Alongside the built-in case list views (All Cases, New Cases, In Progress Cases, Closed Cases), your account can build its own custom case views — saved, purpose-built slices of your cases such as a view for a particular case type, a triage queue, or the cases one team is responsible for. This guide covers what a custom case view is, how to create one, and what users see when they open it.
What a custom case view is
Every case list view in SwiftFox — built-in or custom — is a Cases Action Centre. A custom view is one you create yourself with:
- its own name and icon in the Action Centre sidebar,
- its own default filters, so it opens showing only the cases that view is about,
- its own extra columns drawn from your case custom fields,
- its own permissions, so only the right users and user groups can see it.
Custom views sit in the same area and section as the built-in case views, so they appear in the same group in the sidebar. They do not create separate case records — every view reads the same underlying cases, just filtered and presented differently.
Before you start
- Action Centre Management must be enabled for your user group before the Action Centres settings page appears. See Creating an Action Centre (generic flow) & permissions.
- Anything you want to filter or display should already be set up:
- Case custom fields — Settings → Data & records → Custom fields → Cases tab. See Case management — Custom fields on cases.
- Case tags (shown in the table as Type) — Settings → Tags & categories → Case tags.
- Case statuses — Settings → Features → Cases.
- Decide the view's purpose first. A good custom view answers one question ("which cases is my team still working on?"), which makes the filters and columns obvious.
Step 1 — Create the view
- Go to Settings → Features → Action centres.
- Select Create Action Centre, at the top right of the page. (The arrow beside the button also offers Create new area, if the view needs to live in a brand-new area.)
- The Action Centre builder opens on the Basics step. Complete:
- Action centre name — this is the label users see in the Action Centre sidebar, so name it for the work it supports.
- Icon — choose one from the searchable icon library. Pick something visually distinct from the built-in case views.
- Area — the area the view belongs to (for case views, the same area as your existing case views).
- Section — select an existing section, or type a new name to create one. Choose the same section as the built-in case views so the new view groups with them in the sidebar.
- Type — select Cases.
- Select Next.
The builder has four steps: Basics → Columns → Filters → Permissions. You can move back and forth with Back and Next; nothing is created until you Save on the final step.
Step 2 — Choose the columns
The Columns step controls what the table shows.
Default columns (10). Every Cases view includes these, and they cannot be removed:
- Title — the case name.
- Description — a short summary of the case.
- Type — the case tags applied to the case.
- Status — the case status.
- Date — the case date.
- Created by — the SwiftFox user who created the case.
- Contact record — the people and organisations the case is related to.
- Assigned to — the SwiftFox user the case is assigned to.
- Last contacted — the most recent contact activity on the case.
- Attachments — documents attached to the case.
If a default column isn't useful in this view, leave it in place and hide it in the table instead (see What users see).
Customisable columns. These are the extra columns you add from your case custom fields:
- Select Add column.
- Choose the field from the picker. Only case custom fields appear here, and each field can be added once — fields already used in this view drop out of the list.
- (Optional) Change the Column label to give the column a shorter or clearer heading in this view. The underlying field name is unchanged.
- Repeat for each field the view needs, then drag the handle at the left of a row to set the order the columns appear in the table. Use the delete icon on a row to remove a column.
- Select Next.
Important: the case custom fields you add as columns here are the fields that view can filter and sort on, hide or show, and include in a CSV export. The exception is a file upload field: it holds an attachment rather than a value, so its column is for opening or downloading the file. A case custom field that isn't added as a column in this view can't be filtered on in it — so add the fields the view needs before setting the default filters.
Step 3 — Set the default filters
Default filters are what make the view a view: they are applied automatically every time anyone opens it.
- On the Filters step, the builder shows how many default filters are currently applied. Select Add/Change default filters.
- In the Configure filters panel, build the first row: Where [field] [operator] [value].
- Select Add a new filter for each additional condition. Rows are joined with And, so a case must match every row to appear in the view. Use the remove icon at the end of a row to delete it.
- Select Apply filter. (Clear all empties every row if you want to start again.)
- Select Next.
Fields you can filter on: Type (case tags), Status, Date, Assigned To, Contact Record, plus the case custom fields you added on the Columns step that hold a value. A file upload field holds an attachment rather than a value, so use its column to open or download the file rather than to filter the view.
Operators depend on the field type:
- Tag, select and status fields — include or exclude, with the values chosen from a list (you can select more than one; each appears as a chip).
- Number fields — is, greater than, greater than or equal, less than, less than or equal.
