 'male'},
    {id: 2, name: 'Amanda Creek', gender: 'female'},
    {id: 3, name: 'Lucy Morales', gender: 'female'},
    {id: 4, name: 'Mindy Smith', gender: 'female'},
    {id: 5, name: 'Toby Tomlinson', gender: 'male'}
]

A Line Input control under evaluation has the following Validation Rule:

The Validation Rule is evaluated as follows:

Entered Value	Validation Rule evaluation
NA	False
North America	False
NA,North America	True
This is North America	True
Niagara Falls, NA	True

Regex

Use the Regex validation rule to validate that this control's value contains content as determined by a specified regular expression. A regular expression, abbreviated as regex, is a sequence of letters and symbols that defines a logical search pattern from which to search this control's content to validate that strings meet the defined pattern. This validation rule is useful to parse the contents of a control's value even if that control's Request variable contains programming code such as HTML or JSON.

Need a primer on regular expression syntax? See this primer, and then use RegExr to learn, build, and test your regular expressions.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Regex validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Regex. The Regex Pattern setting displays.  

   

3. In the Regex Pattern setting, enter the regular expression from which to validate this control's value contains that content. This is a required setting.

Required

Use the Required validation rule to validate that this control has a value and is not empty.

A control constitutes as having no value in the following circumstances:

• The value is null.

• The value is an empty string that contains no characters.

• The value is an empty JSON array or empty JSON object.

• The value is an uploaded file with no path.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Required validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Required. The Required validation rule has no parameters.

Required If

Use the Required If validation rule to validate that this control has a value and is not empty if another control in that Screen page contains a specific value. If the control being monitored contains a specific value, then the control under evaluation is required. See Required If Validation Rule Examples.

The Required If validation rule is the inverse of the Required Unless rule.

A control constitutes as having no value in the following circumstances:

• The value is null.

• The value is an empty string that contains no characters.

• The value is an empty JSON array or empty JSON object.

• The value is an uploaded file with no path.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Required If validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Required If. The Variable Name and Variable Value parameter settings display.

   

3. In the Variable Name parameter setting, enter the Variable Name setting value to monitor for its value. This is a required setting.

4. In the Variable Value parameter setting, enter the value that must be entered into that control to make this control required. This is a required setting.

Required If Validation Rule Examples

Required Unless

Use the Required Unless validation rule to validate that this control has a value and is not empty unless another control in that Screen page contains a specific value. If the control being monitored for its value has a specific value, then the control under evaluation is not required. See Required Unless Validation Rule Examples.

The Required Unless validation rule is the inverse of the Required If rule.

A control constitutes as having no value in the following circumstances:

• The value is null.

• The value is an empty string that contains no characters.

• The value is an empty JSON array or empty JSON object.

• The value is an uploaded file with no path.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Required Unless validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Required Unless. The Variable Name and Variable Value parameter settings display.

   

3. In the Variable Name parameter setting, enter the Variable Name setting value to monitor for its value. This is a required setting.

4. In the Variable Value parameter setting, enter the value that must be entered into that control to exempt this control from being required. This is a required setting.

Required Unless Validation Rule Examples

Same

Use the Same validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control matches the value of a specified control.

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a Same validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select Same. The Values parameter setting displays.

   

3. In the Variable Name parameter setting, enter the Variable Name setting value to evaluate if the control under evaluation matches its value. This is a required setting.

URL

Use the URL validation rule to validate that the value entered into this control is formatted as a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

Follow these steps to configure the parameter(s) for a URL validation rule:

1. Create a validation rule for the control.

2. From the Select drop-down menu in the Validation Rules setting, select URL. The URL validation rule has no parameters.