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All content of the website will be stored and maintained in a Headless Content Management System (HCMS), in our case in Contentstack.
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A relation between two datasets is called Reference. Based Depending on the Content Type settings of the customized UI, you can reference datasets from one or multiple specific Content Types.
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Using References is a key in using Contentstack. A comprehensive description how to work with References and what you need to consider, you can find in References in Contentstack. |
A Content Type is like a table in Contentstack, coming with a customized edit form.
With the edit form of a Content Type, you can create or edit an Entry, which is a dataset.
An Asset in Contentstack is a file you upload to Contentstack, like images, PDFs etc.
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Please refer to the Contentstack User Manual for more detailed information about Contentstack.
References in Contentstack
In Contentstack, a reference is a relation from one entry (dataset) to another in Contentstack. Even if two entries are referenced, both are independent in regards to editing, versioning etc.
Example: A simple webpage needs at least an entry of the type “Web Page” and one of the type “Content Block”.
If you reference an entry in another entry, the referenced entry itself stays independent. This means, all options can and must be used independently.
Contentstack allows you in a reference field to either (a) “Choose an existing entry” or (b) “Create a new entry”.
(a) “Choose an existing entry”
If you click this option, Contentstack provides you with a selection of possible Content Types and Entries to select. Once you selected an entry, the reference will be created between the selected entry and the entry where you are coming from.
(b) “Create a new entry”
If you click this option, Contentstack forwards you to the related Content Type’s form to create and store your desired piece of content. Once you store the new entry, it will be automatically related (= referenced) to the entry where you are coming from.
If you create a new entry and you want to create a referenced entry in the same step, you will mostly miss the “Create a new entry” option. → Save you just created entry and try again.
Contentstack needs the unique ID of the entry to be able to store the reference. This unique ID will be created by saving the entry for the first time.
If you want to re-use a referenced entry, but change some parts of it, please take care to copy it before you make any changes! → Copy with a new name and proceed as “normal”
If you want to publish an entry with references, Contentstack will probably ask you, if you want to publish the entry with or without references. → Normally, you want to publish with references.
As already said, the referenced entries stay independent in regards to their edit and publish status. Technically, if you publish with references, Contentstack publishes multiple entries in one process.
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Reference a new entry in a new entry
If you are just about to create a new entry, e.g. a Web Page, and want to reference a content block for the main content area, you might miss the option to create a new content block:
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The reason is that Contentstack must know the unique identifier of the entry in which you want to nest a new entry.
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If you miss the option to create a new entry from another entry, please provide the mandatory field values and save the entry. Now, you find the option “Create new entry”. |
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If it’s still not possible to create a new entry, you might not have the permissions to create entries of this content type. |
Change or edit a referenced entry
If there is an entry referenced, you can either edit this entry or remove the reference to add a new one.
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To edit the entry, click the left icon.
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If you edit an entry, it will be changed for all places where you have this entry referenced. If you are not sure about the existing references, click the edit icon to open the entry. Then click the left arrow icon on the top right side to see all references. |
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To change the entry reference, click the right icon to remove the reference to the entry. Once, this is done, you can add a new reference.
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If you change the reference entry, this does not impact the referenced entry. So, if you are not sure if you break something by changing the referenced entry, it might be better to create a new instead. Instead of starting from scratch, you can also copy an entry and adapt the copy to your needs. Just search for the entry in Contentstack and open the context menu at the right (three dots) and click copy. |
Where am I when editing content?
When you click the edit icon next to a referenced entry, Contentstack will forward you to the edit form of this entry. If there are unsaved changes in the entry you are leaving, Contentstack will ask you if you want to save the changes.
If you are not sure where you are, have a look on the top left of the form. There you can see the name of the currently displayed entry (either the title or the internal name, depending on the content type) and the name of the content type itself
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If you want to switch back to the step where you are coming from, use the left arrow.
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