Overview
The Links button in the Form Builder opens the Question Links panel, a read-only view of how a question or section is connected to the rest of the form template. The panel shows what the question depends on and what depends on it, including chains of logic several steps deep, such as a question whose visibility depends on a question that depends on another. Form authors use it to check the effect of an edit before changing, moving, or deleting a question or section. When a question or section that other items rely on is deleted, the Form Builder asks for confirmation and states how many items are affected.
Accessing Question Links
From the navigation, click Forms, then click Manage. In the Lube Management navigation, click Forms, then click Form Templates.
On the Builder tab, click a template's Name to open it in the Form Builder, or click Create to start a template.
Find the question or section you want to inspect:
Question: In the question's header, click Links. It sits just before Del, after Add, Up, Down, and Copy.
Section: In the section's header, click Links. It sits after Visibility and just before Del.
The Question Links panel opens on the right side of the Form Builder.
NOTE: The Links button appears only on questions and sections that have at least one link to show. If a question has no logic connected to it in either direction, its header has no Links button.
The Form Builder requires the Form Creation permission group (create or update access) on your role. If you don't see Manage or Form Templates in the navigation, ask your administrator to grant that permission.
How to View a Question's Links
The Question Links panel shows the selected question at the top, with its question ID (for example, QID-VU6) and its type and text (for example, Select Button: Perform parking brake test).
Steps:
Click Links in the question's header.
Review the two groups in the panel:
Depends on: Questions this question relies on. For example, if this question is shown only when another question is answered "Yes", that other question is listed here.
Used by: Questions, sections, and form settings that rely on this question. These are the items affected if the question is changed or deleted.
Check the number in parentheses next to each group heading. It is the total number of items in that group, including items further down the chain.
Click the arrow on an entry to expand it and see the items linked through it. Entries start collapsed, and each one shows how many items sit below it.
When a group has nothing to show, the panel says so. For example, "Nothing references this question." under Used by means no other question, section, or form setting depends on this question.
How to View a Section's Links
A section's Links panel summarizes the links for the section as a whole: the section's own visibility rule and every question inside it.
Steps:
Click Links in the section's header.
Review Depends on to see the questions that the section's visibility rule relies on.
Review Used by to see everything outside the section that relies on the section or on any question inside it. These are the items affected if the whole section is deleted.
Links between questions inside the same section are not listed under Used by, because those questions would be deleted along with the section. If nothing outside the section relies on it, the panel shows "Nothing outside this section references it or its questions."
How to Go to a Linked Question
Each entry in the panel has a Navigate to question link.
Steps:
In the Question Links panel, find the entry you want to review.
Click Navigate to question.
The Form Builder scrolls to that question and expands it so its settings are visible. For a section entry, the Form Builder scrolls to the first question in that section. Form settings entries have no Navigate to question link.
How to Delete a Question or Section That Other Items Use
When you click Del on a question or section that other items rely on, a confirmation window opens before anything is removed.
Steps:
Click Del in the question's or section's header.
If the Delete this question? or Delete this section? window opens, read the message. It states how many items reference the question or section directly. If those items have further items depending on them, the message also states the total number affected.
Choose one of the following:
See what this affects: Closes the window without deleting and opens the Question Links panel for that question or section.
Delete anyway: Deletes the question or section.
Cancel: Closes the window without deleting.
NOTE: If nothing else relies on the question or section, Del removes it right away with no confirmation window. For a section, only items outside the section count; links between questions inside the section do not trigger the confirmation.
The total in the confirmation message matches the number of items listed under Used by in the Question Links panel.
Understanding Question Links
What each entry shows
Icon: The question type (for example, a dropdown or checkbox icon). Sections show a folder icon, and form settings show a cog icon.
Title: The question type and question text, the section name, or Form settings. Long question text is cut to two lines; hover over it to see the full text.
Question ID: The QID shown in the question's header in the Form Builder.
Link pills: One pill for each way the entry is linked to the item above it. If one question is linked to another in more than one way, such as both a visibility rule and a required rule, the entry shows both pills.
"also reached from N other places": Shown when an entry is linked from more than one place in the chain. Each item appears only once in the panel, at the shortest path from the selected question, and this note tells you how many other places also lead to it.
