A certification directory is a searchable or browsable public list of certification holders that you add to a Portal page. Your account can have multiple directories, such as one directory for each certification program or one combined directory for all holders.
What It Controls
A directory’s settings control which certifications appear by default, which fields visitors can search, and which extra fields templates can use on results and entry pages. They also control how search results are cached and refreshed, how results and individual entries appear, and whether visitors can message a holder or leave comments. Certification directories do not currently cross-link related listings, such as linking an organization on an individual’s entry to that organization’s directory entry, or listing an organization’s certified individuals with links from the organization’s entry.
Where to Find It
Go to Setup › Certifications › Directories to see every directory in your account. Select Create Certification Directory to add one, or use Edit or Clone on a row to change or copy an existing directory. A directory appears on your Portal only after you set up a Portal page to display that directory by its identifier. After you add or edit the Certifications Directory component on the Portal page, paste the directory’s ID into the component’s settings. Without that ID, the directory page can look like it is loading indefinitely instead of returning results. If your account uses more than one directory, such as one directory for each certification program, set up a separate Portal page for each directory so each one has its own link and entry point.
Manage a program’s own content, such as its description, at Setup › Programs › Catalog. Manage what a directory shows about that program at Setup › Certifications › Directories. If the default directory entry template does not render a program correctly, switch that directory to a custom template while you sort out the template issue. Cloning an existing directory can carry problem formatting into the new directory’s custom template. If a cloned directory’s template is hard to fix, it is usually faster to clone a different directory that renders correctly and adjust that copy.
The Settings
| Setting | Options | Default | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name / ID | Text / suggested from name, editable only on create | Blank | Identifies the directory in Setup and connects it to the Portal page block that displays it |
| Status | Active, Inactive | Active | Controls whether the directory appears in the default view of the Setup list |
| How displayed | Search, List | Search | Search shows visitors a search form, with optional distance search. List shows entries without a search form |
| Rebuild interval | A number of minutes, minimum 5 | 5 | Sets how long Rhythm reuses cached search results before rebuilding them. A longer interval improves performance but makes results less current |
| Results per page | A number, minimum 10 | 10 | Sets how many entries the Portal shows on each results page |
| This is a public directory | On/off | Off | Records the setting on the directory for reference. By itself, it does not restrict who can search or view the directory |
| Rule-Based Directory Constraints | On/off, then one or more rules | Off | When off, the directory lists only certifications with active status by default. When on, your rules replace that default entirely, so holders with lapsed, suspended, or retired certifications can appear if your rules do not include status |
| Expression-Based Directory Constraints | On/off, then an expression | Off | Gives you an advanced alternative or addition to rule-based constraints by using an expression instead of the rule builder |
| Searchable fields | A table of fields from the certifications query type, with optional group names and label overrides | Program, contact first name, last name, job title, email | Sets which fields visitors can search or filter by |
| Additional fields | A multi-select of query fields | Contact photo | Stores extra fields for result and entry templates, beyond the searchable fields |
| Directory entry | Nothing, Show default info, Use custom template | Show default info | Controls what visitors see when they open one holder’s entry |
| Custom search results template / custom sort | Optional advanced template and sort order | Off | Gives you more control over how results are laid out and ordered |
| Directory messaging | On/off | Off | Lets visitors send a message to a holder without seeing the holder’s email address |
| Radius / distance search | On/off, with a postal-code field and a list of distances | Off | Lets visitors search within a selected distance of a postal code |
| Comments and ratings | On/off (only shown when your account's directory comments feature is turned on) | Off | Lets visitors read comments and ratings on an entry, and lets signed-in visitors leave them |
Custom search results template and Directory entry › Use custom template are customized separately, and they do not always offer the same merge fields. Search results come from the directory’s query, while an individual entry comes from a separate lookup for that one record. Because of that, a field you added as an additional field, such as a field tied to a contact role, can appear in the Custom Search Results Template editor without appearing in the Directory Entry Template editor. Check both editors’ field lists before you assume a field is unavailable. You are also not limited to showing the certification owner’s name in either template. Add organization name as a searchable or additional field to display the organization instead of, or alongside, the owner’s name. To show a contact’s roles in a directory entry template, use an expression such as {{ contact.contact_role_ids | lookupName('rolodex-contact-roles') }} because contact roles are not exposed as an ordinary merge field. The expression resolves correctly even when a contact has more than one role.