- Date fields — is, is on or before, is on or after, is after, is before, with a date picker for the value.
- Text fields — is or contains.
A Cases view can be saved with no default filters at all — that simply gives you another full case list with its own columns and permissions.
Step 4 — Set permissions and save
The Permissions step controls who can see and use the view.
- Use a preset if it fits: Everyone or Only me.
- Otherwise, under Add access for, choose User or User group, find the user or group, choose the Access level, and select Add. Add me adds your own access in one step.
- Each entry is listed underneath with its access level, which you can change; the remove icon takes an entry off the list.
- Select Save.
The three access levels are:
- Full Access — use the view and manage its configuration (columns, filters, permissions).
- View and Edit — use the view and edit records in the table where fields are editable, without managing the view itself.
- View only — search, filter, sort and export, with no editing.
Once saved, the view appears in the Action Centre sidebar, in its section, for everyone who has access.
What users see
- The view is a sidebar item in the Action Centre, grouped with the other views in its section, using the name and icon you chose.
- It opens pre-filtered. The Filter control shows how many filters are applied, and the row count is shown at the top right of the table.
- Custom columns appear to the right of the default columns. Colour-coded Select fields show their configured colours, and an Auto increment field shows each case's number. A file upload field shows its attachment, which you can view in place or download depending on the file type — this is separate from the built-in Attachments column, and shows only what was uploaded into that field.
- The table toolbar offers Create Case, Search, Filter, Sort, pin columns, hide columns and Export. The hide-columns control lists every column in the view — default and custom — so users can declutter their own view of the table.
- Users can layer their own filters and sorts on top of the defaults while they work. When a user has changed the view, a Reset View control appears in the toolbar, which returns the table to the saved defaults. A user's ad-hoc changes never alter the saved view for anyone else.
- Rows behave exactly as they do in the built-in views: quick actions open the case's Posts, Tasks and Comments, and selecting the row opens the case drawer. See Case management — Case list views (All Cases / New Cases / In Progress Cases / Closed Cases) & columns.
- Each view has its own URL, so users can bookmark a view or share the link with colleagues who have access to it.
Editing, moving and archiving a view
From Settings → Features → Action centres, expand the section the view sits in and use the edit icon on its row to reopen the builder. You can change its name, icon, area, section, columns, default filters and permissions at any time; changes apply to everyone the next time they open the view. A view can also be moved to a different (or new) section, or archived to retire it while keeping it. See Creating an Action Centre (generic flow) & permissions.
Good practice
- Give the view one job. Narrow, well-named views ("cases awaiting review") are far more useful than broad ones users have to filter every time.
- Name it for the work, not the filter. Users read the sidebar label, not the filter configuration.
- Add only the columns that view needs. Extra columns make the table wider and slower to scan; if a field matters to everyone, consider adding it to your main all-cases view as well.
- Use permissions to keep the sidebar tidy. Restrict a specialised view to the user group that works on it, rather than showing it to everyone.
- Remember the columns/filters link. If a filter you expect is missing, the field almost certainly hasn't been added as a column in that view — unless it is a file upload field, which has no value to filter on however it is configured.
- Case tags, statuses and custom fields are configured by your account, so the fields and values available in your views will be specific to how your organisation is set up.
Frequently asked questions
How do I create a custom case view?
Create a new Cases Action Centre in Settings → Features → Action centres, put it in the same section as the built-in case views, add the columns and default filters you want, then set permissions and save.
Can I filter a view on a case custom field?
Yes, provided the field holds a value and has been added as a column on the Columns step of that view. A file upload field is the exception — adding it as a column gives you the attachment, not something to filter on. Fields that aren't columns in the view can't be filtered on in it.
Can I remove one of the ten default columns?
No. Default columns can't be removed in the builder, but any user can hide columns they don't need using the hide-columns control in the table.
Can users change a view's filters?
Yes — users can add their own filters and sorts on top of the defaults for their own session. Reset View returns the table to the saved defaults, and nothing a user does in the table changes the saved view for others.
Does a CSV export include the custom columns?
Yes. Exports follow the view's columns and the filters currently applied.
Can two views use the same case custom field?
Yes. Views are independent, so the same field can be a column (and a filter) in as many views as you need.
How do I stop a view showing for everyone?
Set its Permissions to the specific users or user groups that need it, or use the Only me preset while you're still building it.
What happens to a view I no longer need?
Archive it from the Action Centres settings page. The cases themselves are untouched — only the view is retired.