Types of links
Pill | What it means |
Visibility | The question is shown or hidden based on the other question's answer. |
Section visibility | A section is shown or hidden based on the question's answer. |
Fail rule | The question's "Fail form when…" rule checks the other question's answer. |
Required | The question's required rule depends on the other question. |
Notification | The question's notification rule depends on the other question. |
Work order | The question's work order trigger depends on the other question. |
Approval | The question's approval rule depends on the other question. |
File / photo | The question's file or photo rule depends on the other question. |
Association | The question is associated with the other question. |
Work order region | The question's work order uses the other question to set the region. |
Inventory stockroom | The question's inventory settings use the other question to choose the default stockroom. |
Inventory quantity | The question's inventory change takes its quantity from the other question's answer. |
Auto response | The question's auto response depends on the other question. |
Form setting | A form-level setting, such as the PDF header region or the grouped tasks region, uses the question. |
How entries are ordered
Entries at the same level are listed in the order they appear in the form, from top to bottom. Entries are not grouped by link type.
Other details
Read-only: The panel shows links but does not change them. To edit a link, use Navigate to question and change the rule on that question.
Updates while open: Changes made with the panel open, such as saving a visibility rule or adding, moving, or removing questions, are reflected in the panel.
Circular logic: If questions reference each other in a loop, each question still appears only once and the panel does not repeat entries.
References to deleted questions: A rule that still points to a deleted question is not shown as a link and does not make the Links button appear. The Form Builder's validation messages flag those broken references.
Web only: Question Links is part of the Form Builder on the web. Form templates are built on the web, and filling out forms in the mobile app is unaffected.
Use Cases
Checking before a delete: A safety manager wants to remove an outdated "Hazards observed?" question. Before deleting it, they click Links and see that two follow-up questions and a notification rule depend on it, so they update those rules first.
Tracing why a question is hidden: A form author testing a template notices a question never appears. They open Links on that question, see under Depends on that it is shown only when a question in an earlier section has a specific answer, and use Navigate to question to go to that question and adjust the rule.
Removing a whole section: An admin plans to delete an unused section. They click Del, the confirmation window reports that items outside the section depend on its questions, and they click See what this affects to review those items before deciding.
Reviewing a template someone else built: A maintenance lead takes over a large inspection template. They click Links on key questions to understand how visibility, fail rules, and work order triggers are connected before making edits.
Best Practices
Check Links before deleting or changing a question: Open the panel first so you know which rules, sections, and settings rely on the question.
Use See what this affects when the confirmation appears: Review the affected items in the panel before choosing Delete anyway.
Update dependent rules before removing a question: Repoint or clear the rules on the items listed under Used by, so the template doesn't keep rules that point to a deleted question.
Expand entries to see the full chain: The count on each entry shows how many items sit below it. Expand entries with a count to see items affected further down the chain.
Use a section's Links before deleting the section: A section's Used by list covers every question inside it, so it shows the full impact of removing the section.
Troubleshooting
Issue: I don't see a Links button on a question or section.
Solution:
The Links button appears only when the question or section has at least one link. A question with no logic connected to it has no Links button.
If a rule points to a question that has been deleted, that rule does not count as a link. Check the Form Builder's validation messages for broken references.
Issue: A section's Used by list shows questions that don't reference the section itself.
Solution:
This is expected. A section's Used by list includes everything outside the section that relies on any question inside it, because deleting the section deletes those questions too.
Open Links on an individual question in the section to see only that question's links.
Issue: An item I expected doesn't appear under a particular entry.
Solution:
Each item appears only once in the panel, at the shortest path from the selected question. It may be listed under a different entry or at a higher level.
Look for the "also reached from N other places" note on entries that are linked from more than one place.
Issue: Clicking Del on a question opens a confirmation window.
Solution:
Other items rely on that question. Click See what this affects to review them in the Question Links panel.
Click Delete anyway to delete the question, or Cancel to keep it.
Issue: Navigate to question on a section entry goes to a question instead of the section heading.
Solution:
This is expected. For a section, the Form Builder scrolls to the first question in that section.
Summary
The Links button on a question or section header opens the read-only Question Links panel, which lists what the question or section depends on and what depends on it, including chains several steps deep, with a pill for each type of link. Deleting a question or section that other items rely on opens a confirmation window that states how many items are affected and offers See what this affects, Delete anyway, and Cancel. Questions and sections with no dependents are deleted right away.