A catalog is a reusable selection list (lookup list) in Sapera. Instead of having to type the same value over and over again, the catalog gathers a set of fixed values in one place — and they can then be selected from a dropdown list elsewhere in the system.
An example: If you want to be able to set a color or a size on your products, you create a catalog with the possible values (e.g. Red, Blue, Green), and then the values can be selected from a list when you edit a product. This ensures consistent data, fewer spelling mistakes and easier filtering afterwards.
A catalog consists of two parts: the catalog itself (with name and settings) and a list of catalog values (the individual options, e.g. Red, Blue, Green).
There are two kinds of catalogs:
System catalogs are built into Sapera and used by the system itself. They are locked: you cannot edit, deactivate or delete them, and you cannot change their values. In the list they are marked in the System column. When a system catalog is selected, the buttons for editing and deactivating are inactive, and you also cannot open it by double-clicking.
User-defined catalogs are the ones you create and manage yourself. You can freely edit, deactivate, reactivate them and fill them with the values you need.
You find the catalogs under the settings in Financial. Open settings and find the menu item Catalogs. Here the list of all catalogs in the system is shown.
If you cannot see the menu item, you most likely lack permissions — contact support.
*Note for administrators: Access is controlled by the permission for the catalog screens (help tags ScreenCatalogList and ScreenCatalogEdit).*
In the catalog list you see all catalogs with these columns:
System name — the technical, unique key for the catalog. Display name — the name users see. Description — an optional explanatory text. Active — a check mark that shows whether the catalog is enabled. System — a check mark that shows whether it is a system catalog (locked).
At the top of the list there are buttons to create a new catalog, edit the selected catalog as well as activate or deactivate the selected catalog. The Edit button is only active when you have selected a catalog that is not a system catalog. The Activate and Deactivate buttons change depending on the catalog's current status, and they are only shown for non-system catalogs.
You can also double-click a row to open the catalog for editing — but this only works for non-system catalogs.
If you have many catalogs, you can search for the right one. See How to search in lists.
Click the Create new catalog button at the top of the list. The edit form opens, where you fill in the catalog's fields:
System name — the unique technical key. It is validated automatically as you type, so that two catalogs cannot get the same system name. If you get an error that the name is not unique, you must choose another one.
Display name — the name users see in the dropdown lists. The field is mandatory and can be translated (see the section on localizable fields further down). There is an upper limit on the number of characters.
Description — an optional text that explains what the catalog is used for. This field can also be translated, and it has an upper character limit.
Sorting — determines the order in which the catalog values are shown in the dropdown lists. You can choose Alphabetical (the values are ordered by name from A to Z) or By value (the values are shown in the manual order you have determined yourself in the value list using the up/down arrows). Choose By value if you want to control the order yourself — e.g. if "Small, Medium, Large" makes more sense than alphabetical.
Active — a check mark that determines whether the catalog is in use. A deactivated catalog cannot be selected from the dropdown lists out in the system.
Allow adding values — a check mark that determines whether users may create new catalog values directly from the screen where the catalog is used (e.g. while they are editing a product), without having to go to the catalog screen first. If you tick the box, a user can add a new value "on the spot". If you leave it empty, values can only be added here on the catalog screen.
Once the fields are filled in, you add the catalog's values in the value list (see next section) and finally click Save and close. If you want to cancel, you click Cancel, and the changes are discarded.
Inside the edit form there is a list of the catalog's values — the individual options users can choose between.
Each value has the following fields: Value — the text that is shown (mandatory and can be translated). Code — an optional short code linked to the value. The code is used when a value needs to be recognized by machine or match a code in another system (e.g. for import/export or integration), without you having to change the display text itself. If you do not need it, the field can be left empty. Active — a check mark that determines whether this particular value can be selected.
Above the value list there are buttons to manage the values:
The plus button adds a new catalog value and opens the "Edit catalog value" dialog, where you fill in Value, any Code and Active. The pencil button edits the selected value (only active when a value is selected). The minus button deletes the selected value (only active when selected). You can also double-click a value to open the edit dialog.
You can control the order of the values manually with the up arrow and down arrow above the list. The up arrow is only active when the selected value is not already at the top, and the down arrow only when it is not at the bottom. The manual order takes effect in the dropdown lists if the catalog's Sorting is set to By value. If the sorting is set to Alphabetical, your manual order is ignored and the values are shown in alphabetical order.
You can deactivate at two levels, and the consequences are different:
Deactivate the entire catalog (with the button in the list or the Active check box) makes the entire catalog no longer selectable anywhere in the system. Existing data that already points to the catalog's values is not changed, but no new values can be selected from it.
Deactivate a single value (the Active check box on the value itself) makes just that one value no longer selectable going forward, while the rest of the catalog's values continue to work. This is useful if an option is discontinued but you want to preserve the history on the products that already use it.
In general, deactivation is recommended over deletion, because deletion can be blocked if the value is already in use.
"System name not unique" — a catalog with the system name you have entered already exists. Choose another system name.
"The catalog is in use" — you are trying to delete a catalog or a catalog value that is already linked to data (e.g. products). Deactivate it instead of deleting it, so the history is preserved.
"The catalog is deactivated" — you are trying to use a catalog that has been set inactive. Reactivate the catalog on the catalog screen if it should be selectable.
The fields Display name, Description and the Value on the catalog values are localizable. This means they can be translated into multiple languages, so that, for example, a user with English as their language sees the text in English, while a Danish user sees the Danish text. You enter the translations in the field, and Sapera then shows the correct text based on the user's language. Fields such as System name and Code are not localizable — they are fixed, technical values.
Catalogs are a definition screen: here you *define* the selection lists, but the actual use takes place elsewhere in the system, primarily in the product area in Sapera.
Defined: On the catalog screen (this section) you create the catalog and its values.
Linked to: A catalog is typically linked to a product field or a product attribute. When an attribute is set up as a catalog field — either with a single choice (single) or multiple choices (multiple) — it points to a specific catalog, so that the attribute's possible values come from the catalog.
Used: When an employee later creates or edits a product, the catalog's values are shown as a dropdown list on the product's fields — e.g. product categories, product variants, product settings and product attributes. The user chooses among the catalog's values instead of typing free text. If the Allow adding values check box is set on the catalog, the user can create a new value directly from the product screen, and it is then added to the catalog.
In this way, one well-maintained catalog ensures consistent options everywhere it is used.
Want to know more?
Read more in these related articles:
Product fields
Create and manage user-defined product fields (attributes) that can be linked to product templates and thereby inherited by products.
Product templates
A product template is a configurable collection of product attributes that controls which dynamic fields are available on products and product categories. Templates can organize attributes into named groups and mark fields as visible in the webshop.
Product categories
Product categories in Financial are used to organize products and control posting, VAT, templates, stock and behavior in sales and purchasing. Here the financial accounts, product templates, unit types and trade terms that products in the category inherit automatically are defined.
