🛑 IMPORTANT: The Profile Extender add-on and previous method of managing custom fields has been deprecated and replaced with the process discussed in this article: Custom Profile Fields. Existing profile fields have been migrated to the new system.
The Profile Extender addon allows you to create custom fields for users to add to their profiles.
Enable Profile Extender
Profile Extender is available at every plan level. To enable it:
- Access the Dashboard.
- Navigate to Settings > Addons > Addons.
- Click the Profile Extender toggle to turn it ON.
Manage your Profile Fields
On the Settings > Addons > Addons page, click the settings icon for the Profile Extender addon.
The resulting page lists your existing Profile Fields. Here, you can edit, delete, and create Profile Fields.
To create one, click the Add Field button at the top right.
Let's take a look at the two main aspects of configuring a Profile Field.
Types of Profile Fields
There are four types of profile fields:
- TextBox - This is a manual entry text box. By default, this is a single-line box that can contain any information. If you require a full-sized box for longer descriptions, it will need to be configured as such by Vanilla. In this case, Vanilla can also set a character limit.Â
- Dropdown - This field type allows users to select from a predetermined list of items. Upon selecting Dropdown, the Options field appears where you can add the options that will appear in the dropdown (list each item on a separate line, as shown below).Â
- Checkbox - This is a simple toggle checkbox. If enabled, users will only have the option to check it, and is meant as a consent box. This is not appropriate as an opt-in, such as a newsletter.Â
- Birthday - This creates a field where users can select their date of birth. Three dropdowns will appear for users to input their day, month, and year.
Profile Field availability
There are three options to control a field's availability:
- Required for all users: Controls whether a field mandatory or optional.
- Show on registration: Controls whether a field is presented to users during registration, allowing them to choose whether to fill it out (unless it's required).
- Show on profiles: Controls whether a field visible or hidden to other users.
Specific account fieldsÂ
If you’d like for users to be able to add their social media accounts or website to their profiles, create a TextBox type field, and name it exactly the type of account it is. When a user adds their handle, website URL or social media username, Vanilla will automatically translate this into a link to those profiles.Â
This works for the following services:Â
- LinkedIn: Add account name, as in linkedin.com/ACCOUNTNAME
- Facebook: Add account name, as in facebook.com/ACCOUNTNAME
- GitHub: Add account name, as in github.com/ACCOUNTNAME
- Twitter: Add twitter handle
- Instagram: Add Instagram handle
For example, adding "vanillauser" would create a link to facebook.com/vanillauser, or instagram.com/vanillauser automatically.
- Website: Add the URL without the HTTP information. For example,
www.websitename.com will create an automatic link to http://www.websitename.com.
