Formprofile

Formprofile is a term used in software engineering to denote a structured description of a form’s structure and behavior that is consumed by a form builder or rendering engine. It serves as a portable artifact that defines how a form should be generated, validated, and bound to data in an application.

A formprofile typically includes metadata such as name, version, and locale, followed by a collection of field definitions. Each field specifies an identifier, type (for example text, number, date, boolean, select), constraints (required, min/max, pattern), default values, options for select-type fields, and help text. In addition to fields, a formprofile may contain layout instructions, grouping information, tab order, and accessibility attributes. Behavioral specifications can cover validation rules, conditional visibility, dynamic field behavior, and event handlers for submit or change events. Data binding details indicate the target data model or API endpoints and how user input maps to backend structures.

Formprofiles are commonly serialized in formats such as JSON, YAML, or XML and can be stored in versioned repositories or integrated into content management systems and enterprise software. They enable reuse and customization by applying different profiles to various user roles, locales, or contexts, while allowing a rendering engine to generate consistent user interfaces across applications and channels.

Related concepts include form schema, form template, and form engine. Considerations when using formprofiles include schema evolution, localization, accessibility compliance, and security of validation and data handling.