Categories

What Categories Are For

Categories are the top level of the filing structure for QMS Records. Their purpose is to give every record a defined home, so there is no ambiguity about where a completed record belongs.

The category list for records is separate from the one used by QMS Documents. This is deliberate: it gives you the freedom to organize records in a way that suits records specifically, without being tied to how documents are grouped.

To make initial setup easier, categories stay loosely connected between the two areas. When a category is created in QMS Documents, a matching category is created automatically in QMS Records. The two are decoupled after that, so you can add, rename, or remove record categories independently. You can see the synced result from your dashboard under My Records.

Under QMS Records in the left navigation, select Categories. The list shows each category by Number and Name.

Creating a Category

Select New to open a blank category form.

Enter the Number and Name. Both are required. You can add an optional Description to explain what the category is for.

Select Save. The saved category opens with a Subcategories list, where any subcategories you add to it will appear.

Opening a Category

Select a category name in the list to open it. The category form shows its Number, Name, and Description, along with two lists.

The Subcategories list shows the subcategories that belong to this category.

The QMS Records list shows the records filed under this category, with each record's status and the template it was created from. You can open a record from here, or add one with New QMS Record.

Managing Categories From The List

The category list has a toolbar of actions. To use most of them, select a category first using its checkbox, then choose the action.

New creates a new category.
Edit opens the selected category so you can change its details.
Deactivate marks a category as obsolete and removes it from the default list. A deactivated category no longer appears in All Records Categories, but you can still find it under the Inactive Records Categories view. Activate returns a deactivated category to the default active list.
Delete removes the selected category.

When you delete a category, a confirmation dialog appears first. Deletion cannot be undone, although an administrator can attempt to recover the category if needed.

A category can only be deleted once it is empty. If it still contains records, deletion is blocked and an error appears. In that case, move or delete the records first, then delete the category.

To switch between active and deactivated categories, use the view selector next to the list title. All Records Categories is the default view and shows the active ones; Inactive Records Categories shows those that have been deactivated.