Overview: A document profile in HowNow stores all the metadata and settings for a knowledge item. This guide explains how to access and modify these profiles, including details on advanced settings, revision history, and bulk editing capabilities.
Accessing and Editing a Document Profile
To view or edit the profile of a specific document:
Locate the document in the Search Results list within the Knowledge area.
Right-click on the document.
Select Profile from the context menu.
The Edit Document Profile wizard will appear, presenting several tabs with different settings.
Profile Tab: Core Document Information
This tab contains the fundamental details of the document.
Title: The main title of the document (maximum 80 characters).
Description: A summary or explanation of the document's content.
Standard Keywords: General keywords associated with the document.
Custom Keywords: User-defined keywords.
Note: Description, Standard Keywords, and Custom Keywords apply only to the specific edition of the document being edited. Custom keywords are not overwritten by content updates.
Document Type: Specifies the category of the document (e.g., Letter, Manual). Some document types may require a Procedural Area to be assigned.
Procedural Area: Specifies the relevant procedural area for the document.
In Use By: Shows the initials of the person currently using the document.
Clear Button: Use this to clear the "In Use By" field if the person is no longer logged into HowNow but the document remains locked.
This Item is Deleted: A checkbox indicating if the entire document item (all its editions) is in the Recycle Bin.
This Edition is Deleted: A checkbox indicating if this specific edition of the document is in the Recycle Bin.
Advanced Tab: Control and Status Settings
This tab provides options for controlling document behaviour, status, and ownership.
Open as editable document: Check this if standard HowNow users need to edit or add to this document (e.g., a shared log). By default, documents open as read-only.
Document is active: Uncheck this if the document is no longer used.
Inactive documents are marked with
[INACTIVE]in search results.If an inactive document is published, it will be set to inactive on the receiving system.
Document has been modified: This field is automatically checked if the document is a new edition or has been added, modified, or duplicated. It flags documents on the review list (title appears in red) to indicate they should be reviewed carefully, especially if they are part of a content update.
Add to Review List: Check this to add the document to your personal Review List.
Add to Favourites List: Check this to add the document to your personal Favourites List.
Author: Records the author of this document, if required.
Owner: Records the owner of this document, if required.
Approval Status: Used to manage the approval stage of this document within the review process.
Content Modules: Allows you to attach this document to, or detach it from, specific content modules.
Expiry date: Set a date for the document to expire.
Action on Expiry: Choose what happens when the expiry date is reached:
Warning Message: Users opening the document are warned it has expired but can still proceed.
Set To Inactive: The document is automatically set to inactive when an Administrator opens HowNow on or after the expiry date.
Settings Tab: Merge Fields, Auto-Filing, and Record Defaults
This tab configures settings related to document merging and integration with the HowNow Records module.
Document has merge fields: Check this if the document contains HowNow merge fields (e.g., standard letter templates).
Style Template: Attach or detach a style template to this document. This option is only available if "Document has merge fields" is checked.
Automatically File to Records: If the Records module is installed, check this to automatically prompt users to create a record whenever this document is opened.
You can also select to clear the description and/or keywords when auto-filing.
Default Record Title: Enter a title to be used as the default when a record is created from this document (either through merging or auto-filing).
Dynamic Titles: You can use placeholders to automatically embed information:
[RECORDID]: Inserts the record ID.[CONTACTFIELDNAME]: Inserts the value of a specified contact field.[YYYYMMDD]: Inserts the current date.Example:
[YYYYMMDD] [ENTITYNAME]would create a title like "20250516 Client Company Name".
Area and Default Record Location: Specify a default record location (and area) for records created using this document.
Lock Record Location in the Filing Wizard: If checked, users will be forced to use the default record location when creating a record from this document.
Revision Notes Tab
This tab displays a history of all revision notes created for this document profile. Each note typically details changes or updates made to the document.
Topics Tab
This tab only appears if Topics functionality has been enabled in your HowNow system.
Displays all available document topics.
A checkmark indicates the topics this document profile currently belongs to.
Check or uncheck a topic to add or remove the document from that topic.
Visibility Tab
This tab only appears if Teams functionality has been enabled in your HowNow system.
Displays all the teams you are a member of.
A checkmark indicates the teams this document profile is currently visible to.
Check or uncheck a team to assign or unassign the document's visibility to that team.
Audit Trail Tab
This tab displays a log of all actions performed on this document profile and its associated document.
Include Open History in Audit Trail: A checkbox at the bottom of the screen. By default, this is unchecked, meaning the audit trail does not show every instance the document was opened. Check it to include open events in the log.
Adding a Revision Note to a Document Profile
Revision notes help track changes and updates to a document.
Prerequisite: It's recommended to be familiar with "Adding Documents to HowNow" before adding revision notes.
Select the desired document in the search results.
Right-click and choose Revision Note from the menu.
The Revision Note Details dialog will appear.
Enter your note in the Details field. Notes should clearly describe the change or revision made.
Click OK.
The dialog will close, and your new note will be visible in the Revision Notes tab of the document's profile.
Editing Multiple Document Profiles (Bulk Editing)
This feature allows you to make changes to a range of document profiles simultaneously. Sufficient privileges are required to access this process.
Select Documents: In the search results list, select the range of documents you want to edit:
Click the first document, hold down the Shift key, and click the last document to select a consecutive range.
Hold down the Ctrl key while clicking individual documents to select non-consecutive items.
Access Profile Selection: Right-click on any of the selected documents and choose Profile Selection. The Edit Selected Document Profiles Wizard will appear.
Welcome Screen: This screen shows how many document profiles will be affected by the changes. Click Next to continue.
Select Edit Fields: The Select Edit Fields dialog will appear.
Check the boxes next to the field(s) you wish to edit for all selected documents.
Click Next to continue.
Edit Fields: The Edit Fields dialog will appear.
Modify the values for the selected fields as required.
Note: For some fields, you can attach and remove attributes (e.g., add to a team and remove from another) in the same operation.
Click Next to continue.
Notification Screen: This screen provides a summary of the fields being edited and the changes to be applied.
Carefully review the changes.
Click the Finish button to process the bulk update.