The default directory entry template can render a program’s description as raw HTML instead of plain text. An additional field without a matching default layout can show only a generic “Custom Field” label instead of its real content. If an entry page shows code instead of formatted text, turn on Use custom template for the directory entry and apply a |safe filter to a rich-text field, such as a program description. The filter lets the field render as formatted text instead of markup. A custom template can also show the wrong information when a line is written as fixed text instead of a merge field. Fixed text displays the same way no matter what the record says, so if an entry shows a status that contradicts the record, check the template’s merge-field lines before you assume the record is wrong. If a certification-related merge field does not populate, also try the field name without a trailing “s”: use certification.* rather than certifications.*, because results can depend on which form the template uses.
A searchable field returns matches only when it is mapped to a field that is populated for the directory’s entries. For example, a location filter mapped to an organization’s address fields will not find individual holders whose location is on their own contact record. Map each filter to the field your directory’s holders actually use.
Dependencies and Precedence
- Rule-based constraints replace the active-only default, they don't add to it. If you turn on rule-based constraints and still want to list only active certifications, include a status condition in your rules. After your rules are in place, the built-in active-only default no longer applies.
- Saving discards the cached search copy. Each time you save a directory, Rhythm clears its cached search results, so the next visitor search rebuilds them from current data. A certification status change does not refresh the cache by itself. The refresh waits until the rebuild interval passes or until you save the directory again. For the same reason, an entry that shows an organization’s custom field can briefly lag behind the source record even outside a normal rebuild. If a value looks wrong, check again after the directory has had time to rebuild.
- A certification, not just a console record, must exist for a holder to appear. A contact or organization record in the Console is not enough. The directory lists only entries that have a certification, regardless of the record’s own status.
- A directory's Program field can lag behind your program catalog. The programs that appear are controlled partly by each program’s own “This program is visible in the portal” setting, not just by what exists in the catalog. They are also affected by the directory’s cached search results. If you add, delete, or edit a program, the directory’s Program list may not update right away. Resaving the affected program, or resaving the directory itself, can refresh it. There is currently no way to control the order programs appear in that list.
- Searchable fields are always included as additional fields, so you do not need to add a searchable field again under additional fields to use it in templates.
- List display mode still saves radius and searchable-field values even though those cards are hidden from the form when you choose List. If you switch back to Search later, older values can return with it, so review those settings when you change display modes.
Change Impact and How to Revert
You can change any directory setting at any time. Visitors see the change after the next cache rebuild, or immediately after you save the directory. Marking a directory Inactive removes it from the default view of the Setup list, but it does not move or delete the Portal page that displays it.
Permissions
To open Setup › Certifications › Directories and create, edit, clone, or delete a directory, you need administrator-level access to Certifications Setup. Portal visitors can search the directory, browse entries, and send messages without signing in because a public directory is meant to be found by the public.
Validation and Errors
- Name is required; Rebuild interval must be 5 or greater; Results per page must be 10 or greater. Each searchable or sort field row must have a field selected before you can add another row.
- If saving fails, Rhythm shows “Unable to save Certification Directory” and keeps your form data in place so you can correct it and try again.
- Delete removes the directory permanently. Nothing in the product is documented as blocking a directory’s deletion, so make sure no Portal page still points to it before you delete one.
Warning
The “This is a public directory” checkbox and eligibility criteria are not enforced as access controls for search, entry, or messaging. Treat your published fields and listing rules as the real controls for what the directory exposes, and do not rely on either setting to keep sensitive holders or fields out of a directory.
Related Tasks
To understand what visitors experience when they use a configured directory, see Search a Certification Directory and Contact a Holder. The fields a directory can search, store, or publish come from your certification records and any custom fields you have added to them; see Custom Fields. Directories list certifications tied to your Certification Programs.