5.3 Configuring Public Views and Main Forms
Key Takeaways
- Grid search in a model-driven app searches only the find columns configured on the table's Quick Find view — adding a column to a public view does not make it searchable.
- Each table has one default public view; makers set it with Set as default in the table's Views list.
- Quick view forms render a related record read-only inside another table's form; quick create forms require the table's Allow quick create property and contain no tabs or subgrids.
- Multiple main forms per table are controlled by form order and security-role assignment, with an optional fallback form for unmatched users.
- Views and forms are table-level assets shared by every model-driven app that includes them — edit once and the change appears everywhere.
Views: System vs Personal
A view defines which rows and columns appear when users browse a table in a model-driven app. Dataverse distinguishes system views (defined at table level, visible to everyone) from personal views (saved by individual users and shareable user-to-user).
System view types to know by name:
| View type | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Public | Custom views makers create; every user of the app can pick them |
| Default Public | The one public view shown first when a table page opens |
| Quick Find | Drives grid search — its find columns are the columns searched |
| Lookup | Columns shown in lookup dropdown results |
| Associated | Rows shown when you open a related-records tab from a parent form |
| Advanced Find | The column set returned by legacy advanced find queries |
Personal views are created by end users from the grid's view editor (Save as new view), appear under My views, and can be shared with specific users or teams. They never change what other users see in system views.
Creating and editing a public view
Go to make.powerapps.com → Tables → [your table] → Data experiences → Views, then select New view (or open an existing public view). In the view designer you can:
- Add, reorder, and resize columns, including columns from related tables — for example, showing the Account's Primary Contact email on a view of Cases
- Set the sort order with a primary and a secondary sort column
- Define filters in the Filter by panel, such as Status equals Active and Created On in the last 30 days
- Rename the view, then Save and publish
To control which view users land on, open the table's view list, select a public view, and choose Set as default — there is one default public view per table. In the model-driven app designer, each table page exposes the views (and forms) you include; removing a public view from an app hides it from that app's view selector without deleting it.
Quick Find and find columns
When a user types in the grid search box, Dataverse searches only the find columns configured on the table's Quick Find view; the Quick Find view's regular view columns control what the search results display. Adding a column to a public view does not make it searchable — a frequent exam trap. Quick Find is also separate from the environment-wide, relevance-ranked Dataverse search, which has its own index and admin setting.
Main Forms and Friends
Model-driven apps use four form types:
| Form type | Used for |
|---|---|
| Main | Full record create/edit experience — tabs, sections, columns, subgrids, components |
| Quick create | Compact create form launched from the navigation bar + or a subgrid's New button; single-column layout, no tabs |
| Quick view | Read-only summary of a related record embedded on a form via its lookup — for example, showing key Account columns on an Order form |
| Card | Compact rendering of a row inside views and dashboards |
Building a main form
Open the table → Data experiences → Forms → open the main form, or edit it directly from the app designer. In the form designer you can:
- Drag table columns from the left pane onto sections; set labels, visibility, read-only, and required state
- Add components — subgrids for related records, the Timeline (notes, posts, activities), rich text, file, and Copilot/AI elements
- Organize the layout with tabs and sections, and show or hide standard elements such as the header, footer, and navigation
- Configure form libraries and event handlers (awareness level: JavaScript web resources can run on form events such as OnLoad and OnSave)
Multiple main forms, form order, and security
A table can have several main forms — for example, a streamlined Intake form and a full Investigation form. Form order determines which form a user sees by default, and forms can be restricted by security role so different teams get different forms; you can also designate a fallback form for users whose roles match no specific form. In the model-driven app designer you select which of the table's forms the app includes.
Exam traps:
- Quick create must be enabled on the table first (the table property Allow quick create), and the form cannot contain subgrids or tabs.
- A quick view form is always read-only — if the requirement says edit the parent record from the child form, quick view is the wrong answer.
- Views and forms live on the table, not inside one app: edits to a public view or main form appear in every model-driven app that includes them.
Where views and forms live
Everything above is table-level metadata managed from the table hub in make.powerapps.com (Tables → open table → Data experiences: Forms, Views, Charts, Keys, Dashboards). The modern model-driven app designer then references those assets: adding a table as a page brings in its views and forms, and the Data pane acts as the app's data workspace for binding additional tables. Because the assets are table-scoped, the same public view can be reused across multiple apps — but a maker editing it from one app changes it everywhere, which is why governance-minded teams document ownership of shared views and forms.
Users of a model-driven app report that typing a ticket number into the grid search box returns no rows, even though Ticket Number is displayed as a column in their current view. What should the maker change?
On an Order main form, users must see a read-only summary of the related Account (name, phone, city) without leaving the form. Which form type provides this?